Bounds on the Number of Solutions to Thue Equations

Speaker: Greg Knapp

Date: Wed, Apr 10, 2024

Location: PIMS, University of Lethbridge, Online, Zoom

Conference: Analytic Aspects of L-functions and Applications to Number Theory

Subject: Mathematics, Number Theory

Class: Scientific

CRG: L-Functions in Analytic Number Theory

Abstract:

In 1909, Thue proved that when F(x,y) is an irreducible, homogeneous, polynomial with integer coefficients and degree at least 3, the inequality F(x,y)h has finitely many integer-pair solutions for any positive h.  Because of this result, the inequality F(x,y)h  is known as Thue’s Inequality.  Much work has been done to find sharp bounds on the size and number of integer-pair solutions to Thue’s Inequality, with Mueller and Schmidt initiating the modern approach to this problem in the 1980s.  In this talk, I will describe different techniques used by Akhtari and Bengoechea; Baker; Mueller and Schmidt; Saradha and Sharma; and Thomas to make progress on this general problem.  After that, I will discuss some improvements that can be made to a counting technique used in association with “the gap principle” and how those improvements lead to better bounds on the number of solutions to Thue’s Inequality.