On extending Artin's conjecture to composite moduli in function fields (Q2182164)

Given a prime number \(p\), a generator \(a\) of the cyclic group \(\big({\mathbb Z}/p{\mathbb Z}\big)^*\) is called a \textit{primitive root modulo \(p\)}. E. Artin formulated in 1927 the following conjecture. Let \({\mathcal A}=\{-1,0,1,n^2\mid n\in{\mathbb Z}\}\) and let \(b\in{\mathbb Z}\setminus {\mathcal A}\). Let \(P_b(x)=|\{p\mid p \text{ is a prime number }\leq x\text{ and }b\text{ is a primitive root modulo }p\}|\). The conjecture is that \(P_b(x)\sim A(b) \frac{x}{\log x}\), as \(x\) goes to infinity, where \(A(b)\) is a positive constant depending on \(b\). The conjecture is still open upto today. For two coprime integers \(b\) and \(m\), \(b\) is a \textit{primitive root of \(m\)} if \(b\) modulo \(m\) generates a maximal subgroup of \(({\mathbb Z}/m{\mathbb Z})^*\). Consider the set \(M_b(x)=|\{m\leq x\mid b \text{ is a primitive root of }m\}|\). In [Mathematika 46, No. 2, 373--390 (1999; Zbl 1033.11048)], \textit{S. Li} proved that \(\liminf_{x\to\infty}\frac{1}{x}M_b(x)=0\). In the function field case, \textit{C.-N. Hsu} proved in [Compos. Math. 106, No. 3, 247--266 (1997; Zbl 0919.11044)] an analogue to Artin's conjecture. Let \(A={\mathbb F}_q[t]\) and let \(C\) be the Carlitz module. For \(n\in A\), the annihilator of \(C(A/nA)\), \(\{g\in A\mid C_g\big[(C(A/nA)\big]=0\}\), is an ideal of \(A\). Let \(\lambda(n)\in A\) be the monic generator of this annihilator. It is said that \(a\) is a \textit{primitive root of \(n\)}, if the cyclic \(A\)-submodule in \(C(A/nA)\) generated by \(a\) modulo \(n\) is isomorphic to \(A/\lambda(n)A\). Let \(Q_a(x)=|\{n\in A\mid n\text{ is irreducible of degree }x\text{ and }a\text{ is a primitive root of }n\}|\). Hsu proved that for a non-constant polynomial \(a\) in \(A\), with \(q\neq 2\), there is a positive constant \(c(a)\) such that \(Q_a(x)\sim c(a)\frac{q^x}{x}\) as \(x\) goes to infinity. In the paper under review the authors prove an analogue of Li's theorem in the function field case. The result is the following. Let \({\mathcal E}=\{t,t+1\}\) if \(q=2\) and \({\mathcal E}=\emptyset\) otherwise. Consider the set of elements \(a\in A\) such that there exists an irreducible polynomial \(l_a\in A\) such that \(C_{l_a} X=a\) has a solution in \(A\). For every non-constant polynomial \(a\in A\), \(a\notin {\mathcal E}\), \(\liminf_{x\to\infty}\frac{N_a(x)}{q^x}=0\). The first part of the proof is the translation of the algebraic situation in the integer case to the function field case. In this part, the results of Hsu were extensively used. The second part, is the main argument. It follows the line of the proof of Li's result. It is a combinational argument with various sieve techniques. Then it is obtained an upper bound and it is shown that there is a sequence such that the limit is the upper bound and it is zero.