The Dedekind-Mertens lemma and the contents of polynomials (Q4501073)

Let \(R\) be a commutative ring, \(M\) an \(R\)-module, and \(g\in M[X] =M\otimes R[X]\) an element of degree \(n\). The author introduces the universal Dedekind-Mertens number \(u\mu(g)\) of \(g\) as the smallest exponent \(e\) for which \(c_R(f)^e c_R(fg) =c_R(f)^{e+1} c_R(g)\) for all \(R\)-algebras \(S\) and all polynomials \(f\in S[X]\). (For elements \(h\in M\otimes S[X]\) the content \(R\)-module \(c_R(h)\) is the \(R\)-submodule of \(M\otimes S\) generated by the coefficients of \(h.)\) The Dedekind-Mertens lemma asserts that \(u\mu(g) \leq\deg g\). The main result of this note is that \(u\mu(g)\) coincides with the minimal number of generators of \(c_R(g)\) if \(R\) is a quasi-local ring. The same equation is shown for a variant, the universal polarized Dedekind-Mertens number.