arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Thomas J. Tucker.
Let K be a number field and let f(x) = x^q + c where q is a prime power, c is in K, and f is not post-critically finite. We show that for any strictly preperiodic b in K, the iterated Galois group at b with respect to f has finite index in the generic iterated Galois group for f.
In this paper, we explore a variety of finiteness questions for preperiodic points of morphisms. We begin by treating a group action analog of the Burnside problem for torsion groups using the p-adic arc method. We then prove some results connecting commonality of preperiodic points for elements of an automorphism group with structural properties of the group; these results are related to well-known results of Tits and Borel. We finish by proving some Northcott-type results for finite morphisms.
We provide an explicit construction of the arboreal Galois group for the postcritically finite polynomial $f(z) = z^2 +c$, where $c$ belongs to some arbitrary field of characteristic not equal to $2$. In this first of two papers, we consider the case that the critical point is periodic.
In a previous paper, we provided an explicit description of the arboreal Galois group of the postcritically finite polynomial $f(z) = z^2 +c$ in the special case when the critical point $0$ is periodic under the action of $f(z)$. In the current paper, we complete the picture for all postcritically finite polynomials by addressing the cases when $0$ is strictly preperiodic for the polynomial $f(z)$.
We treat the problem of finding transitive subgroups G of S_n containing normal subgroups N_1 and N_2, with N_1 transitive and N_2 not transitive, such that G/N_1 is isomorphic G/N_2. We show that such G exist whenever n has a prime factor that also divides the Euler-phi function of n. We show that no such G exist when n = pq for p < q with p not dividing q-1.
We obtain a criterion for when the specialization of the iterated Galois group for a post-critically finite (PCF) rational map is as large as possible, i.e., it equals the generic iterated Galois group for the given map.
We prove a characteristic $p$ version of a theorem of Silverman on integral points in orbits over number fields and establish a primitive prime divisor theorem for polynomials in this setting. We provide some applications of these results, including a finite index theorem for arboreal representations coming from quadratic polynomials over function fields of odd characteristic.
We prove an analog of the Tits alternative for rational functions. In particular, we show that if $S$ is a finitely generated semigroup of rational functions over the complex numbers, then either $S$ has polynomially bounded growth or $S$ contains a nonabelian free semigroup. We also show that if f and g are polarizable maps over any field that do not have the same set of preperiodic points, then the semigroup generated by f and g contains a nonabelian free semigroup.
We formulate a general question regarding the size of the iterated Galois groups associated to an algebraic dynamical system and then we discuss some special cases of our question.
Let $K$ be the function field of a smooth, irreducible curve defined over $\overline{\mathbb{Q}}$. Let $f\in K[x]$ be of the form $f(x)=x^q+c$ where $q = p^{r}, r \ge 1,$ is a power of the prime number $p$, and let $β\in \overline{K}$. For all $n\in\mathbb{N}\cup\{\infty\}$, the Galois groups $G_n(β)=\mathop{\rm{Gal}}(K(f^{-n}(β))/K(β))$ embed into $[C_q]^n$, the $n$-fold wreath product of the cyclic group $C_q$. We show that if $f$ is not isotrivial, then $[[C_q]^\infty:G_\infty(β)]<\infty$ unless $β$ is postcritical or periodic. We are also able to prove that if $f_1(x)=x^q+c_1$ and $f_2(x)=x^q+c_2$ are two such distinct polynomials, then the fields $\bigcup_{n=1}^\infty K(f_1^{-n}(β))$ and $\bigcup_{n=1}^\infty K(f_2^{-n}(β))$ are disjoint over a finite extension of $K$.
Arithmetic dynamics is the study of number theoretic properties of dynamical systems. A relatively new field, it draws inspiration partly from dynamical analogues of theorems and conjectures in classical arithmetic geometry, and partly from $p$-adic analogues of theorems and conjectures in classical complex dynamics. In this article we survey some of the motivating problems and some of the recent progress in the field of arithmetic dynamics.
Using methods of p-adic analysis, along with the powerful result of Medvedev-Scanlon (Annals of Mathematics, 2014) for the classification of periodic subvarieties of (P^1)^n, we bound the length of the orbit of a periodic subvariety Y of (P^1)^n under the action of a dominant endomorphism.
