Involutions in the group of automorphisms of an algebraically closed field (Q1204393): Difference between revisions

This paper is concerned with the group of automorphisms of algebraically closed fields. It is well known that the nontrivial subgroups of finite order in the group of automorphisms of an algebraically closed field \(A\) are subgroups of order 2, i.e. subgroups which are generated by an involution. Let \(A\) denote an algebraically closed field of characteristic 0. Dieudonné has shown that if the transcendence degree of \(A\) over its prime subfield \(\mathbb{Q}\) is finite and equal to \(n\), then there are at least \(n+1\) conjugacy classes of involutions in \(\Aut A\); further, if the transcendence degree is infinite, then there are an infinite number of conjugacy classes of involutions in \(\Aut A\). The author proves the following result: The following statements are equivalent: (a) \(A\) is of positive transcendence degree over \(\mathbb{Q}\); (b) There are infinitely many conjugacy classes of involutions in \(\Aut A\).