A structure theorem on formally smooth morphisms in positive characteristic (Q1083487)

The authors consider local formally smooth morphisms \(u: A\to B\) of noetherian local rings with residue fields of characteristic \(p>0.\) Their main result: Suppose that (i) the residue field K of B has a separate p- basis over the residue field k of A (i.e. a p-basis \(x=(x_ i)_{i\in I}\) such that K:k(x) is a separable extension) or (ii) B is complete; then there exist a noetherian local A-algebra \(\tilde A\) and a local A- morphism \(\tilde u: \tilde A\to B\) such that (a) \(\tilde u\) is formally smooth again, (b) \(\tilde A\) has the same dimension as B, and (c) \(\tilde A\) has a ''good'' A-structure, more precisely: \(\tilde A\) is a localization of a polynomial ring over A in case (i), and at least an inductive limit of localizations of polynomial rings over A in case (ii). (This result is well-known and rather straightforward to prove if the extension K:k is separable.) The paper contains a detailed study of extensions K:k with a separate p-basis and also of extensions without such a basis. Furthermore the authors give an application to the Néron desingularization of arbitrary formally smooth morphism.