We remark on pseudo-elliptic integrals and on exceptional function fields, namely function fields defined over an infinite base field but nonetheless containing non-trivial units. Our emphasis is on some elementary criteria that must be satisfied by a squarefree polynomial whose square root generates a quadratic function field with non-trivial unit. We detail the genus 1 case.
We show that average analytic rank of elliptic curves with prescribed torsion $G$ is bounded for every torsion group $G$ under GRH for elliptic curve $L$-functions.
For those elliptic curves defined over the rational with non--trivial torsion subgroup, we find a tight relationship between the torsion subgroup itself and a Galois group naturally arising from the curve.
There are 26 possibilities for the torsion group of elliptic curves defined over quadratic number fields. We present examples of high rank elliptic curves with given torsion group which give the current records for most of the torsion groups. In particular, we show that for each possible torsion group, except maybe for Z/15Z, there exist an elliptic curve over some quadratic field with this torsion group and with rank >= 2.
We describe a simple, but effective, method for deriving families of elliptic curves, with high rank, all of whose members have the same torsion subgroup structure.
We give a complete characterization for the rational torsion of an elliptic curve in terms of the (non-)existence of integral solutions of a system of diophantine equations.
Let $K = \mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{-3})$ or $\mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{-1})$ and let $C_n$ denote the cyclic group of order $n$. We study how the torsion part of an elliptic curve over $K$ grows in a quadratic extension of $K$. In the case $E(K)[2] \approx C_2 \oplus C_2$ we determine how a given torsion structure can grow in a quadratic extension and the maximum number of quadratic extensions in which it grows. We also classify the torsion structures which occur as the quadratic twist of a given torsion structure.
We prove that the family $\mathcal{I}_{F_0}$ of elliptic curves over number fields that are geometrically isogenous to an elliptic curve with $F_0$-rational $j$-invariant is typically bounded in torsion. Under an additional uniformity assumption, we also prove that the family $\mathcal{I}_{d_0}$ of elliptic curves over number fields that are geometrically isogenous to an elliptic curve with degree $d_0$ $j$-invariant is typically bounded in torsion.
A new characterization of rational torsion subgroups of elliptic curves is found, for points of order greater than 4, through the existence of solution for systems of Thue equations.
This is the third part of a series of papers discussing the cyclic torsion subgroup of elliptic curves over cubic number fields. For $N=39$, we show that $\mathbb{Z}/N\mathbb{Z}$ is not a subgroup of $E(K)_{tor}$ for any elliptic curve $E$ over a cubic number field $K$.
We present a criterion for proving that certain groups of the form $\mathbb Z/m\mathbb Z\oplus\mathbb Z/n\mathbb Z$ do not occur as the torsion subgroup of any elliptic curve over suitable (families of) number fields. We apply this criterion to eliminate certain groups as torsion groups of elliptic curves over cubic and quartic fields. We also use this criterion to give the list of all torsion groups of elliptic curves occurring over a specific cubic field and over a specific quartic field.
We prove asymptotic formulas for cyclicity of reductions of elliptic curves over the rationals in a family of curves having specified torsion. These results agree with established conditional results and with average results taken over larger families. As a key tool, we prove an analogue of a result of Vlăduţ that estimates the number of elliptic curves over a finite field with a specified torsion point and cyclic group structure.
We prove several results on torsion points and Galois representations for complex multiplication (CM) elliptic curves over a number field containing the CM field. One result computes the degree in which such an elliptic curve has a rational point of order $N$, refining results of Silverberg. Another result bounds the size of the torsion subgroup of an elliptic curve with CM by a nonmaximal order in terms of the torsion subgroup of an elliptic curve with CM by the maximal order. Our techniques also yield a complete classification of both the possible torsion subgroups and the rational cyclic is…
The torsion anomalous conjecture states that for any variety V in an abelian variety there are only finitely many maximal V-torsion anomalous varieties. We prove this conjecture for V of codimension 2 in a product E^N of any elliptic curve E. This was known only when E has CM. We also give an effective upper bound for the normalized height of these maximal V-torsion anomalous varieties.
