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Algebra i Analiz, 2022 Volume 34, Issue 4, Pages 214–221 (Mi aa1828)

Research Papers

Symbol length of classes in Milnor $K$-groups

A. Chapman

School of Computer Science, Academic College of Tel-Aviv-Yaffo, Rabenu Yeruham St., P.O.B 8401 Yaffo, 6818211, Israel

Abstract: Given a field $F$, a positive integer $m$ and an integer $n\geq 2$, it is proved that the symbol length of classes in Milnor's $K$-groups $K_n F/2^m K_n F$ that are equivalent to single symbols under the embedding into $K_n F/2^{m+1} K_n F$ is at most $2^{n-1}$ under the assumption that $F \supseteq \mu_{2^{m+1}}$. Since $K_2 F/2^m K_2 F \cong {_{2^m}Br(F)}$ for $n=2$, this coincides with the upper bound of $2$ (proved by Tignol in $1983$) for the symbol length of central simple algebras of exponent $2^m$ that are Brauer equivalent to a single symbol algebra of degree $2^{m+1}$. The cases where the embedding into $K_n F/2^{m+1} K_n F$ is of symbol length $2$, $3$, and $4$ (the last when $n=2$) are also considered. The paper finishes with the study of the symbol length for classes in $K_3/3^m K_3 F$ whose embedding into $K_3 F/3^{m+1} K_3 F$ is one symbol when $F \supseteq \mu_{3^{m+1}}$.

Keywords: algebraic $K$-Theory, Milnor $K$-Theory, symmetric bilinear forms, quadratic forms, symbol length, quaternion algebras.

Received: 18.01.2021

Language: English


 English version:
St. Petersburg Mathematical Journal, 2023, 34:4, 715–720


© Steklov Math. Inst. of RAS, 2024