Let $K$ be a number field or a function field. Let $f\in K(x)$ be a rational function of degree $d\geq 2$, and let $β\in\mathbb{P}^1(K)$. For all $n\in\mathbb{N}\cup\{\infty\}$, the Galois groups $G_n(β)=\text{Gal}(K(f^{-n}(β))/K)$ embed into $\text{Aut}(T_n)$, the automorphism group of the $d$-ary rooted tree of level $n$. A major problem in arithmetic dynamics is the arboreal finite index problem: determining when $[\text{Aut}(T_\infty):G_\infty]<\infty$. When $f$ is a cubic polynomial and $K$ is a function field of transcendence degree $1$ over an algebraic extension of $\mathbb{Q}$, we resolve this problem by proving a list of necessary and sufficient conditions for finite index. This is the first result that gives necessary and sufficient conditions for finite index, and can be seen as a dynamical analog of the Serre Open Image Theorem. When $K$ is a number field, our proof is conditional on both the $abc$ conjecture for $K$ and Vojta's conjecture for blowups of $\mathbb{P}^1\times\mathbb{P}^1$. We also use our approach to solve some natural variants of the finite index problem for modified trees.
Let a and b be algebraic numbers such that exactly one of a and b is an algebraic integer, and let f_t(z):=z^2+t be a family of polynomials parametrized by t. We prove that the set of all algebraic numbers t for which there exist positive integers m and n such that f_t^m(a)=f_t^n(b) has bounded Weil height. This is a special case of a more general result supporting a new bounded height conjecture in dynamics. Our results fit into the general setting of the principle of unlikely intersections in arithmetic dynamics.
Given a smooth projective curve C defined over a number field and given two elliptic surfaces E_1/C and E_2/C along with sections P_i and Q_i of E_i (for i = 1,2), we prove that if there exist infinitely many algebraic points t on C such that for some integers m_{1,t} and m_{2,t}, we have that [m_{i,t}](P_i)_t = (Q_i)_t on E_i (for i = 1,2), then at least one of the following conclusions must hold: either (i) there exists an isogeny f between E_1 and E_2 and also there exists a nontrivial endomorphism g of E_2 such that f(P_1) = g(P_2); or (ii) Q_i is a multiple of P_i for some i = 1,2. A special case of our result answers a conjecture made by Silverman.
Following work of Bugeaud, Corvaja, and Zannier for integers, Ailon and Rudnick prove that for any multiplicatively independent polynomials, $a, b \in {\mathbb C}[x]$, there is a polynomial $h$ such that for all $n$, we have \[ \gcd(a^n - 1, b^n - 1) \mid h\] We prove a compositional analog of this theorem, namely that if $f, g \in {\mathbb C}[x]$ are nonconstant compositionally independent polynomials and $c(x) \in {\mathbb C}[x]$, then there are at most finitely many $λ$ with the property that there is an $n$ such that $(x - λ)$ divides $\gcd(f^{\circ n}(x) - c(x), g^{\circ n}(x) - c(x))$.
Let K be a number field or a function field of characteristic 0, let f be a K-rational function of degree greater than 1, and let a be an element of K. Let S be a finite set of places of K containing all the archimedean ones and the primes where f has bad reduction. After excluding all the natural counter-examples, we define a subset A(f,a) of pairs of integers (m,n) with m nonnegative and n positive, and show that for all but finitely many (m,n) in A(f,a) there is a prime p of K which is not in S such that the p-adic valuation of f^{m+n}(a)-f^m(a) is precisely equal to 1, and moreover a has portrait (m,n) under the action of f modulo p. This latter condition implies that the p-adic valuation of f^{u+v}(a)-f^u(a) is not positive if u is a nonnegative integer and v is a positive integer with u<m or v<n. Our proof assumes a conjecture of Vojta in the number field case and is unconditional in the function field case thanks to a deep theorem of Yamanoi. This paper extends earlier work of Ingram-Silverman, Faber-Granville, and of the authors.
Let $c_1, c_2, c_3$ be distinct complex numbers, and let $d\ge 3$ be an integer. We show that the set of all pairs $(a,b)\in \mathbb{C}\times \mathbb{C}$ such that each $c_i$ is preperiodic for the action of the polynomial $x^d+ax+b$ is not Zariski dense in the affine plane.