We describe the practical implementation of an average polynomial-time algorithm for counting points on superelliptic curves defined over $\mathbb Q$ that is substantially faster than previous approaches. Our algorithm takes as input a superelliptic curves $y^m=f(x)$ with $m\ge 2$ and $f\in \mathbb Z[x]$ any squarefree polynomial of degree $d\ge 3$, along with a positive integer $N$. It can compute $\#X(\mathbb F_p)$ for all $p\le N$ not dividing $m\mathrm{lc}(f)\mathrm{disc}(f)$ in time $O(md^3 N\log^3 N\log\log N)$. It achieves this by computing the trace of the Cartier--Manin matrix of reductions of $X$. We can also compute the Cartier--Manin matrix itself, which determines the $p$-rank of the Jacobian of $X$ and the numerator of its zeta function modulo~$p$.
In this paper, we present efficient algorithms for computing the number of points and the order of the Jacobian group of a superelliptic curve over finite fields of prime order p. Our method employs the Hasse-Weil bounds in conjunction with the Hasse-Witt matrix for superelliptic curves, whose entries we express in terms of multinomial coefficients. We present a fast algorithm for counting points on specific trinomial superelliptic curves and a slower, more general method for all superelliptic curves. For the first case, we reduce the problem of simplifying the entries of the Hasse-Witt matrix…
Let $p$ be a prime, and $q$ a power of $p$. Using Galois theory, we show that over a field $K$ of characteristic zero, the endomorphism algebras of the jacobians of certain superelliptic curves $y^q=f(x)$ are products of cyclotomic fields.
In this paper we study the Coleman-Oort conjecture for superelliptic curves, i.e., curves defined by affine equations $y^n=F(x)$ with $F$ a separable polynomial. We prove that up to isomorphism there are at most finitely many superelliptic curves of fixed genus $g\geq 8$ with CM Jacobians. The proof relies on the geometric structures of Shimura subvarieties in Siegel modular varieties and the stability properties of Higgs bundles associated to fibred surfaces.
We give an explicit description of the stable reduction of superelliptic curves of the form $y^n=f(x)$ at primes $\p$ whose residue characteristic is prime to the exponent $n$. We then use this description to compute the local $L$-factor of the curve and the exponent of conductor at $\p$.
We give a structure theorem for the $m$-torsion of the Jacobian of a general superelliptic curve $y^m=F(x)$. We study existence of torsion on curves of the form $y^q=x^p-x+a$ over finite fields of characteristic $p$. We apply those results to bound from below the Mordell-Weil ranks of Jacobians of certain superelliptic curves over $\mathbb Q$.
Let $C$ be a curve of genus at least three defined over a number field, and let $r$ be the rank of the rational points of its Jacobian. Under mild hypotheses on $r$, recent results by Katz, Rabinoff, Zureick-Brown, and Stoll bound the number of rational points on $C$ by a constant that depends only on its genus. Yet one expects an even stronger bound that depends favorably on $r$: when $r$ is small, there should be fewer points on $C$. In a 2013 paper, Stoll established such a "rank-favorable" bound for hyperelliptic curves using Chabauty's method. In the present work we extend Stoll's results…
In this paper, we describe the construction of superelliptic curves with a rational point of prescribed order on their jacobians. The construction is based on Hensel's Lemma and produces for a given integer $N$ a superelliptic curve of genus linear in $N$ with a rational $N$-division point on the jacobian. The method is illustrated with multiple examples.
We study the variation of Selmer ranks of Jacobians of twists of hyperelliptic curves and superelliptic curves. We find sufficient conditions for such curves to have infinitely many twists whose Jacobians have Selmer ranks equal to $r$, for any given nonnegative integer $r$. This generalizes earlier results of Mazur-Rubin on elliptic curves.
