All \(q^m\)-ary cyclic codes with cyclic \(q\)-ary image are known (Q5939680)

The authors continue and extend the work of \textit{G. E. Séguin} [Des. Codes Cryptography 4, No. 2, 171--175 (1994; Zbl 0793.94005)], \textit{D. A. Leonard} [Des. Codes Cryptography 1, No. 2, 183--189 (1991; Zbl 0741.94018)] and \textit{L. Tang, C. B. Soh} and \textit{E. Gunawan} [IEEE Trans. Inf. Theory 43, No. 2, 732--737 (1997; Zbl 0872.94051)] on when a cyclic code over \(\mathbb F_{q^m}\) (\(q\) a prime power) has an image that is cyclic over \(\mathbb F_q\). Let \(p\) be a prime and let \(q= p^v\). Let \(m\) and \(n\) be positive integers and let \(N= n\cdot m\). Let \(y\) generate a (multiplicative) cyclic group of order \(N\) (so \(y^N= 1\)). Let \(x= y^m\), so \(x\) generates a cyclic subgroup of order \(n\). The group algebra \(\mathbb F_{q^m}[x]\) is the same as the quotient ring \(\mathbb F_{q^m}[X]/(X^n- 1)\) where \(\mathbb F_{q^m}[X]\) is the polynomial ring in one indeterminate over \(\mathbb F_{q^m}\). A cyclic code \({\mathcal C}\) over \(\mathbb F_{q^m}\) is an ideal of \(\mathbb F_{q^m}[x]\). Under a suitable \(\mathbb F\)-vector space isomorphism \(\varphi: \mathbb F_{q^m}[x]\to \mathbb F_q[y]\) (note both of these vector spaces have dimension \(n\cdot m= N\) over \(\mathbb F\)), we may ask whether \(\varphi({\mathcal C})\), the \(q\)-ary image of the cyclic code \({\mathcal C}\), is again a cyclic code (i.e., an ideal of \(\mathbb F_q[y]\)). In general, this will not be the case. The authors give a new derivation of earlier results, and furthermore they complete the case where \(p\mid n\) (the so-called modular or repeated-root case), thus completely solving the problem of when the \(q\)-ary image of \({\mathcal C}\) is cyclic. The paper has a distinctly algebraic flavor.