The weight distributions of linear sets in \(\mathrm{PG}(1,q^5)\) (Q2672333)

A set \(S\) is said to be an \(\mathbb{F}_q\)-linear set of rank \(k\) in the projective space \(\mathrm{PG}(r-1, q^t) = \mathrm{PG}(V, {\mathbb{F}}_{q^t} )\) if \(S = L_U\), with \[ L_U = \{\langle v\rangle _{q^t} \mid v \in U \setminus \{0\}\} , \] where \(U\) is a \(k\)-dimensional \(\mathbb{F}_q\)-vector subspace of \(V = \mathbb{F}^r_{q^t}\) and \(\langle v\rangle_{q^t}\) denotes the projective point of \(\mathrm{PG}(r-1,q^t)\) determined by the vector \(v\). We say that a point \(P =\langle v\rangle_{q^t}\) of a linear set \(L_U\) has weight \(i\) if \(\langle v\rangle_{q^t}\cap U\) is an \(i\)-dimensional \(\mathbb{F}_q\)-vector space. The linear set \(L_U\) is said scattered if all points of \(L_U\) have weight \(1\). The authors prove the following theorem. Let \(S\) be an \(\mathbb{F}_q\)-linear set of rank \(5\) in \(\mathrm{PG}(1, q^5)\) with \(|S| > 1\). If \(S\) is not scattered, then either: \begin{itemize} \item[(a)] \(S\) contains exactly one point of weight \(4\), or \item[(b)] \(S\) contains exactly one point of weight \(3\), and exactly \(0\), \(q\) or \(q^2\) points of weight 2, or \item[(c)] \(S\) contains exactly \(s\) points of weight 2, where \(s \in \small [q - 2\sqrt{q} + 1, q + 2\sqrt{q} + 1] \cup \{2q, 2q + 1, 2q + 2, 3q, 3q + 1, q2 + 1\}\), and no points of weight higher than 2. \end{itemize} Then the cases q = 2, 3, 4 are treated in more detail using the above characterisation.