First-order definitions of rings of integral functions over algebraic extensions of function fields and undecidability

Alexandra Shlapentokh, Caleb Springer

Published 2024-11-22Version 1

In this paper, we study questions of definability and decidability for infinite algebraic extensions ${\bf K}$ of $\mathbb{F}_p(t)$ and their subrings of $\mathcal{S}$-integral functions. We focus on fields ${\bf K}$ satisfying a local property which we call $q$-boundedness. This can be considered a function field analogue of prior work of the first author which considered algebraic extensions of $\mathbb{Q}$. One simple consequence of our work states that if ${\bf K}$ is a $q$-bounded Galois extension of $\mathbb{F}_p(t)$, then the integral closure $\mathcal{O}_{\bf K}$ of $\mathbb{F}_p[t]$ inside ${\bf K}$ is first-order definable in ${\bf K}$. Under the additional assumption that the constant subfield of ${\bf K}$ is infinite, it follows that both $\mathcal{O}_{\bf K}$ and ${\bf K}$ have undecidable first-order theories. Our primary tools are norm equations and the Hasse Norm Principle, in the spirit of Rumely. Our paper has an intersection with a recent arXiv preprint by Mart\'inez-Ranero, Salcedo, and Utreras, although our definability results are more extensive and undecidability results are much stronger.