Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2008/ii/paper-4/18h/ii/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2008 ii Paper 4 18H ii Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
For odd prime , every subgroup is one of , , a reflection subgroup for , or . Indeed, a subgroup containing a nonidentity rotation contains all rotations; with any reflection it is then . A subgroup with no nonidentity rotation contains at most one reflection, since the product of distinct reflections is a nonidentity rotation.
The Galois correspondence gives the following fixed fields. The trivial subgroup corresponds to , the rotation subgroup to , and to the base . Since composition of the stated automorphisms gives , the reflection subgroup corresponds toThis rational invariant has degree two, hence generates the fixed field of its order-two subgroup, by the same degree argument as part (i). These fields have degrees respectively over .
An intermediate field is Galois over the base exactly when its corresponding subgroup is normal in . The trivial subgroup, the rotations and are normal; no reflection subgroup is normal because is odd and greater than two. Hence the Galois intermediate extensions and groups areThe reflection fixed fields are not Galois over the base.
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