Algebraic Resolutions of Seven Open Problems on Cyclic and Negacyclic Codes Supporting Designs

TL;DR

This paper provides algebraic solutions to seven open problems related to cyclic, negacyclic, and constacyclic codes supporting combinatorial designs, introducing new constructions, criteria, and weight enumerators.

Contribution

It offers a unified algebraic framework for solving open problems on codes supporting designs, including criteria for existence and new code constructions.

Findings

Cayley parametrization reduces trace-zero condition to a semilinear equation.

Minimum zero sets are Baer sublines, relating to elliptic quadrics.

Negacyclic ovoid codes exist iff q ≡ 3 mod 4, with explicit existence criteria.

Abstract

This paper gives a unified algebraic solution to seven open problems of Wang, Tang and Ding on cyclic, negacyclic and constacyclic codes supporting designs. For the cyclic code \[ C\left(\frac{p^s-1}{2},\frac{p^s+1}{2}\right), \] a Cayley parametrization of the unit circle reduces the trace-zero condition to a semilinear equation on \(\PG(1,q)\). Its large root sets are exactly the \(\F_{p^{\gcd(m,s)}}\)-sublines, yielding the complementary design \[ \overline{S(3,q_0+1,q+1)}. \] For the length \(q^2+1\) negacyclic code, a quotient transport from \(\U_{2(q^2+1)}\) to \(\U_{q^2+1}\) and a unit-circle parametrization show that the minimum zero sets are precisely the Baer sublines of \(\PG(1,q^2)\). Equivalently, the corresponding support design is the complement of the non-tangent plane sections of an elliptic quadric \(\Q^-(3,q)\). For constacyclic ovoid codes of length \(q^2+1\) over \(\F_q\), the exact existence criterion is \[ \lambda\in\F_q^*,\qquad \exists\ \lambda\text{-constacyclic ovoid code} \Longleftrightarrow \lambda\notin(\F_q^*)^2. \] In particular, negacyclic ovoid codes exist exactly when \(q\equiv3\pmod4\). The proof uses the corrected projective-order congruence \[ a=(q+1)c,\qquad c\equiv b\pmod{q-1},\qquad \operatorname{ord}(\theta\F_q^*)=\frac{q^2+1}{\gcd(q^2+1,c)}. \] The paper also derives a universal weight enumerator for lifted ovoid codes over extension fields, independent of the chosen ovoid. Finally, consecutive-root negacyclic MDS codes are constructed to give complete simple \(5\)-designs, including a proper negacyclic \([11,5,7]_{23}\) code whose minimum supports form the complete \(5-(11,7,15)\) design.