Relatively projective groups as absolute Galois groups (Q1611537)

This paper provides a simplified proof of the fact that the free product of finitely many absolute Galois groups is again an absolute Galois group, and also describes the absolute Galois group of multiply valued fields satisfying a local-global principle for rational points on varieties. The first main result of this paper is a proof of the following Theorem: Given fields \(F_1, \dots, F_n\), there is a field \(F\) of characteristic \(0\) with \(G_F \cong G_{F_1} * \cdots * G_{F_n}\) (where \(G_K\) denotes the absolute Galois group of the field \(K\)). Moreover, if \(F_1, \dots, F_n\) are all of characteristic \(p > 0\), then \(F\) can be chosen to have characteristic \(p\). This theorem essentially follows from a result of \textit{F. Pop} [Preprint, Mathematisches Institut Heidelberg, 1990] and a proof was first published in [\textit{Yu. Ershov}, Dokl. Math. 56, 915-917 (1997; Zbl 0961.12002)]. The proof given here, however, is simpler in several aspects. A profinite group \(G\) is said to be projective relative to subgroups \(G_1, \dots, G_n\) of \(G\) if each epimorphism \(\pi : H \to G\) of profinite groups which splits locally also splits globally. The theorem above is generalized to show Theorem: Let \(G\) be a profinite group which is projective relative to subgroups \(G_1, \dots, G_n\), and assume that each \(G_i\) is an absolute Galois group. Then \(G\) is an absolute Galois group of some field of characteristic 0. Moreover, if all \(G_i\) can be realized over fields of thesame fixed positive characteristic, then so can \(G\). The second main result is an improvement on a result of Pop and Ershov on the absolute Galois group of regularly closed fields. An \(n\)-fold valued field \((F, v_i, \dots, v_n)\) with corresponding henselizations \(F_1, \dots, F_n\) is regularly closed if every absolutely irreducible (affine) \(F\)-variety with a simple \(F_i\)-rational point for each \(i\) has an \(F\)-rational point. This article in fact provides a proof of the following relative analogue of the characterization of projective profinite groups as absolute Galois groups given by \textit{J. Ax} [Ann. Math. (2) 88, 239-271 (1968; Zbl 0195.05701)] and \textit{A. Lubotzky} and \textit{L. van den Dries} [Isr. J. Math. 39, 25-45 (1981; Zbl 0485.20021)]. Theorem. Let \(G\) be a profinite group with subgroups \(G_1, \dots, G_n\), where each \(G_i\) is isomorphic to some absolute Galois group. Then \(G\) is strongly projective relative to \(G_1, \dots, G_n\) if and only if \(G\) is isomorphic to the absolute Galois group of a regularly closed \(n\)-fold valued field \((F, v_1, \dots, v_n)\), where \(v_1,\dots, v_n\) are independent and where, for each \(i\), the isomorphism \(G \cong G_F\) maps \(G_i\) onto a decomposition subgroup of \(G_F\) with respect to \(v_i\).