On a functional equation arising from number theory (Q619840): Difference between revisions

Let \(H\) be a commutative semigroup, \(K\) be an abelian group and \({\mathbb F}\) be a field. Let \(\phi:{\mathbb F}^4\to{\mathbb F}^2\) be a function such that there exists a bijective function \(\alpha:{\mathbb F}^2\to H^2\) satisfying \[ \alpha(\phi(x,y,u,v))=\alpha(x,y)\alpha(u,v). \] The authors prove that the general solution \(f:{\mathbb F}^2\to K\) of the functional equation \[ f(\phi(x,y,u,v))=f(x,y)f(u,v) \] is given by \[ f(x,y)=M_1(\alpha_1(x,y))M_2(\alpha_2(x,y)), \] where \(M_1,M_2:H\to K\) are semigroup morphisms, and \(\alpha_1,\alpha_2\) are coordinate functions of \(\alpha:{\mathbb F}^2\to H^2\).