In a previous paper, the author examined the possible torsions of an elliptic curve over the quadratic fields $\mathbb Q(i)$ and $\mathbb Q(\sqrt{-3})$. Although all the possible torsions were found if the elliptic curve has rational coefficients, we were unable to eliminate some possibilities for the torsion if the elliptic curve has coefficients that are not rational. In this note, by finding all the points of two hyperelliptic curves over $\mathbb Q(i)$ and $\mathbb Q(\sqrt{-3})$, we solve this problem completely and thus obtain a classification of all possible torsions of elliptic curves o…
In this paper, we present several methods for construction of elliptic curves with large torsion group and positive rank over number fields of small degree. We also discuss potential applications of such curves in the elliptic curve factorization method (ECM).
We prove results towards classifying the possible torsion subgroups of elliptic curves over quadratic fields $\mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{d})$, where $0<d<100$ is a square-free integer, and obtain a complete classification for 49 out of 60 such fields. Over the remaining 11 quadratic fields, we cannot rule out the possibility of the group $\mathbb{Z}/16\mathbb{Z}$ appearing as a torsion group of an elliptic curve.
Merel's result on the strong uniform boundedness conjecture made it meaningful to classify the torsion part of the Mordell-Weil groups of all elliptic curves defined over number fields of fixed degree $d$. In this paper, we discuss the cyclic torsion subgroup of elliptic curves over cubic number fields. For $N=49,40,25$ or $22$, we show that $\mathbb{Z}/N\mathbb{Z}$ is not a subgroup of $E(K)_{tor}$ for any elliptic curve $E$ over a cubic number field $K$.
Let $K = \mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{-3})$ or $\mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{-1})$ and let $C_n$ denote the cyclic group of order $n$. We study how the torsion part of an elliptic curve over $K$ grows in a quadratic extension of $K$. In the case $E(K)[2] \approx C_1$ we investigate how a given torsion structure can grow in a quadratic extension and the maximum number of extensions in which it grows. We also study the torsion structures which occur as the quadratic twist of a given torsion structure. In order to achieve this we examine $N$-isogenies defined over $K$ for $N=15,20,21,24,27,30,35$.
By Mazur's Torsion Theorem, there are fourteen possibilities for the non-trivial torsion subgroup $T$ of a rational elliptic curve. For each $T$, such that $E$ may have additive reduction at a prime $p$, we consider a parameterized family $E_T$ of elliptic curves with the property that they parameterize all elliptic curves $E/\mathbb{Q}$ which contain $T$ in their torsion subgroup. Using these parameterized families, we explicitly classify the Kodaira-Néron type, the conductor exponent, and the local Tamagawa number at each prime $p$ where $E/\mathbb{Q}$ has additive reduction. As a consequenc…
We determine, for an elliptic curve $E/\mathbb Q$ and for all $p$, all the possible torsion groups $E(\mathbb Q_{\infty, p})_{tors}$, where $\mathbb Q_{\infty, p}$ is the $\mathbb Z_p$-extension of $\mathbb Q$.
We classify the possible torsion structures of rational elliptic curves over cubic fields. Along the way we find a previously unknown torsion structure over a cubic field, $\Z /21 \Z$, which corresponds to a sporadic point on $X_1(21)$ of degree 3, which is the lowest possible degree of a sporadic point on a modular curve $X_1(n)$.
There is a modular curve X'(6) of level 6 defined over Q whose Q-rational points correspond to j-invariants of elliptic curves E over Q for which Q(E[2]) is a subfield of Q(E[3]). In this note we characterize the j-invariants of elliptic curves with this property by exhibiting an explicit model of X'(6). Our motivation is two-fold: on the one hand, X'(6) belongs to the list of modular curves which parametrize non-Serre curves (and is not well-known), and on the other hand, X'(6)(Q) gives an infinite family of examples of elliptic curves with non-abelian "entanglement fields," which is relevant…
An elliptic curve defined over a number field possesses only a finite number of torsion points defined over the cyclotomic closure of its field of definition. In analogy to the relative version of the Manin-Mumford conjecture stated by Masser and Zannier, we propose a family version of the above statement and prove it under a suitable integrality condition.
A family $\mathcal{F}$ of elliptic curves defined over number fields is said to be typically bounded in torsion if the torsion subgroups $E(F)[$tors$]$ of those elliptic curves $E_{/F}\in \mathcal{F}$ can be made uniformly bounded after removing from $\mathcal{F}$ those whose number field degrees lie in a subset of $\mathbb{Z}^+$ with arbitrarily small upper density. For every number field $F$, we prove unconditionally that the family $\mathcal{E}_F$ of elliptic curves defined over number fields and with $F$-rational $j$-invariant is typically bounded in torsion. For any integer $d\in\mathbb{Z…
If P is an algebraic point on a commutative group scheme A/K, then P is _almost_rational_ if no two non-trivial Galois conjugates sigma(P), tau(P), have sum equal to 2P. In this paper, we classify almost rational torsion points on semistable elliptic curves over Q.
