Formal factorization of higher order irregular linear differential operators (Q2283186)

The authors consider linear systems of ordinary differential equations $t^{1+r}dX/dt=A(t)X$, where the $n\times n$-matrix $A$ is a formal power series of $t$ and the integer $r\geq 0$ is the Poincaré rank of the system, and the question of non-commutative factorization of formal Laurent series at an irregular singular point (i.~e. with $r>0$). The solution to this problem is known; it is given in terms of the Newton diagram and the respective characteristic numbers. The authors suggest a process of reducing the non-commutative problem to its commutative analogue, i.~e. the problem of factorization of pseudopolynomials, which is known since Newton invented his method of rotating ruler. An automatic translation allows to obtain the results for formal factorization in the Weyl algebra from well known results in local analytic geometry. Parallels are drawn between the formal factorization of linear operators and formal diagonalization of systems of linear first order differential equations.