Let $\mathcal X_g$ be a genus $g\geq 2$ superelliptic curve, $F$ its field of moduli, and $K$ the minimal field of definition. In this short note we construct an equation of the curve $\mathcal X_g$ over its minimal field of definition $K$ when $\mathcal X_g$ has extra automorphisms. We make use of the dihedral invariants of superelliptic curves as defined by Shaska in [6] and results on the automorphism groups of superelliptic curves as in [10].
We discuss the structure of the endomorphism algebras of the jacobians of superelliptic curves y^q=f(x) where q is a prime power and f(x) is an irreducible cubic or quartic polynomial over the field of rational functions k(t) in characteristic zero, whose Galois group is the full symmetric group.
In this paper, we consider a family of twists of a superelliptic curve over a global field, and obtain results on the distribution of the Mordell-Weil rank of these twists. Our results have applications to the distribution of the number of rational points.
For the superelliptic curves of the form $$ (x+1) \cdots(x+i-1)(x+i+1)\cdots (x+k)=y^\ell$$ with $x,y \in \mathbb{Q}$, $y\neq 0$, $k \geq 3$, $1\leq i\leq k$, $\ell \geq 2,$ a prime, Das, Laishram, Saradha, and Edis showed that the superelliptic curve has no rational points for $\ell\geq e^{3^k}$. In fact, the double exponential bound, obtained in these papers is far from reality. In this paper, we study the superelliptic curves for small values of $k$. In particular, we explicitly solve the above equation for $4 \leq k \leq 8.$
We give the distribution of points on smooth superelliptic curves over a fixed finite field, as their degree goes to infinity. We also give the distribution of points on smooth m-fold cyclic covers of the line, for any m, as the degree of their superelliptic model goes to infinity. This builds on previous work of Kurlberg, Rudnick, Bucur, David, Feigon, and Lalin for p-fold cyclic covers, but the limits taken differ slightly and the resulting distributions are interestingly different.
A superelliptic curve over a DVR ${\mathcal O}$ of residual characteristic $p$ is a curve given by an equation $C:y^n=f(x)$. The purpose of the present article is to describe the Galois representation attached to such a curve under the hypothesis that $f(x)$ has all its roots in the fraction field of ${\mathcal O}$ and that $p \nmid n$. Our results are inspired on the algorithm given in [BW17] but our description is given in terms of a cluster picture as defined in [DDMM18].
Given a polynomial $f\in\mathbb{C}[x]$, we consider the family of superelliptic curves $y^d=f(x)$ and their Jacobians $J_d$ for varying integers $d$. We show that for any integer $g$ the number of abelian varieties up to isogeny of dimension $\le g$ which appear in any $J_d$ is finite and their multiplicities are bounded.
Conditionally on the $abc$ conjecture, we generalize previous work of Clark and the author to show that a superelliptic curve $C: y^n = f(x)$ of sufficiently high genus has infinitely many twists violating the Hasse Principle if and only if $f(x)$ has no $\mathbb Q$-rational roots. We also show unconditionally that a curve defined by $C: y^{pN}=f(x)$ has infinitely many twists violating the Hasse Principle over any number field $k$ such that $k$ contains the $p$th roots of unity and $f(x)$ has no $k$-rational roots.
We are concerned with the question of determining the set $C(\mathbb{Q})$, where $C$ is a curve defined by an equation of the form $y^q=f(x)$, where $q$ is an odd prime and $f$ is a polynomial defined over $\mathbb{Q}$. This question can often be answered using a set which encapsulates information about local solubility of a particular collection of covers of $C$. We define this set and show how to compute it.
Let K be a field of characteristic zero, f(x) be a polynomial with coefficients in K and without multiple roots. We consider the superelliptic curve C_{f,q} defined by y^q=f(x), where q=p^r is a power of a prime p. We determine the Hodge group of the simple factors of the Jacobian of C_{f,q}.
