Polynomials with small Mahler measure

We describe several searches for polynomials with integer coefficients and small Mahler measure. We describe the algorithm used to test Mahler measures. We determine all polynomials with degree at most 24 and Mahler measure less than , test all reciprocal and antireciprocal polynomials with height 1 and degree at most 40, and check certain sparse polynomials with height 1 and degree as large as 181. We find a new limit point of Mahler measures near , four new Salem numbers less than , and many new polynomials with small Mahler measure. None has measure smaller than that of Lehmer's degree 10 polynomial.

     

The monic integer transfinite diameter

We study the problem of finding nonconstant monic integer polynomials, normalized by their degree, with small supremum on an interval . The monic integer transfinite diameter is defined as the infimum of all such supremums. We show that if has length , then .

We make three general conjectures relating to the value of for intervals of length less than . We also conjecture a value for where . We give some partial results, as well as computational evidence, to support these conjectures.

We define functions and , which measure properties of the lengths of intervals with on either side of . Upper and lower bounds are given for these functions.

We also consider the problem of determining when is a Farey interval. We prove that a conjecture of Borwein, Pinner and Pritsker concerning this value is true for an infinite family of Farey intervals.

     

Perturbing polynomials with all their roots on the unit circle

Given a monic real polynomial with all its roots on the unit circle, we ask to what extent one can perturb its middle coefficient and still have a polynomial with all its roots on the unit circle. We show that the set of possible perturbations forms a closed interval of length at most , with achieved only for polynomials of the form with in . The problem can also be formulated in terms of perturbing the constant coefficient of a polynomial having all its roots in . If we restrict to integer coefficients, then the polynomials in question are products of cyclotomics. We show that in this case there are no perturbations of length that do not arise from a perturbation of length . We also investigate the connection between slightly perturbed products of cyclotomic polynomials and polynomials with small Mahler measure. We describe an algorithm for searching for polynomials with small Mahler measure by perturbing the middle coefficients of products of cyclotomic polynomials. We show that the complexity of this algorithm is , where is the degree, and we report on the polynomials found by this algorithm through degree 64.

     

The Mahler measure of parametrizable polynomials

Our aim is to explain instances in which the value of the logarithmic Mahler measure m(P) of a polynomial P∈Z[x,y] can be written in an unexpectedly neat manner. To this end we examine polynomials defining rational curves, which allows their zero-locus to be parametrized via x=f(t), y=g(t) for f,g∈C(t). As an illustration of this phenomenon, we prove the equality

     

On the smallest value of the maximal modulus of an algebraic integer

The house of an algebraic integer of degree is the largest modulus of its conjugates. For , we compute the smallest house of degree , say m. As a consequence we improve Matveev's theorem on the lower bound of m We show that, in this range, the conjecture of Schinzel-Zassenhaus is satisfied. The minimal polynomial of any algebraic integer whose house is equal to m is a factor of a bi-, tri- or quadrinomial. The computations use a family of explicit auxiliary functions. These functions depend on generalizations of the integer transfinite diameter of some compact sets in They give better bounds than the classical ones for the coefficients of the minimal polynomial of an algebraic integer whose house is small.

     

Weak log-majorization, Mahler measure and polynomial inequalities

We explore the use of the weak log-majorization order in the analytic theory of polynomials. We examine the relationship between weak log-majorization and Mahler measure. We also improve the weak log-majorization form of the de Bruijn-Springer-Mahler inequality.     

Certain Diophantine Properties of the Mahler Measure

It is proved that a polynomial in several Mahler measures with positive rational coefficients is equal to an integer if and only if all these Mahler measures are integers. An estimate for the distance between a metric Mahler measure and an integer is obtained. Finally, it is proved that the ratio of two distinct Mahler measures of algebraic units is irrational.     

