View Proposal #372
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ID | 372 |
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First Name | Christian |
Last Name | Roettger |
Institution | Iowa State University |
Speaker Category | faculty |
Title of Talk | Geometric distribution of primes in Z[sqrt(2)] |
Abstract | It all starts with the question: what can we say about integers a, b such that a^2 - 2b^2 is a prime? We will show some ways to make this question more precise - in particular, we study the distribution of the corresponding points (a,b) in the plane. The fundamental tool is the ring Z[sqrt(2)], and from there we make connections to analytic number theory (L-functions, Hecke characters) which arise very naturally - this is the context where Hecke invented 'Hecke characters', and they are much easier to understand here than when you read about them in MathWorld. |
Subject area(s) | Number Theory, Diophantine Geometry, L-functions |
Suitable for undergraduates? | Y |
Day Preference | none |
Computer Needed? | N |
Bringing a laptop? | Y |
Overhead Needed? | |
Software requests | |
Special Needs | |
Date Submitted | 10/02/2013 |
Year | 2013 |