Module Requirement For Abstract Algebra
Module Requirement For Abstract Algebra
Dagupan City
Institute of Graduate Professional Studies
MEd_06-Abstract Algebra
Summer 2022
A Module
about
INTEGRAL DOMAINS
and
FIELDS
Prepared by:
Nimrod B. Cabrera
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Table of Contents
I. Objectives ……………………………………………………………Page 3
V. References ……………………………………………………………Page 6
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I. Objectives
II. Introduction
III. Discussion
Definition
If a, b are two ring elements with a, b ≠ 0 but ab = 0 then a and
b are called zero-divisors.
Example
In the ring Z6 we have 2.3 = 0 and so 2 and 3 are zero-divisors.
More generally, if n is not prime then Zn contains zero-divisors.
Definition
An integral domain is a commutative ring with an identity (1 ≠
0) with no zero-divisors. That is ab = 0 ⇒ a = 0 or b = 0.
Example
1. The ring Z is an integral domain. (This explains the name.)
2. The polynomial rings Z[x] and R[x] are integral domains. (Look
at the degree of a polynomial to see how to prove this.)
3. The ring {a + b√2 | a, b ∈ Z} is an integral domain. (Proof?)
4. If p is prime, the ring Zp is an integral domain. (Proof?)
Definition
If A field is a commutative ring with identity (1 ≠ 0) in which
every non-zero element has a multiplicative inverse.
Example
The rings Q, R, C are fields.
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Remarks
a) a, b are elements of a field with ab = 0 then if a ≠ 0 it has an
inverse a-1 and so multiplying both sides by this gives b = 0.
Hence there are no zero-divisors and we have: Every field is an
integral domain.
b) The axioms of a field F can be summarised as:
i. (F, +) is an abelian group
ii. (F - {0}, . ) is an abelian group
iii. The distributive law.
The example Z shows that some integral domains are not fields.
Theorem
Every finite integral domain is a field.
Proof
The only thing we need to show is that a typical element a ≠ 0
has a multiplicative inverse.
Consider a, a2, a3, ... Since there are only finitely many
elements we must have am = an for some m < n(say).
Then 0=am −an =am (1−a n−m). Since there are no zero-divisors we
must have a m ≠ 0 and hence 1 - a n−m= 0 and so 1 = a(a n−m−1) and
we have found a multiplicative inverse for a.
Problems:
The units in Zn are the elements of Un; that is, the elements of
Zn which are relatively prime to n.
Thus, in Z12, the elements 1, 5, 7, and 11 are units. For
example, 7−1 = 7.
The zero divisors in Z12 are 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, and 10. For
example 2 · 6 = 0, even though 2 and 6 are nonzero.
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Example 3: (A ring of functions which is not a domain)
Let:
Then f, g ≠ 0, but f g= 0.
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Example 6: (Zero divisors in the integers mod n)
The zero divisors are those elements in {1, 2, . . . , 14} which are
not relatively prime to 15: 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 12.
For example, 5 · 12 = 0 ∈ Z15 shows directly that 5 and 12 are
zero divisors.
Since 7 is prime, all the elements in {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6} are
relatively prime to 7. There are no zero divisors in Z7. In fact, Z7
is an integral domain; since it’s finite, it’s also a field by an
earlier result.
V. References
http://www.macs.hw.ac.uk/~jim/F13YE2/notes/alg2.pdf
http://www.csun.edu/~asethura/GIAAFILES/GIAAV1.0/GIAAV1.
0.pdf
https://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/flynn/genus2/sheets0405/
grfnotes1011.pdf
https://sites.millersville.edu/bikenaga/abstract-algebra-1/
integral-domains-and-fields/integral-domains-and-fields.pdf
http://www-groups.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~john/MT4517/
Lectures/L4.html
http://abstract.ups.edu/aata/section-domains-and-fields.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integral_domain
http://abstract.ups.edu/aata/domains.html
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