 Solution

A splitting field of a nonzero polynomial $f$ over $K$ is an extension in which $f$ splits into linear factors and which is generated over $K$ by all its roots. For a constant nonzero polynomial the splitting field is $K$; the zero polynomial does not have a root-generated splitting field in this standard definition.

Given two splitting fields $L,L^{\prime }$, enumerate the roots generating $L$ and extend a $K$-embedding one root at a time. If an embedding is defined on $K({\alpha }_1,\dots ,{\alpha }_j)$, the minimal polynomial of the next root divides $f$ over that field. Its image under the embedding therefore divides $f$ over the corresponding subfield of $L^{\prime }$, and has a root in $L^{\prime }$. The quotient construction $K(\alpha )\cong K[t]/(m_{\alpha })$ extends the embedding to that root. The polynomial need not be a separable polynomial.

At the end this gives a $K$-embedding $L\to L^{\prime }$. It sends the distinct roots of $f$ injectively to its roots, hence permutes the finite set of distinct roots and contains every root in its image. Since these generate $L^{\prime }$, the embedding is onto. Thus the splitting field is unique up to a (K)-isomorphism.