Fields maximal with respect to a set of orderings (Q1104361)

The author studies two concepts of closure of a formally real field. A formally real field is order closed if it has no algebraic extension to which all oderings extend uniquely. A formally real field is strongly order closed if it has no algebraic extension to which all orderings extend. A (strong) order closure of a formally real field F is a (strongly) order closed field to which all orderings of F extend uniquely. Some relationships between order closed, strongly order closed, and Galois order closed fields are discussed. It is obvious that every strongly order closed field is order closed. The converse implication holds if the following statement is true: For every odd degree extension L of a formally real field K there is an element \(c\in L\) such that the restriction mapping \(X_ L(c)\to X_ K\) is a homeomorphism. \((X_ K\) is the space of orderings of the field K and \(X_ L(c)=\{P\in X_ L: c\in P\}.)\) The author shows that the statement is true if K is in one of two large classes of fields: those for which every odd degree extension satisfies SAP or those for which there are only finitely many places into the real numbers. The problem remains open in general. Also the real valuations of order closed and strongly order closed fields are studied. In the last part the relationships between the Witt ring of a field and the Witt ring of its order closure are investigated.