On periodic alternate base expansions (Q6048608)

Assume that \(\beta_i>1\) for \(i=0,1,\dots,p-1\) and \(\beta=(\beta_0,\dots,\beta_{p-1})\). Then a \(\beta\)-representation (in an alternate base \(\beta\)) of a real number \(x\) is an infinite sequence of integers \(a_1,a_2,a_3,\dots\) satisfying \[ x= \sum_{m=0}^{\infty} \sum_{i=0}^{p-1} \frac{a_{mp+i}}{(\beta_0 \dots \beta_{p-1})^m \beta_0 \dots \beta_i}. \] Let also \(\beta^{(n)}\) be the vector \((\beta_n,\dots, \beta_{n+p-1})\), where \(\beta_n\) is defined as \(\beta_{n \pmod p}\), and let \(\mathrm{Per}(\beta)\) be the set of real numbers in \([0,1)\) with ultimately periodic greedy \(\beta\)-expansion. In Theorem 1 the authors prove the following. Firstly, if \({\mathbb Q} \cap [0,1) \subseteq \bigcap_{i=0}^{p-1} \mathrm{Per}(\beta^{(i)})\), then \(\beta_0,\dots,\beta_{p-1} \in {\mathbb Q}(\alpha)\), where \(\alpha:=\prod_{i=0}^{p-1} \beta_i\), and \(\alpha\) is either Pisot number or a Salem number. Secondly, if \(\alpha\) is a Pisot number and \(\beta_0,\dots,\beta_{p-1} \in {\mathbb Q}(\alpha)\), then \(\mathrm{Per}(\beta)={\mathbb Q} \cap [0,1)\). In Theorem 3 they show that if \(\beta_0,\dots,\beta_{p-1} \in {\mathbb Q}(\alpha)\), where \(\alpha=\prod_{i=0}^{p-1} \beta_i\) is an algebraic integer, which is neither Pisot nor Salem number, then \(\mathrm{Per}(\beta) \cap {\mathbb Q}\) is nowhere dense in the interval \([0,1)\). The paper is concluded with several open questions.