A non-solvable Galois extension of \(\mathbb Q\) ramified at 2 only (Q1004533)

\textit{B. H. Gross} [Int. Math. Res. Not. 1998, No. 16, 865--875 (1998; Zbl 0978.11018)] proposed the following conjecture: for any prime number \(p\), there exists a finite non-solvable Galois extension \(K/\mathbb Q\) ramified at \(p\) only. Via results of Serre, one knows how to construct such an extension for primes \(p\geq 11\). In this note, the author settles the conjecture for \(p= 2\), by using the Galois representations attached to Hilbert modular forms over the maximal totally real subfield \(F\) of the cyclotomic field \(\mathbb Q(\zeta_{32})\). Precisely: Theorem. There exist two \(\text{SL}_2(\mathbb F_{2^8})\)-extensions \(E/F\) and \(E'/F\) ramified at the unique prime ideal above 2 only. The fields \(E\) and \(E'\) are both Galois over \(\mathbb Q(\sqrt{2})\), with Galois group \(\text{SL}_2(\mathbb F_{2^8}).4\), and are interchanged by \(\text{Gal}(\mathbb Q(\sqrt{2})/\mathbb Q)\). Corollary. There exists a finite, totally complex, non-solvable Galois extension \(K/\mathbb Q\) that is ramified at 2 only, with Galois group \(\text{SL}_2(\mathbb F_{2^8})^2.8\). Moreover, the root discriminant of \(K\) is \(< 2^{{47\over 8}}= 58,68\dots\). This bound has been lowered by \textit{J.-P. Serre} [C. R., Math., Acad. Sci. Paris 347, No. 3--4, 117--118 (2009; Zbl 1167.11041)].