The \(t\)-metric Mahler measures of surds and rational numbers (Q2428613)

Let \(t \geq 1\) be a fixed real number, and let \(M(\alpha)\) be the logarithmic Mahler measure of an algebraic number \(\alpha\). The \(t\)-metric (logarithmic) Mahler measure \(M_t(\alpha)\) is defined as the infimum of the sum \(\big(\sum_{n=1}^N M(\alpha_n)^t\big)^{1/t}\) taken over every positive integer \(N\) and over any algebraic numbers \(\alpha_1, \dots, \alpha_N\) whose product is \(\alpha\). It is known that for each algebraic number \(\alpha\) the infimum in \(M_t(\alpha)\) is attained if \(t=1\) and \(t=\infty\). In this paper the authors study the case \(1<t<\infty\). They prove that then the infimum is attained for each nonzero rational number \(\alpha\) with rational \(\alpha_1,\dots,\alpha_N\) (Theorem 1.2). In Theorem 1.3 they study the corresponding question for \(\alpha=\sqrt{D}\), where \(D\) is the product of distinct primes \(p_1>\dots>p_L\), and show that infimum in \(M_t(\sqrt{D})\) is attained with \(\alpha_1,\ldots,\alpha_N \in\mathbb Q(\sqrt{D})\) not always but if and only if \(p_2 \cdots p_L<p_1\). The corresponding collection of \(\alpha_j\)'s is then \(\sqrt{p_1/(p_2\cdots p_L)}, p_2,\dots,p_L\). Finally, in Theorem 1.4 they show that for \(D=p_1 \dots p_L\), where \(p_1>\dots>p_L\) are distinct primes, the infimum in \(M_t(D^{1/k})\), where \(k \geq 2\) is an integer, is attained by \(p_1^{1/k},\ldots,p_L^{1/k}\) and is equal to the sum \(\big(\sum_{n=1}^L (\log p_n)^t\big)^{1/t}\) for \(1 \leq t<\infty\) (and to \(\log p_1\) for \(t=\infty\)).