The Tambara structure of the trace ideal for cyclic extensions. With an appendix by Harry Chen and Xinling Chen (Q2193196)

Let \(K/F\) be a Galois extension of fields with characteristic different from 2 with (pro-finite) Galois group \(G :=\operatorname{Gal}(K/F)\). For a field \(L\), let \(GW(L)\) denote the Grothendieck-Witt ring of (formal differences of) isometry classes of regular quadratic forms over \(L\). The Scharlau transfer (with respect to the field trace \(\operatorname{tr}_{K/F}:K\rightarrow F\)) is the homomorphism of abelian groups \(GW(K) \rightarrow GW(F)\) taking \(q\) to \(\operatorname{tr}_{K/F} \circ q\). When considered along with the restriction (i.e., extension of scalars) homomorphism \(GW(F) \rightarrow GW(K)\), the Grothendieck-Witt ring gains the structure of a Mackey functor in the language of \textit{A. W. M. Dress} [Notes on the theory of representations of finite groups. Part I: The Burnside ring of a finite group and some AGN-applications. With the aid of lecture notes, taken by Manfred Küchler. Universität Bielefeld: Fakultät für Mathematik (1971; Zbl 0241.20042)]. Tambara functors (see [\textit{D. Tambara}, Commun. Algebra 21, No. 4, 1393--1420 (1993; Zbl 0797.19001)]) are elaborations of Mackey functors with multiplicative norm maps in addition to restrictions and transfers. \textit{T. Bachmann} [J. Algebra 499, 229--271 (2018; Zbl 1435.13012)] shows that the (a priori different but ultimately equal) norm maps of \textit{D. Ferrand} [Bull. Soc. Math. Fr. 126, No. 1, 1--49 (1998; Zbl 1017.13005)] and M. Rost (unpublished manuscript) turn \(GW\) into a Tambara functor. The aim in this work is to leverage this additional structure in order to study Dress's trace homomorphism between Burnside and Grothendieck-Witt rings. Recall that the Burnside ring \(A(G)\) of \(G\) is defined as the Grothendieck construction applied to the semi-ring of isomorphism classes of finite G-sets under disjoint union and Cartesian product. \textit{A. W. M. Dress} [Notes on the theory of representations of finite groups. Part I: The Burnside ring of a finite group and some AGN-applications. With the aid of lecture notes, taken by Manfred Küchler. Universität Bielefeld: Fakultät für Mathematik (1971; Zbl 0241.20042)] shows that the assignment \(A(G) \rightarrow GW(F)\) determined by \(G/H \mapsto (x \in K^H\mapsto \operatorname{tr}_{K^H/F}(x^2))\) is a ring map which we call the trace homomorphism. The trace homomorphism is surjective precisely when \(K\) contains square roots of all the elements of \(F\) (see Theorem 3.1 in Appendix B of Zbl 0241.20042), and its kernel is the trace ideal of \(K/F\). Assembling the trace homomorphisms for subextensions of \(K/F\), we get a map of Tambara functors, whose kernel is an ideal of the Burnside Tambara functor. It is this kernel which we will determine for cyclic Galois extensions. Now, let \(C_N\) denote the cyclic group of order \(N\), and for \(M\) dividing \(N\) let \(\underline{A}(C_N/C_M) =A(C_M)\). For \(m |M\), let \(t_{M/m}\) denote the element of \(\underline{A}(C_N/C_M) \)corresponding to the transitive \(C_M\)-set \(C_M/C_m\) of cardinality \(M/m\). Suppose Gal\((K/F) =C_N\) where \(N\) has prime decomposition \(2^\mu p_1^{\sigma_1}\dots p_s^{\sigma_s}\). The main theorem of the paper (Theorem 1.1) describes the generators of \(\operatorname{ker}(\underline{A}_{C_N} \rightarrow \underline{GW}^K_F)\), seen as a Tambara idal of \(\underline{A}_{C_N}\).