Fiber primes of an integral extension Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-24
For an integral extension and , localization gives a bijection
It combines the prime ideal correspondence for localization with the contraction of a maximal ideal under an integral extension.
Put and define
where acts on through the given inclusion. By the prime ideal correspondence for localization, primes of correspond to primes of satisfying , equivalently .
The localized extension remains integral. If , then
is an integral domain integral over the field . An integral domain integral over a field is a field, so is maximal.
Conversely, if is maximal in , the contraction of a maximal ideal under an integral extension is maximal in the local ring , hence equals . Contracting once more to gives . Extension and contraction are inverse under localization, proving the required fiber primes of an integral extension bijection.