Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 109 4 i Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Let denote the constant term, retaining the dimension as a subscript when it changes. We use the Good recurrence for the Dyson constant term. For algebraically independent variables, Lagrange interpolation polynomial applied to the constant polynomial one givesAt , this becomes the rational identityWhen every , multiplying by the given Laurent polynomial cancels one factor in row of the product and givesThis is a polynomial identity after cancellation; no choice of an expansion of a rational function is involved.
The boundary case is essential. If , the factors in row are absent. The only factors involving are then for , and all their powers of are nonpositive. To obtain power zero in , one must select the constant term one from each of them. Taking the constant term in therefore deletes that variable and exponent:For , the empty product is one, so . The all-zero exponent vector also gives one.
Now put , where . This multinomial coefficient obeys the same deletion rule for a zero exponent. For positive exponents,Induction on , and within each dimension on , consequently determines uniquely and identifies it with . This proves the Dyson constant-term identity:
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 141 2 a Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Apply the given skein relation to a positive and a negative kink in a diagram of the unknot. Both crossed link diagrams represent the unknot, whereas the oriented smoothing represents the two-component unlink. ThusFactor the left-hand side and cancel the nonzero factor in the Laurent polynomial ring:The positive sign follows from the skein relation as printed in this paper. It differs from the frequently used Jones polynomial convention whose two-component unlink has value . With the printed convention, an -component link has invariant times that convention's Jones polynomial.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 141 2 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Insert a kink on any component of an oriented link diagram for . Switching the kink's crossing gives another link diagram of ; its oriented smoothing separates off a small unknot in a ball disjoint from the rest of . The skein relation therefore givesCancel the nonzero factor in the Laurent polynomial ring to obtain
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 141 2 d Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Let be the positively oriented Hopf link obtained by closing a two-strand braid with two positive crossings. Switching one crossing gives the two-component unlink; the oriented smoothing gives the unknot. The printed skein relation givesRepresent the right-handed trefoil knot by the closure of the two-strand braid with three positive crossings. Switching one crossing gives the unknot, while its oriented smoothing gives . Consequentlyso the two Jones polynomials areThe second expression follows from the mirror of a link identity. They are unequal Laurent polynomials, so invariance under link isotopy proves that the right-handed and left-handed trefoils are not isotopic.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2022 iii Paper 112 1 iii Solution Created 2026-09-28 Updated 2026-10-03
Consider the symmetric Laurent polynomialIt satisfies , so the Alexander polynomial realization theorem gives a knot with . The polynomial is not a unit of , whereas
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2024 iii Paper 358 2 c Solution 2026-09-28
Embed in and write . The hypothesis gives in the weak operator topology. Since and are unitary operators,Thus in the strong operator topology. Applying the same argument to the adjoints gives strongly.
Products of uniformly bounded strongly convergent operators converge strongly, so for every integer ,strongly, with negative interpreted through adjoints. Therefore convergence holds for every Laurent polynomial. The Stone-Weierstrass theorem says that Laurent polynomials are uniformly dense in . Since the continuous functional calculus is contractive, uniform approximation finishes the proof for every .
Quantum integer 2026-10-14
The symmetric quantum integer is the displayed Laurent polynomial, with . It obeys and . At a primitive odd th root of unity, exactly when divides .
For the block-rotation maximal torus in the special orthogonal group , the Weyl group acts by permutations and independent inversions of . Its invariant Laurent polynomials are the symmetric polynomials in , hence the polynomial ring in their elementary symmetric polynomials . Restriction of the group representation ring of a compact group is injective because every group element is conjugate into the torus and characters distinguish virtual representations. For the defining complexified representation , the exterior-power characters satisfy . For , its coefficient is plus an integral linear combination of for . Induction puts every in the restriction image, proving equality with the invariant ring and giving polynomial generators .
Given a finite set of exponent vectors, there is for which the integers , , are pairwise distinct. For , take with larger than every first-coordinate difference in . In higher dimensions take with sufficiently large. This proves that a nonzero Laurent polynomial can be detected by a substitution without cancellation of its distinct terms.
Let have no zero divisors and be an automorphism. For nonzero Laurent polynomials and with greatest exponents , the coefficient of in is . No other exponent pair contributes to that highest degree. Both factors are nonzero, so their product is nonzero, proving the noncommutative domain property in every characteristic.
Subdivision difference scheme 2026-10-14
For backward differences , a scalar stationary arity- subdivision mask has symbol . The identity gives the displayed intertwining whenever the quotient is a finite Laurent polynomial. Iterating supplies higher-difference masks. The coefficients are candidate th-derivative controls. A convergent derivative scheme, proved by contraction of its first differences, establishes corresponding smoothness of the original limit under the standard consistent parameterization.
For , let be the -dimensional irreducible sl2 Lie algebra representation. Its weights are . A wedge basis shows , where is the Gaussian binomial coefficient. By the Weyl complete reducibility theorem, this character is a nonnegative sum of irreducible strings . All its weights have parity , so their coefficients increase toward zero and decrease afterward. Consequently the coefficients of are symmetric and unimodal. The symmetric quantum binomial coefficient is this character, a Laurent polynomial; its coefficients are unimodal on the occupied parity. The full integer-exponent sequence need not be unimodal, as demonstrates.
Weyl integration formula for U(n) 2026-10-14
For the unitary group, the diagonal maximal torus has coordinates and Weyl group . The Weyl integration formula weights independent uniform angles by . The Vandermonde determinant has squared torus integral , by Fourier orthogonality. Multiplying an irreducible character of highest weight by this determinant gives an alternating Laurent polynomial. Its leading alternant has coefficient one; character orthogonality for compact groups forces every other alternant coefficient to vanish. This yields the quotient .