arXiv · 2605.05200
On a polynomial involving quadratic residues modulo primes
Abstract
Let $p$ be an odd prime, and define $$G_p(x)=\prod_{k=1}^{(p-1)/2}\left(x-e^{2\pi i k^2/p}\right).$$ In this paper we study values of $G_p(x)$ at roots of unity via Galois theory, and confirm some previous conjectures. For example, for any primitive tenth root $\zeta$ of unity, we prove that $$G_p(\zeta)=\begin{cases}(-1)^{|\{1\le k\le \frac {p+9}{10}:\ (\frac kp)=-1\}|} &\text{if}\ p\equiv21\pmod{40}, \\(-1)^{|\{1\le k\le\frac {p+1}{10}:\ (\frac kp)=-1\}|}\zeta^{2}&\text{if}\ p\equiv 29\pmod{40}, \end{cases}$$ where $(\frac kp)$ denotes the Legendre symbol.
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Zhi-Wei Sun. 2026-05-06. On a polynomial involving quadratic residues modulo primes. https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.05200
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