Absolute stable rank and quadratic forms over noncommutative rings (Q2639940)

For a right ideal I of a ring A with identity, J(I) denotes the intersection of the maximal right ideals of A that contain I, and I is called a Jacobson right ideal if \(I=J(I)\). The absolute stable rank asr(A) of A is defined as follows: asr(A)\(\leq n\) if, given any \(n+1\) elements \(a_ 0,a_ 1,...,a_ n\) in A, there exist elements \(t_ 0,t_ 1,...,t_{n-1}\) in A such that \[ J(\sum^{n}_{i=0}a_ iA)=J(\sum^{n-1}_{i=0}(a_ i+a_ nt_ i)A). \] This concept was introduced by \textit{B. Magurn, W. van der Kallen} and \textit{L. Vaserstein} [Invent. Math. 91, 525-542 (1988; Zbl 0639.16015)], who obtained bounds for asr(A) for a number of classes of noncommutative rings. The present author shows that these results can be obtained with simpler proofs, modifying techniques developed by him earlier [Bull. Lond. Math. Soc. 13, 39-41 (1981; Zbl 0423.16008)]. Specifically, he proves that if A is a strongly right J-Noetherian ring (that is, A satisfies the ascending chain condition for Jacobson right ideals, and A/P is right Goldie for every Jacobson prime ideal P), then \(asr(A)\leq 1+K \max (A)\), where K max(A) denotes the deviation of the set of Jacobson right ideals, partially ordered by inclusion. This result applies in particular to any right Noetherian ring and any affine PI ring. As an application, a Witt cancellation theorem is obtained for quadratic spaces defined over such rings.