Primitive normal polynomials with the first two coefficients prescribed: a revised \(p\)-adic method (Q2370641)

The main result of the paper improves on a well known result by succeeding on replacing the words ``primitive'' by ``primitive normal''. Precisely this result reads: For given \(a,b \in \mathbb{F}_q\) and given degree \(n >6\) there exists a primitive normal polynomial in \(\mathbb{F}_q[t]\) with the coefficients of \(t^{n-1}\) and \(t^{n-2}\) equal to \(a,b\) respectively. The proof uses the ``\(p\)-adic method'' of the first two authors. Some computations are required to complete the result for some pairs \((n,q).\) There is a subsequent paper on the same subject by the first three authors [ibid. 13, No. 4, 1029--1044 (2007; Zbl 1132.11054)].