Places of algebraic function fields in arbitrary characteristic (Q1886580)

Let \(F/K\) be an algebraic function field of arbitrary characteristic and of transcendence degree \(n\). The author investigates the structure of the Zariski space of its places in terms of patch (or constructible) topology. Let \(S(F|K;\wp)\) be the set of all places \(P\) of \(F\) which extend a place \(\wp\) of \(K\). The patch topology on \(S(F|K;\wp)\) is the finest topology, for which the basic open sets are \(\{P\in S(F|K;\wp) | a_1, \dots,a_k\in\mathcal{O}_P,; b_1,\dots,b_l\in \mathcal{M}_P\}\), where \(k,l\in\mathbb{N}\cup\{0\}\), \(\mathcal{O}_P\) is the valuation ring at \(P\) and \(\mathcal{M}_P\) is its maximal ideal. Set \(\mathrm{rr}\,P=\dim_\mathbb{Q}\mathbb{Q}\otimes (v_PF/v_\wp K)\). One of the main results of the paper is the following (Theorem 1): Let \(Q\in S(F|K;\wp)\) and \(a_1,\dots,a_m\in F\). Then there exists a place \(P\in S(F|K;\wp)\) with value group finitely generated over \(v_\wp K\) and residue field finitely generated over \(K\wp\), such that \(a_iP=a_iQ \) and \(v_Pa_i=v_Qa_i\) for \(1\leq i \leq m\). Moreover, if \(r_1\) and \(d_1\) are natural numbers satisfying \(\dim Q\leq d_1, \mathrm{rr}\,Q\leq r_1\) and \(1\leq r_1+d_1\leq n\), then \(P\) may be chosen to satisfy in addition: (a) \(\dim P=d_1\) and \(FP\) is a subfield of the rational function field in \(d_1-\dim Q\) variables over the perfect hull of \(FQ\); (b) \(\mathrm{rr}\,P=r_1\) and \(v_P\) is a subgroup of an \((r_1-\mathrm{rr}Q)\)-extension of the \(p\)-divisible hull of \(v_QF\). The above remains true even for \(d_1=0=r_1\), provided that each finite extension of \((K,\wp)\) admits an immediate extension of transcendence degree \(r\). This theorem implies that the set of all places with finitely generated value group modulo \(v_\wp K\) and with residue field finitely generated over \(K\wp\) is dense in \(S(F|K;\wp)\). The same holds for its subset of all Abhyankar places. Preserving the condition of Theorem 1 and choosing \(d_1\) and \(r_1\) the author also proves (Theorems 3 and 7) the existence of places \(P\) having some properties similar to (a) and (b) above which allow him to deduce, among other things, the following facts: the set of prime divisors of \(F|K\) is dense in the set \(S(F|K)\) of all places of \(F\) that are trivial on \(K\); the set of zero-dimensional places with finitely generated value group and residue field a finite extension of \(K\) is dense in \(S(F|K)\); the set of discrete zero-dimensional places with residue field a finite extension of \(K\) is dense in \(S(F|K)\). If, in addition, \(K\) is perfect, then the sets of discrete rational places and the rational places of maximal rank are dense in the space of all rational places. For \(K\) nonperfect these facts remain true if there exists a rational place admitting a strong form of local uniformization. The author proves that every rational discrete and every rational Abhyankar place admits smooth local uniformization, and that the sets of rational discrete places and the rational discrete places of maximal rank are dense in the space of all rational places of \(F|K\) admitting smooth local uniformization. The method of proving the main results is based on the author's generalization of the Ax-Kochen-Ershov Theorem to the class of tame fields, i.e., Henselian valued fields \((K,v)\) for which the ramification field of the normal extension \((K^{\mathrm{sep}}|K,v)\) is algebraically closed. The author also studies the large fields, i.e., the fields over which the set of rational points of any smooth curve is infinite if it is non-empty. In particular, it is proved that a perfect field \(K\) is large if and only if it is existentially closed in every extension field which admits a \(K\)-rational place. The paper is completed with an appendix where it is proved that Zariski space with the Zariski topology is spectral and quasi-compact.