A geometric approach to counting norms in cyclic extensions of function fields (Q2214917)

In [Mathematika 22, 71--80 (1975; Zbl 0313.12007)], \textit{R. W. K. Odoni} obtained an asymptotic result for algebraic integers that can be expressed as norms of elements of a number field. The aim of the paper under review is to give an analogue for cyclic extensions \({\mathbb F}_q(\sqrt[d]{T})/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\) of global function fields, where \(q\equiv 1\bmod 2d\). It is also obtained an explicit polynomial in \(q\) giving the count. The main result, Theorem 1.2, is the following: Let \({\mathcal M}_{n,q}\) be the set of monic polynomials of degree \(n\) in \({\mathbb F}_q[T]\) and let \(b_q\colon {\mathcal M}_{n,q}\to\{0,1\}\) with \(b_q(f)=1\) if and only if \(f\) is a norm in the extension \({\mathbb F}_q(\sqrt[d]{T})/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\). Let \(S_q(n)=\sum_{\substack{f\in\mathcal{M}_{n,q}\\ f\text{ is squarefree}}}b_q(f)\). For every \(n\geq 2\), we have \(S_q(n)=\sum_{k=0}^n b_{k,n}q^{n-k}\), and is such that (a) \(b_{k,n}=\sum_{j=k}^{2k}\delta_{k,j,n}\binom{1/d+(n-j-k-1)}{n-j-k}\); (b) \(\delta_{k,j,n}= \delta_{k,j,n+1}\) for \(n\geq 2k\) and \(|\delta_{k,j,n}|\leq C\binom k{j-k}(1.1)^k\) for some absolute constant \(C\). The proof is given in Section 6. It is also obtained that if \(B_q(n)=\sum_{f\in{\mathcal M}_{n,q}}b_q(f)\), then for \(n\geq 2\), \(B_q(n)=\sum_{k=0}^n c_{k,n}q^{n-k}\) where \(c_{k,n}\) are independent of \(q\) and can be computed explicitly. This is Theorem 1.5 and its proof is the content of Section 7.