If a nonzero nilpotent element existed in , its proper annihilator would lie in a maximal ideal . No element outside annihilates , so is nonzero in the localization at a prime ideal . Conversely, if in a localization, some in the multiplicative subset satisfies . Then , so reducedness of gives and hence .
Von Neumann regular ring 2026-10-05
A ring is von Neumann regular if every element has an element with . In a commutative ring, this is . An arbitrary direct product of rings whose factors are fields has this property by taking inverses in each nonzero coordinate. Every localization at a prime ideal of a commutative von Neumann regular ring is a field.