Elementary proof for a Van der Waerden's conjecture and related theorems (Q1921227)

In a previous paper [J. Comb. Inf. Syst. Sci. 2, 107-113 (1977; Zbl 0401.15006)], the author proved that if \(A\) is an \(n\times n\) doubly stochastic matrix, and if \(p\geq 0\), \(q\geq 0\), \(p+q=1\), then \(p^2\text{Per}(AA^*)^{1/2}+q^2\text{Per}(A^*A)^{1/2}+2pq\text{Per} A\geq n!/n^n\) with equality if and only if all entries of the matrix equal \(n^{-1}\), where \(A^*\) denotes the transpose of the matrix \(A\). By showing that this proposition is equivalent to a well-known conjecture of Van der Waerden: For an \(n\times n\) doubly stochastic matrix \(A\), \(\text{Per} A\geq n!/n^n\) with equality if and only if all entries of the matrix \(A\) equal \(n^{-1}\), he gives an elementary proof for the conjecture. Then he shows similar equivalence theorems concerning permanents of doubly stochastic matrices, moreover he gives a refinement of Van der Waerden's theorem. Finally, he deals with the probabilistic interpretation of some previous results.