The possible torsion groups of elliptic curves induced by Diophantine triples over quadratic fields, which do not appear over Q, are Z/2Z x Z/10Z, Z/2Z x Z/12Z and Z/4Z x Z/4Z. In this paper, we show that all these torsion groups indeed appear over some quadratic field. Moreover, we prove that there are infinitely many Diophantine triples over quadratic fields which induce elliptic curves with these torsion groups.
We generalize a result of Frey [Fre88] on the Selmer group of twists of elliptic curves over Q with Q-rational torsion points to elliptic curves defined over number fields of small degree K with a K-rational point. We also provide examples of elliptic curves coming from [Zyw15] that satisfy the conditions of our Theorem B.
Given an elliptic curve over a field of characteristic different from 2,3, its discriminant defines a $μ_{12}$-torsor over the field. In this paper, we give an explicit description of this $μ_{12}$-torsor in terms of the 3-torsion points and of the 4-torsion points on the given elliptic curve. %In addition, we show that such a description involves the Weil pairing in a certain way. As an application, we generalize a result of Coates on the 12-th root of the discriminant of an elliptic curve.
We compute the Mordell-Weil groups of the modular Jacobian varieties of hyperelliptic modular curves $X_1(M, MN)$ over every number field which is the composition of quadratic fields. Also we prove criteria for the existence of elliptic curves over such number fields with prescribed torsion points generalizing the results for quadratic number fields of Kamienny and Najman.
Merel has shown that the order of torsion subgroup of an elliptic curve over a number field can be bounded in terms of only the degree of the number field. The purpose of this note is to investigate what could be the `right bound'. In this paper we use the result of Deuring on the supersingular primes for a CM elliptic curves to give estimate on the number of torsion points on CM elliptic curves over any number field which depends only linearly with the degree of the number field. This result is also a simple corollary of a result of A. Silverberg bounding the order of torsion elements which w…
We prove that, on average, elliptic curves over Q have finitely many primes p for which they possess a p-adic point of order p. We include a discussion of applications to companion forms and the deformation theory of Galois representations.
Let $E$ be an elliptic defined over a number field $K$. Then its Mordell-Weil group $E(K)$ is finitely generated: $E(K)\cong E(K)_{tor}\times\mathbb{Z}^r$. In this paper, we discuss the cyclic torsion subgroup of elliptic curves over cubic number fields. For $N=169,143,91,65,77$ or $55$, we show that $\mathbb{Z}/N\mathbb{Z}$ is not a subgroup of $E(K)_{tor}$ for any elliptic curve $E$ over a cubic number field $K$.
Given an elliptic curve E over a number field k, the Galois action on the torsion points of E induces a Galois representation, ρ_E : Gal(\bar{k}/k) \to GL_2(\hat{Z}). For a fixed number field k, we describe the image of ρ_E for a "random" elliptic curve E over k. In particular, if k\neq Q is linearly disjoint from the cyclotomic extension of Q, then ρ_E will be surjective for "most" elliptic curves over k.
By focusing on the family $E:y^2=x^3+a$, we present strategies for determining the structure of the torsion subgroup of the Mordell-Weil group of an elliptic curve, $E(K)$, over quadratic field $K$. Generalizations of the Nagell-Lutz theorem and Mazur's theorem to curves defined over quadratic fields allows us to determine the full torsion subgroup of $E(K)$ as one of at most three possibilities when $a$ is a square.
We find a tight relationship between the torsion subgroup and the image of the mod 2 Galois representation associated to an elliptic curve defined over the rationals. This is shown using some characterizations for the squareness of the discriminant of the elliptic curve.
We derive asymptotically optimal upper bounds on the number of L-rational torsion points on a given elliptic curve or Drinfeld module defined over a finitely generated field K, as a function of the degree [L:K]. Our main tool is the adelic openness of the image of Galois representations attached to elliptic curves and Drinfeld modules, due to Serre and Pink-Ruetsche, respectively. Our approach is to prove a general result for certain Galois modules, which applies simultaneously to elliptic curves and to Drinfeld modules.