Let $p$ be a prime, let $r$ and $q$ be powers of $p$, and let $a$ and $b$ be relatively prime integers not divisible by $p$. Let $C/\mathbb F_{r}(t)$ be the superelliptic curve with affine equation $y^b+x^a=t^q-t$. Let $J$ be the Jacobian of $C$. By work of Pries--Ulmer, $J$ satisfies the Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture (BSD). Generalizing work of Griffon--Ulmer, we compute the $L$-function of $J$ in terms of certain Gauss sums. In addition, we estimate several arithmetic invariants of $J$ appearing in BSD, including the rank of the Mordell--Weil group $J(\mathbb F_{r}(t))$, the Faltings …
Given $k \geq 2$, we show that there are at most finitely many rational numbers $x$ and $y \neq 0$ and integers $\ell \geq 2$ (with $(k,\ell) \neq (2,2)$) for which $$ x (x+1) \cdots (x+k-1) = y^\ell. $$ In particular, if we assume that $\ell$ is prime, then all such triples $(x,y,\ell)$ satisfy either $y=0$ or $\log \ell < 3^k$.
Let $n\geq 2$ be an integer, $F$ a number field, $O_F$ the integral closure of $\mathbb{Z}$ in $F$ and $N$ a positive multiple of $n$. The paper deals with degree $N$ polynomials $P(T) \in O_F[T]$ such that the superelliptic curve $Y^n=P(T)$ has twists $Y^n=d\cdot P(T)$ without $F$-rational points. We show that this condition holds if the Galois group of $P(T)$ over $F$ has an element which fixes no root of $P(T)$. Two applications are given. Firstly, we prove that the proportion of degree $N$ polynomials $P(T) \in O_F[T]$ with height bounded by $H$ and such that the associated curve satisfies…
Let $K$ be a local field and $f(x)\in K[x]$ be a non-constant polynomial. The local zeta function $Z_f(s, χ)$ was first introduced by Weil, then studied in detail by Igusa. When ${\rm char}(K)=0$, Igusa proved that $Z_f(s, χ)$ is a rational function of $q^{-s}$ by using the resolution of singularities. Later on, Denef gave another proof of this remarkable result. However, if ${\rm char}(K)>0$, the question of rationality of $Z_f(s, χ)$ is still kept open. Actually, there are only a few known results so far. In this paper, we investigate the local zeta functions of two-variable polynomial $g(x,…
In this paper we give an algorithm of how to determine a Weierstrass equation with minimal discriminant for superelliptic curves generalizing work of Tate for elliptic curves and Liu for genus 2 curves.
We compute the $L$-functions of a large class of algebraic curves, and verify the expected functional equation numerically. Our computations are based on our previous results on stable reduction to calculate the local $L$-factor and the conductor exponent at the primes of bad reduction. Most of our examples are hyperelliptic curves of genus $g\geq 2$ defined over $\mathbb{Q}$ which have semistable reduction at every prime $p$. We also treat a few more general examples of superelliptic curves.
A curve over a field of characteristic $p$ is called ordinary if the $p$-torsion of its Jacobian as large as possible, that is, an $\mathbb{F}_p$ vector space of dimension equal to its genus. In this paper we consider the following question: fix a finite field $\mathbb{F}_q$ and a family $\mathscr{F}$ of curves over $\mathbb{F}_q$. Then, what is the probability that a curve in this family is ordinary? We answer this question when $\mathscr{F}$ is either the Artin-Schreier family in any characteristic or a superelliptic family in characteristic 2.
We study the conductor of Picard curves over $\mathbb{Q}$, which is a product of local factors. Our results are based on previous results on stable reduction of superelliptic curves that allow to compute the conductor exponent $f_p$ at the primes $p$ of bad reduction. A careful analysis of the possibilities of the stable reduction at $p$ yields restrictions on the conductor exponent $f_p$. We prove that Picard curves over $\mathbb{Q}$ always have bad reduction at $p=3$, with $f_3\geq 4$. As an application we discuss the question of finding Picard curves with small conductor.
