On Zariski's cancellation problem in positive characteristic (Q400983): Difference between revisions

There is a famous \textbf{cancellation conjecture}, saying that if \(M\) is an algebraic variety, \(\mathbb A\) is affine line, and \(M\times{\mathbb A}\simeq {\mathbb A}^k\), then \(M\simeq{\mathbb A}^{k-1}\). \medskip The author was the first person who disproved it, see [\textit{N. Gupta}, Invent. Math. 195, No. 1, 279--288 (2014; Zbl 1309.14050)]. In the paper, the author shows that when \(k\) is a field of any positive characteristic the affine space \({\mathbb A}^n_k\) is not cancellative for any \(n\geq 3\). More precisely, she shows (Theorem 3.7) that for any non-trivial line \(f(Z,T)\in k[Z,T]\) the ring \[ A =k[X_1,\dots,X_m,Y,Z,T]/(X_1^{r_1}\cdots X_m^{r_m}Y - f(Z, T)), \] where \(r_i > 1\) for each \(i\), \(1\leq i \leq m\), is not a polynomial ring but is a stably polynomial ring; i.e., \(A\not\simeq k[t_1,\dots,t_{m+2}]\) but \(A[y] \simeq k[t_1,\dots,t_{m+3}]\). Stability is shown similar to the Azanuma method, and non-triviality via the Derksen invariant. The \textit{Derksen invariant} of \(A\) is the subring of \(A\) generated by the ring of invariants of all non-trivial exponential maps on \(A\). For ring of polynomials it coincides with the whole ring.