We study torsion subgroups of elliptic curves with complex multiplication (CM) defined over number fields which admit a real embedding. We give a complete classification of the groups which arise up to isomorphism as the torsion subgroup of a CM elliptic curve defined over a number field of odd degree: there are infinitely many. Restricting to the case of prime degree, we show that there are only finitely many isomorphism classes. More precisely, there are six "Olson groups" which arise as torsion subgroups of CM elliptic curves over number fields of every degree, and there are precisely 17 "n…
We show the existence of families of elliptic curves over Q whose generic rank is at least 2 for the torsion groups Z/8Z and Z/2Z x Z/6Z. Also in both cases we prove the existence of infinitely many elliptic curves, which are parameterized by the points of an elliptic curve with positive rank, with such torsion group and rank at least 3. These results represent an improvement of previous results by Campbell, Kulesz, Lecacheux, Dujella and Rabarison where families with rank at least 1 were constructed in both cases.
Given a non-CM elliptic curve E over Q, define the ``torsion conductor'' m_E to be the smallest positive integer so that the Galois representation on the torsion of E has image Pi^{-1}(Gal(Q(E[m_E])/Q), where Pi denotes the natural projection GL_2(\hat{Z}) onto GL_2(Z/m_E Z). We show that, uniformly for semi-stable non-CM elliptic curves E over Q, m_E is less than a constant times the 5th power of the conductor of E.
Let $E$ be an elliptic curve defined over $\mathbb{Q}$, and let $K$ be a number field of degree four that is Galois over $\mathbb{Q}$. The goal of this article is to classify the different isomorphism types of $E(K)_{\text{tors}}$.
Let $Φ^\infty(d)$ denote the set of finite abelian groups that occur infinitely often as the torsion subgroup of an elliptic curve over a number field of degree $d$. The sets $Φ^\infty(d)$ are known for $d\le 4$. In this article we determine $Φ^\infty(5)$ and $Φ^\infty(6)$.
We give new parametrisations of elliptic curves in Weierstrass normal form $y^2=x^3+ax^2+bx$ with torsion groups $\mathbb{Z}/10\mathbb{Z}$ and $\mathbb{Z}/12\mathbb{Z}$ over $\mathbb{Q}$, and with $\mathbb{Z}/14\mathbb{Z}$ and $\mathbb{Z}/16\mathbb{Z}$ over quadratic fields. Even though the parametrisations are equivalent to those given by Kubert and Rabarison, respectively, with the new parametrisations we found three infinite families of elliptic curves with torsion group $\mathbb{Z}/12\mathbb{Z}$ and positive rank. Furthermore, we found elliptic curves with torsion group $\mathbb{Z}/14\math…
Given an elliptic curve $E$ over a global function field $K$, the Galois action on the $n$-torsion points of $E$ gives rise to a mod-n Galois representation $ρ_{E,n}$. For $K$ satisfying some mild conditions, we show that the set of $E$ for which $ρ_{E,n}$ is as large as possible for all $n$, has density $1$.
An elliptic curve $E$ over $\mathbb{Q}$ is said to be good if $N_{E}^{6}<\max\!\left\{ \left\vert c_{4}^{3}\right\vert ,c_{6}^{2}\right\} $ where $N_{E}$ is the conductor of $E$ and $c_{4}$ and $c_{6}$ are the invariants associated to a global minimal model of $E$. In this article, we generalize Masser's Theorem on the existence of infinitely many good elliptic curves with full $2$-torsion. Specifically, we prove via constructive methods that for each of the fifteen torsion subgroups $T$ allowed by Mazur's Torsion Theorem, there are infinitely many good elliptic curves $E$ with $E\!\left(\math…
Let $E: y^2=x(x-a^2)(x+b^2)$ be an elliptic curve with full $2$-torsion group, where $a$ and $b$ are coprime integers and $2(a^2+b^2)$ is a square. Assume that the $2$-Selmer group of $E$ has rank two. We characterize all quadratic twists of $E$ with Mordell-Weil rank zero and $2$-primary Shafarevich-Tate groups $(\mathbb Z/2\mathbb Z)^2$, under certain conditions. We also obtain a distribution result of these elliptic curves.
