arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Christopher D. Sinclair.
We give a method for computing the ensemble average of multiplicative class functions over the Gaussian ensemble of real asymmetric matrices. These averages are expressed in terms of the Pfaffian of Gram-like antisymmetric matrices formed with respect to a skew-symmetric inner product related to the class function.
We study the geometry, topology and Lebesgue measure of the set of monic conjugate reciprocal polynomials of fixed degree with all roots on the unit circle. The set of such polynomials of degree N is naturally associated to a subset of $\R^{N-1}$. We calculate the volume of this set, prove the set is homeomorphic to the $N-1$ ball and that its isometry group is isomorphic to the dihedral group of order $2N$.
We study the distribution of Mahler's measures of reciprocal polynomials with complex coefficients and bounded even degree. We discover that the distribution function associated to Mahler's measure restricted to monic reciprocal polynomials is a reciprocal (or anti-reciprocal) Laurent polynomial on [1,\infty) and identically zero on [0,1). Moreover, the coefficients of this Laurent polynomial are rational numbers times a power of π. We are led to this discovery by the computation of the Mellin transform of the distribution function. This Mellin transform is an even (or odd) rational function with poles at small integers and residues that are rational numbers times a power of π. We also use this Mellin transform to show that the volume of the set of reciprocal polynomials with complex coefficients, bounded degree and Mahler's measure less than or equal to one is a rational number times a power of π.