Distribution of multinomial and \(q\)-binomial coefficients modulo \(p\) (Q1815080)

The authors give an asymptotic formula as \(N\to\infty\) for the number of multinomial coefficients \({n\choose {k_1\dots k_r}}\) with \(n\leq N\) which are in a nonzero residue class modulo \(p\) a prime number. In particular this formula shows that the multinomial coefficients not divisible by \(p\) are equidistributed modulo \(p\). The proof of the asymptotic formula is based on an expansion of these numbers in a sum indexed by characters of the multiplicative group of the field with \(p\) elements. Similar formulas can be obtained for the distribution of the Gaussian binomial \({n\brack k}_q\), viewed as a polynomial in \(q\), modulo a given irreducible polynomial with coefficients in the field with \(p\) elements.