We prove that there are only finitely many complex numbers $a$ and $b$ with $4a^3+27b^2\not=0$ such that the three points $(1,*),(2,*),$ and $(3,*)$ are simultaneously torsion on the elliptic curve defined in Weierstrass form by $y^2=x^3+ax+b$. This gives an affirmative answer to a question raised by Masser and Zannier. We thus confirm a special case in two dimensions of the relative Manin-Mumford Conjecture formulated by Pink and Masser-Zannier.
Mazur's Theorem states that there are precisely 15 possibilities for the torsion subgroup of an elliptic curve defined over the rational numbers. It was previously shown by Harron and Snowden that the number of isomorphism classes of elliptic curves of height up to $X$ that have a specific torsion subgroup $G$ is on the order of $X^{1/{d(G)}}$, for some positive $d(G)$ depending on $G$. We compute $d(G)$ for these groups over $\mathbb{Q}[i]$. Furthermore, in a collection of recent papers it was proven that there are 9 more possibilities for the torsion subgroup in the base field $\mathbb{Q}[i]…
For any elliptic curve E defined over the rationals with complex multiplication and for every prime p, we describe the image of the mod p Galois representation attached to E. We deduce information about the field of definition of torsion points of these curves, in particular we classify all cases where there are torsion points over Galois number fields not containing the field of definition of the CM.
Let $\ell$ and $p \geq 3$ be distinct prime numbers. Let $E/\mathbb{Q}_{\ell}$ be an elliptic curve with $p$-torsion module $E_p$. Let $\mathbb{Q}_{\ell}(E_p)$ be the $p$-torsion field of $E$. We provide a complete description of the degree of the extension $\mathbb{Q}_{\ell}(E_p)/\mathbb{Q}_{\ell}$. As a consequence, we obtain a recipe to determine the discriminant ideal of the extension $\mathbb{Q}_{\ell}(E_p)/\mathbb{Q}_\ell$ in terms of standard information on $E$.
This paper presents a new result concerning the distribution of 2-Selmer ranks in the quadratic twist family of an elliptic curve over an arbitrary number field K with a single point of order two that does not have a cyclic 4-isogeny defined over its two-division field. We prove that at least half of all the quadratic twists of such an elliptic curve have arbitrarily large 2-Selmer rank, showing that the distribution of 2-Selmer ranks in the quadratic twist family of such an elliptic curve differs from the distribution of 2-Selmer ranks in the quadratic twist family of an elliptic curve having…
Let K be a number field and let $\mathcal{E}$ be an elliptic curve defined over $K$. Let $m$ be a positive integer. We denote by $K(\mathcal{E}[m])$ the number fields obtained by adding to $K$ the coordinates of the $m$-torsion points of $\mathcal{E}$. We look for small (sometimes "minimal") set of generators of $K(\mathcal{E}[m])$. For $m=3$ and $m=4$, we describe explicit generators, degree and Galois groups of the extensions $K(\mathcal{E}[m])/K$.
This paper presents a new result concerning the distribution of 2-Selmer ranks in the quadratic twist family of an elliptic curve with a single point of order two that does not have a cyclic 4-isogeny defined over its two-division field. We prove that at least half of all the quadratic twists of such an elliptic curve have arbitrarily large 2-Selmer rank, showing that the distribution of 2-Selmer ranks in the quadratic twist family of such an elliptic curve differs from the distribution of 2-Selmer ranks in the quadratic twist family of an elliptic curve having either no rational two-torsion o…
The classification of elliptic curves E over the rationals Q is studied according to their torsion subgroups E_{tors}(Q) of rational points. Explicit criteria for the classification are given when E_{tors}(Q) are cyclic groups with even orders. The generator points P of E_{tors}(Q) are also explicitly presented in each case. These results, together with recent results of K. Ono, completely solve the problem of the mentioned explicit classification when E has a rational point of order 2.
Let $E$ be an elliptic curve over a number field $K$. Descent calculations on $E$ can be used to find upper bounds for the rank of the Mordell-Weil group, and to compute covering curves that assist in the search for generators of this group. The general method of 4-descent, developed in the PhD theses of Siksek, Womack and Stamminger, has been implemented in Magma (when $K={\mathbb Q}$) and works well for elliptic curves with sufficiently small discriminant. By extending work of Bremner and Cassels, we describe the improvements that can be made when $E$ has a rational 2-torsion point. In parti…