Limiting distributions of conjugate algebraic integers

TL;DR

This paper characterizes when probability measures can be limits of conjugate algebraic integers and provides an efficient algorithm to construct such algebraic integers with roots approximating a given distribution.

Contribution

It establishes necessary and sufficient conditions for measures to be limits of conjugate algebraic integers and develops a polynomial-time algorithm for constructing such algebraic integers.

Findings

Characterization of measures as limits of conjugate algebraic integers

Polynomial-time algorithm for constructing algebraic integers with prescribed root distributions

Extension of results to real subsets and connection to Smith's theorem

Abstract

Let $\Sigma \subset \mathbb{C}$ be a compact subset of the complex plane, and $\mu$ be a probability distribution on $\Sigma$. We give necessary and sufficient conditions for $\mu$ to be the weak* limit of a sequence of uniform probability measures on a complete set of conjugate algebraic integers lying eventually in any open set containing $\Sigma$. Given $n\geq 0$, any probability measure $\mu$ satisfying our necessary conditions, and any open set $D$ containing $\Sigma$, we develop and implement a polynomial time algorithm in $n$ that returns an integral monic irreducible polynomial of degree $n$ such that all of its roots are inside $D$ and their root distributions converge weakly to $\mu$ as $n\to \infty$. We also prove our theorem for $\Sigma\subset \mathbb{R}$ and open sets inside $\mathbb{R}$ that recovers Smith's main theorem \cite{Smith} as special case. Given any finite field $\mathbb{F}_q$ and any integer $n$, our algorithm returns infinitely many abelian varieties over $\mathbb{F}_q$ which are not isogenous to the Jacobian of any curve over $\mathbb{F}_{q^n}$.