Real closures of models of weak arithmetic (Q1935370)

In [\textit{P. D'Aquino} et al., J. Symb. Log. 75, No. 1, 1--11 (2010; Zbl 1186.03061)] it was shown that every non-Archimedean real closed field with an integer part satisfying the Peano axioms must be recursively saturated. It was noted that it follows from the proof that instead of PA one can assume \(\mathrm{I}\Sigma_4\), and a simple example is given to show that \(\mathrm{I}\Delta_0\) is not enough. In the present paper, the authors improve the upper bound by proving the result using \(\mathrm{I}E_2\) -- the induction schema for formulas with two alternating blocks of bounded quantifiers, starting with existential ones. They also give variants of the result with \(\mathrm{I}E_2\) replaced by two weak subtheories of Buss's bounded arithmetic. Concerning the lower bound, a construction of \textit{S. T. Smith} [J. Algebra 159, No. 1, 191--239 (1993; Zbl 0799.13010)], based on earlier work by Macintyre, Marker, and Wilkie, is used to build a nonstandard model of Open Induction satisfying the Bézout axiom whose real closure is not recursively saturated. There is also an interesting connection to Tennenbaum's theorem: It is shown that if an ordered ring \(A\) is a model of Open Induction and the real closure of \(A\) is recursively saturated, then \(+_A\) and \(\leq_A\) cannot be both recursive.