We study the Selmer varieties of smooth projective curves of genus at least two defined over $\mathbb{Q}$ which geometrically dominate a curve with CM Jacobian. We extend a result of Coates and Kim to show that Kim's non-abelian Chabauty method applies to such a curve. By combining this with results of Bogomolov-Tschinkel and Poonen on unramified correspondences, we deduce that any cover of $\mathbf{P}^1$ with solvable Galois group, and in particular any superelliptic curve over $\mathbb{Q}$, has only finitely many rational points over $\mathbb{Q}$.
In this paper we present a p-adic algorithm to compute the zeta function of a nondegenerate curve over a finite field using Monsky-Washnitzer cohomology. The paper vastly generalizes previous work since all known cases, e.g. hyperelliptic, superelliptic and C_{ab} curves, can be transformed to fit the nondegenerate case. For curves with a fixed Newton polytope, the property of being nondegenerate is generic, so that the algorithm works for almost all curves with given Newton polytope. For a genus g curve over F_{p^n}, the expected running time is O(n^3g^6 + n^2g^{6.5}), whereas the space compl…
We present a Kedlaya-style point counting algorithm for cyclic covers $y^r = f(x)$ over a finite field $\mathbb{F}_{p^n}$ with $p$ not dividing $r$, and $r$ and $°{f}$ not necessarily coprime. This algorithm generalizes the Gaudry-Gürel algorithm for superelliptic curves to a more general class of curves, and has essentially the same complexity. Our practical improvements include a simplified algorithm exploiting the automorphism of $\mathcal{C}$, refined bounds on the $p$-adic precision, and an alternative pseudo-basis for the Monsky-Washnitzer cohomology which leads to an integral matrix whe…
This note concerns the theoretical algorithmic problem of counting rational points on curves over finite fields. It explicates how the algorithmic scheme introduced by Schoof and generalized by the author yields an algorithm whose running time is uniformly polynomial time for curves in families.
We give an asymptotic formula for the number of elliptic curves over $\mathbb{Q}$ with bounded Faltings height. Silverman has shown that the Faltings height for elliptic curves over number fields can be expressed in terms of modular functions and the minimal discriminant of the elliptic curve. We use this to recast the problem as one of counting lattice points in a particular region in $\mathbb{R}^2$.
We introduce a new algorithm to compute the zeta function of a curve over a finite field. This method extends previous work of ours to all curves for which a good lift to characteristic zero is known. We develop all the necessary bounds, analyse the complexity of the algorithm and provide a complete implementation.
We introduce a new algorithm to compute the zeta function of a curve over a finite field. This method extends Kedlaya's algorithm to a very general class of curves using a map to the projective line. We develop all the necessary bounds, analyse the complexity of the algorithm and provide some examples computed with our implementation.
For a given conic bundle X over a curve C defined over F_q, we count irreducible branch covers of C in X of degree d and height e>>1. As a special case, we get the number of algebraic numbers of degree d and height e over the function field F_q (C).
We describe an algorithm for counting points on an arbitrary hyperelliptic curve over a finite field of odd characteristic, using Monsky-Washnitzer cohomology to compute a p-adic approximation to the characteristic polynomial of Frobenius. For fixed p, the asymptotic running time for a curve of genus g over the field of p^n elements is O(g^{4+ε} n^{3+ε}).
We study the problem of lifting curves from finite fields to number fields in a genus and gonality preserving way. More precisely, we sketch how this can be done efficiently for curves of gonality at most four, with an in-depth treatment of curves of genus at most five over finite fields of odd characteristic, including an implementation in Magma. We then use such a lift as input to an algorithm due to the second author for computing zeta functions of curves over finite fields using $p$-adic cohomology.
We find a closed formula for the number $\operatorname{hyp}(g)$ of hyperelliptic curves of genus $g$ over a finite field $k=\mathbb{F}_q$ of odd characteristic. These numbers $\operatorname{hyp}(g)$ are expressed as a polynomial in $q$ with integer coefficients that depend on the set of divisors of $q-1$ and $q+1$. As a by-product we obtain a closed formula for the number of self-dual curves of genus $g$. A hyperelliptic curve is self-dual if it is $k$-isomorphic to its own hyperelliptic twist.
