Exercise 15.5.1

Let β [ i ] be nonzero. Then α [ i ] gives [ α ] [ i ] βℤ [ i ] . Prove that [ α ] ( [ i ] βℤ [ i ] ) if and only if α is relatively prime to β .

Answers

Proof. If [ α ] ( [ i ] βℤ [ i ] ) , there is some γ [ i ] such that [ α ] [ γ ] = [ 1 ] . This shows that 1 [ α ] [ γ ] = [ αγ ] = αγ + βℤ [ i ] , so that

αγ = 1 + βδ , δ [ i ] .

If ξ [ i ] divides α and β , then ξ divides 1 = αγ βδ , thus ξ is a unit. This proves that α , β are relatively prime.

Conversely, suppose that α , β are relatively prime. Since [ i ] is a principal ideal domain, the ideal αℤ [ i ] + βℤ [ i ] is equal to ζℤ [ i ] for some ζ [ i ] :

αℤ [ i ] + βℤ [ i ] = ζℤ [ i ] , ζ [ i ] .

Then α = α 1 + β 0 αℤ [ i ] + βℤ [ i ] = ζℤ [ i ] , thus α = ζλ , λ [ i ] , and ζ α . Similarly, β = α 0 + β 1 ζℤ [ i ] , so that ζ β .

Since ζ α , ζ β , were α and β are relatively prime, this implies that ζ is a unit, so that ζℤ [ i ] = [ i ] , and

αℤ [ i ] + βℤ [ i ] = [ i ] .

Then 1 [ i ] = αℤ [ i ] + βℤ [ i ] , thus there are some γ , δ [ i ] such that 1 = αγ + βδ . Since [ β ] = [ 0 ] ,

[ 1 ] = [ αγ + βδ ] = [ α ] [ γ ] + [ β ] [ δ ] = [ α ] [ γ ] ,

where [ γ ] [ i ] βℤ [ i ] . This proves that [ α ] has an inverse [ γ ] [ i ] βℤ [ i ] :

[ α ] ( [ i ] βℤ [ i ] ) .

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2022-07-19 00:00
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