Permutations on finite fields with invariant cycle structure on lines (Q2200510)

Let \(\mathbb{F}_q\) be the finite field of \(q\) elements. In the paper under review, the cycle structure of permutation polynomials is studied. It is well known that any permutation can be written uniquely (up to reordering) as a product of disjoint cycles. The cycle structure of a permutation polynomial is defined as the cycle structure of its associated permutation, which is a list of the cycle lengths and their multiplicities in the cycle decomposition to that permutation. The cycle structure of permutation polynomials play an important role in many applications of finite fields, as combinatorial design, coding theory and cryptography. At the present time, the cycle structure is known for very few families of permutations polynomials. These are monomials, Dickson polynomials and linearized polynomials. In the paper under review, the cycle structure of permutations polynomials of the form \(F(X)=X+ \gamma f(X)\) on \(\mathbb{F}_{q^n}\), where \(\gamma \in \mathbb{F}_{q^n}^*\) and \(f : \mathbb{F}_{q^n} \to \mathbb{F}_q\), is studied. More precisely, the authors observe that certain lines of the \(\mathbb{F}_q\)--vector space \(\mathbb{F}_{q^n}\) are invariant under \(F\). Therefore, the permutation polynomials of this form are also always permutations of these lines. Furthermore, they prove that if \(f\) is homogeneous polynomial of degree \(1\), then the cycle structure of \(F\) can be determined by calculating the cycle structure of certain induced mappings on parallel line of \(\gamma \mathbb{F}_q\) (Theorem 2 and Theorem 3). The study of permutations of shape \(X+ \gamma \mathrm{Tr}_{q^n/q}(X^k)\), with \(k \in \mathbb{N}\), where \(\mathrm{Tr}_{q^n/q}: \mathbb{F}_{q^n} \to \mathbb{F}_q\) defined as \(\mathrm{Tr}_{q^n/q} (X)=X+X^q + \cdots+X^{q^{n-1}}\) was originated in [\textit{P. Charpin} and \textit{G. M. Kyureghyan}, Lect. Notes Comput. Sci. 5203, 368--376 (2008; Zbl 1180.11038)] for \(q=2\), where a complete classification was also proposed. In the paper under review, the authors apply the above result and a result from [\textit{S. Ahmad}, J. Comb. Theory 6, 370--374 (1969; Zbl 0169.34101)] and determine the cycle structure of two families of permutations on \(\mathbb{F}_{q^2}\): \(F(x)=x + \gamma \mathrm{Tr}_{q^2/q}(X^k)\), for the case \(k=2q-1\), \(q \equiv -1 \pmod 3\) and \(\gamma \in \mathbb{F}_{q^2}\), \(\gamma^3=-1/27\) and the case \(k=\frac{2^{2s-1}+3 \cdot 2^{s-1}+1}{3}\), \(q=2^s\), \(s\) odd and \(\gamma \in \mathbb{F}_{q^2}\), \(\gamma^{(q+1)/3}=1\) (Theorem \(7\) and Theorem \(10\)).