Algebraic integers whose conjugates all lie in an ellipse

We find all algebraic integers whose conjugates all lie in an ellipse with two of them nonreal, while the others lie in the real interval . This problem has applications to finding certain subgroups of . We use explicit auxiliary functions related to the generalized integer transfinite diameter of compact subsets of . This gives good bounds for the coefficients of the minimal polynomial of

     

Mahler型函数值的代数无关度量

In this paper,we give the algebraic independence measures for the values of Mahler type functions in complex number field and p-adic number field,respectively.     

Mahler型函数值的代数无关度量

利用初等的结式方法研究满足多项式形式的函数方程组的Mahler型函数的零点估计,给出了满足非线性函数方程组的Mahler型函数在代数点值的代效无关度量．     

p-adic Transcendence and p-adic Transcendence Measures for the Values of Mahler Type Functions

We prove the p-adic transcendence and p-adic transcendence measures for the values of some Mahler type functions.     

满足Mahler型代数函数方程的函数值的p-adic超越度量

这篇文章给出了满足Mahler型代数函数方程的函数值的p-adic超越度量．     

Root statistics of random polynomials with bounded Mahler measure

The Mahler measure of a polynomial is a measure of complexity formed by taking the modulus of the leading coefficient times the modulus of the product of its roots outside the unit circle. The roots of a real degree N polynomial chosen uniformly from the set of polynomials of Mahler measure at most 1 yield a Pfaffian point process on the complex plane. When N is large, with probability tending to 1, the roots tend to the unit circle, and we investigate the asymptotics of the scaled kernel in a neighborhood of a point on the unit circle. When this point is away from the real axis (on which there is a positive probability of finding a root) the scaled process degenerates to a determinantal point process with the same local statistics (i.e.   scalar kernel) as the limiting process formed from the roots of complex polynomials chosen uniformly from the set of polynomials of Mahler measure at most 1. Three new matrix kernels appear in a neighborhood of ±1 which encode information about the correlations between real roots, between complex roots and between real and complex roots. Away from the unit circle, the kernels converge to new limiting kernels, which imply among other things that the expected number of roots in any open subset of C$\mathbb{C}$ disjoint from the unit circle converges to a positive number. We also give ensembles with identical statistics drawn from two-dimensional electrostatics with potential theoretic weights, and normal matrices chosen with regard to their topological entropy as actions on Euclidean space.     

A study of inverse trigonometric integrals associated with three-variable Mahler measures, and some related identities

We prove several identities relating three-variable Mahler measures to integrals of inverse trigonometric functions. After deriving closed forms for most of these integrals, we obtain ten explicit formulas for three-variable Mahler measures. Several of these results generalize formulas due to Condon and Lalín. As a corollary, we also obtain three q-series expansions for the dilogarithm.     

A formula for the Mahler measure of axy+bx+cy+d

We introduce a formula for the Mahler measure of axy+bx+cy+d with complex coefficients a,b,c, and d and give examples which demonstrate a connection with L-functions. We then prove a generalization of Maillot's formula when the coefficients are real. Next, we discuss operations on the coefficients which fix the Mahler measure. Finally, we prove an alternate formulation of the main result in order to calculate the Mahler measure of a two-parameter family of polynomials in three variables.     

Covering a planar domain with sets of small diameter

Summary The problem of covering a circle, a square or a regular triangle with <InlineEquation ID=IE"1"><EquationSource Format="TEX"><![CDATA[<InlineEquation ID=IE"2"><EquationSource Format="TEX"><![CDATA[<InlineEquation ID=IE"3"><EquationSource Format="TEX"><![CDATA[$]]></EquationSource></InlineEquation>]]></EquationSource></InlineEquation>]]></EquationSource></InlineEquation>n$ congruent circles of minimum diameter (the {\it circle covering} problem) has been investigated by a number of authors and the smallest diameter has been found for several values of $n$. This paper is devoted to the study of an analogous problem, the {\it diameter covering} problem, in which the shape and congruence of the covering pieces is relaxed and -- invariably -- the maximal diameter of the pieces is minimized. All cases are considered when the solution of the first problem is known and in all but one case the diameter covering problem is solved.