Desingularization and integrality of the automorphism scheme of a finite field extension (Q1968580)

For a finite field extension \(k\to K\), the second author [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 352, No. 2, 595-608 (2000; Zbl 0933.14028)] proved that the automorphism scheme \(\Aut _k K\) is a complete algebraic group, that is, it has trivial centre and any automorphism is inner, except for separable extensions of degree 2 or 6. As a consequence, it was obtained that two finite field extensions are isomorphic if and only if their automorphism schemes are isomorphic. Although \(\Aut _k K\) is an affine group, it is not smooth. In this paper the authors study the maximal smooth subgroups of \(\Aut _k K\). This study is closely related to the study of the splitting algebra \(A _M\) of \(K\) and as a consequence a criterion of integrality of \(\Aut _k K\) is obtained as follows. All the maximal smooth subgroups of \(\Aut _k K\) are conjugated and they are the unique smooth subgroups \(G\) such that \(\Aut _k K/G\) is finite of order \(m\) (\(m\) depending only on the inseparability splitting type of \(k\to K\)). Then it is possible to define the universal maximal smooth subgroup as a group scheme over the affine scheme of finite order \(m\), \(\text{Spec } A _M\). Then \(\Aut _k K\) is integral if and only if \(A_M = K _M\), where \(K _M\) is the splitting field of \(K\). It is also proved that the desingularization of \(\Aut _k K\) is the universal maximal smooth subgroup of \(\Aut _k K\) and coincides with the blowing up along a closed subscheme canonically defined from the action of \(\Aut _k K\) on \(A _M\).