English

Counting primitive integral solutions to spherical generalized Fermat equations

Number Theory 2026-05-28 v2

Abstract

A solution (x,y,z)Z3{(0,0,0)}(x,y,z) \in \mathbb{Z}^3-\{(0,0,0)\} to a generalized Fermat equation Axa+Byb+Czc=0, Ax^a + By^b + Cz^c = 0, is called \emph{primitive} if gcd(x,y,z)=1\gcd(x,y,z) = 1. By work of Beukers, we know that in the \emph{spherical} regime (that is, when the Euler characteristic χ=1a+1b+1c1\chi = \tfrac{1}{a} + \tfrac{1}{b} + \tfrac{1}{c} - 1 is positive), if the equation has one primitive solution, then it has infinitely many. In this work, we use the method of \emph{Fermat descent}, as employed by Poonen--Schaefer--Stoll, to refine Beukers' result to an asymptotic count of the number of primitive integral solutions of bounded height.

Cite

@article{arxiv.2508.13093,
  title  = {Counting primitive integral solutions to spherical generalized Fermat equations},
  author = {Santiago Arango-Piñeros},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2508.13093},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

Part of my PhD thesis. Comments welcome!

R2 v1 2026-07-01T04:55:10.537Z