Brouwer degree of polynomial maps (Q2255531)

Let \(\mathbb{F}\) be a field of characteristic zero. In order to define the Brouwer degree for maps \(f:\mathbb{S}^n(\mathbb{F})\to\mathbb{S}^n(\mathbb{F})\) or the Hopf degree for \(\mathbb{S}^{2n-1}(\mathbb{F})\to\mathbb{S}^n(\mathbb{F})\) the authors develop a substitute for the de Rham cohomology by replacing the algebra of smooth functions on the unit ball by a commutative algebra \(\mathcal{A}\) such that \(\mathbb{F}[X_1,\dotsc,X_n]\subset \mathcal{A}\) and the \(C^\infty(\mathbb{B}^n)\)-free module \(\Omega^1(\mathbb{B}^n)\) of smooth 1-forms on \(\mathbb{B}^n\) by an \(\mathcal{A}\)-free module \(\Omega^1(\mathcal{A})\) with an \(\mathbb{F}\)-linear map \(d:\mathcal{A}\to\Omega^1(\mathcal{A})\) such that \(d(ab)=adb+bda\) for all \(a,b\in\mathcal{A}\). Finally, the algebra of real smooth functions on \(\mathbb{S}^n\) is replaced by \(\mathcal{B}=\mathcal[X_0,\dotsc,X_n]/(\sum_{j=0}^nX_j^2-1)\). Then with the exterior powers \(\Omega^k(\mathcal{B})\) of \(\Omega^1(\mathcal{B})\) (and similarly for \(\mathcal{A}\)) one constructs the cohomology \(H^k(\mathcal{B})\) and \(H^k(\mathcal{A})\). Let then \(p_0,\dotsc,p_n\in\mathcal{F}[X_0,\dotsc,X_n]\) such that \(p=(p_0,\dotsc,p_n):\mathbb{S}^n(\mathbb{F})\to\mathbb{S}^n(\mathbb{F})\). Then one has \(p^*([\omega_n])=B(p)[\omega_n]\) (where \(\omega_n\) is the usual volume form) for some \(B(p)\in\mathbb{F}\). The authors prove that \(B(p)\), the Brouwer degree of \(p\), is an integer. Similarly, they show that for even \(n\) the Hopf degree of a polynomial map \(\mathbb{S}^{2n-1}(\mathbb{F})\to\mathbb{S}^n(\mathbb{F})\) is an integer.