On the dual of a Coulter-Matthews bent function (Q2426474)

A function \(g: \mathbb F_{p^n}\rightarrow \mathbb F_p\) is called a bent function if \[ \biggl| \sum_{x \in \mathbb F_{p^n}}\zeta_p^{g(x)+\text{Tr}(bx)}\biggr| = p^{\frac{n}{2}}\quad \text{for all}\;b \in \mathbb F_{p^n}, \] where \(\zeta_p = e^{2\pi i/p}\) and Tr is the trace function from \(\mathbb F_{p^n}\) to \(\mathbb F_p\). A function \(g: \mathbb F_{p^n}\rightarrow \mathbb F_p\) is called a weakly regular bent function if there exists \(u \in \mathbb C\) with \(| u| = 1\) such that \[ \sum_{x \in \mathbb F_{p^n}}\zeta_p^{g(x)+\text{Tr}(bx)} = u\zeta_p^{\bar{g}(b)}p^{\frac{n}{2}}\quad \text{for all}\;b \in \mathbb F_{p^n} \] for some function \(\bar{g}: \mathbb F_{p^n}\rightarrow \mathbb F_p\). The function \(\bar{g}\) is then also a bent function, if one assumes \(\bar{g}(0) = 0\) then \(\bar{g}\) is unique and called the dual of \(g\). Almost all known bent functions are also weakly regular, a counter example is presented in \textit{T. Helleseth} and \textit{A. Kholosha} [IEEE Trans. Inform. Theory 52, 2018--2032 (2006)]. \textit{R. S. Coulter} and \textit{R. M. Matthews} [Des. Codes Cryptogr. 10, 167--184 (1997; Zbl 0872.51007)] obtained that the functions from \(\mathbb F_{3^n}\) to \(\mathbb F_3\) given by \(\text{Tr}(ax^{(3^\alpha+1)/2})\) and \(\text{Tr} (ax^{(3^\alpha+3^n)/2})\), \(a \in \mathbb F_{3^n}^*\) and \((\alpha,2n) = 1\), are bent functions. As main results the author shows that these Coulter-Matthews (CM) bent functions are weakly regular when \(n\) is even and \(\alpha = n+1\) (or \(n-1\)), and he explicitly determines the dual of the CM bent function in this case. Whether all CM bent functions are weakly regular remains an open question.