Modular Schur numbers
We study modular analogues of Schur numbers for systems of linear equations. We show that these only depend on the number of equations, not their coefficients and in the case of one equation show stronger bounds.
math.CO↗
arXiv subjects
Tom Sanders
Publications and source records attributed to Tom Sanders.
The quantitative Beurling-Helson Theorem
We show that for any $\varepsilon>0$ if $\phi:\mathbb{T} \rightarrow \mathbb{T}$ is continuous and $\|\exp(-2\pi i z \phi)\|_{A(\mathbb{T})} =O_{|z|\rightarrow \infty}(\log^{\frac{1}{8}-\varepsilon} |z|)$ then $\phi(x)=wx+t$ for some $w \in\mathbb{Z}$ and $t \in \mathbb{T}$.
math.CA↗
On Rado's single equation theorem
We show that for non-zero integers $a$ and $b$ there is a natural number $N < \exp(r^{2+o_{a,b;r\rightarrow \infty}(1)})$ such that in any $r$-colouring of $\{1,\dots,N\}$ there are $x,y,z$, all in the same colour class, such that $ax-ay=bz$.
math.CO↗
Wiener-Pitt sets for compact Abelian groups
Suppose that $G$ is a compact Hausdorff Abelian group. We say $\mu \in M(G)$ is strongly continuous if $|\mu|(x+H)=0$ for any $x \in G$ and any $H \leq G$ that is closed and of infinite index. We prove that for any sufficiently rapidly decreasing sequence $(a_{n})_{n=1}^{\infty}\in c_{0}(\mathbb{N})$, for every strongly continuous $\mu\in M(G)$ with $\|\mu\| \leq 1$ and $\widehat{\mu}(\widehat{G})\subset \{a_n: n \in \mathbb{N}\}\cup\{0\}$, the measure $\mu\ast\mu$ is absolutely continuous with respect to Haar measure on $G$. This implies that $\mu$ does not exhibit the so-called Wiener-Pitt phenomenon. The paper is a continuation of investigations started in \cite{ow}.
math.FA↗
On monochromatic solutions to $x-y=z^2$
For $k \in \mathbb{N}$, write $S(k)$ for the largest natural number such that there is a $k$-colouring of $\{1,\dots,S(k)\}$ with no monochromatic solution to $x-y=z^2$. That $S(k)$ exists is a result of Bergelson, and a simple example shows that $S(k) \geq 2^{2^{k-1}}$. The purpose of this note is to show that $S(k)\leq 2^{2^{2^{O(k)}}}$.
math.CO↗
Bootstrapping partition regularity of linear systems
Suppose that $A$ is a $k \times d$ matrix of integers and write $\mathfrak{R}_A:\mathbb{N} \rightarrow \mathbb{N}\cup \{ \infty\}$ for the function taking $r$ to the largest $N$ such that there is an $r$-colouring $\mathcal{C}$ of $[N]$ with $\bigcup_{C \in \mathcal{C}}{C^d}\cap \ker A =\emptyset$. We show that if $\mathfrak{R}_A(r)<\infty$ for all $r \in \mathbb{N}$ then $\mathfrak{R}_A(r) \leq \exp (\exp(r^{O_{A}(1)}))$ for all $r \geq 2$. When the kernel of $A$ consists only of Brauer configurations -- that is vectors of the form $(y,x,x+y,\dots,x+(d-2)y)$ -- the above has been proved by Chapman and Prendiville with good bounds on the $O_A(1)$ term.
math.CO↗
On inequivalences of sequences of characters
We establish various results including the following: if $1<p<\infty$ and $\sigma$ is a bijection between the trigonometric functions on $[0,1)$ and the Walsh functions on $[0,1)$. Then $\sigma$ does not extend to an isomorphism $L_p[0,1) \rightarrow L_p[0,1)$.
math.CA↗
Schur's colouring theorem for non-commuting pairs
For G a finite non-Abelian group we write c(G) for the probability that two randomly chosen elements commute and k(G) for the largest integer such that any k(G)-colouring of G is guaranteed to contain a monochromatic quadruple (x,y,xy,yx) with xy not equal to yx. We show that c(G) tends to 0 if and only if k(G) tends to infinity.
math.CO↗
The stability of finite sets in dyadic groups
We show that there is an absolute $c>0$ such that any subset of $\mathbb{F}_2^\infty$ of size $N$ is $O(N^{1-c})$-stable in the sense of Terry and Wolf. By contrast a size $N$ arithmetic progression in the integers is not $N$-stable.
math.CO↗
The coset and stability rings
We show that if $G$ is a discrete Abelian group and $A \subset G$ has $\|1_A\|_{B(G)} \leq M$ then $A$ is $O(\exp(\pi M))$-stable in the sense of Terry and Wolf.
math.CO↗
Coset decision trees and the Fourier algebra
We show that if G is a finite group and f is a {0,1}-valued function on G with Fourier algebra norm at most M then f may be computed by a coset decision tree (that is a decision tree in which at each vertex we query membership of a given coset) having at most \exp(\exp(\exp(O(M^2)))) leaves. A short calculation shows that any {0,1}-valued function which may be computed by a coset decision tree with m leaves has Fourier algebra norm at most \exp(O(m)).
math.CA↗
Boolean functions with small spectral norm, revisited
We show that if $f$ is an integer-valued function with spectral norm at most $M$ then there are subspaces $V_1,\dots,V_L$ and signs $\sigma_1,\dots,\sigma_L \in \{-1,1\}$ such that $f=\sigma_1 1_{V_1} + \dots + \sigma_L 1_{V_L}$ where $L < \exp(M^{3+o(1)})$. This note extracts out the argument from arXiv:1610.07092 to the model setting of $\mathbb{F}_2^n$. The hope is that it will clarify the arguments of that paper.
math.CA↗
The Erdos-Moser sum-free set problem
We show that if A is a finite set of integers then it has a subset S of size \log^{1+c} |A| (c>0 absolute) such that s+s' is never in A when s and s' are distinct elements of S.
math.CA↗
Almost homomorphisms between the Boolean cube and groups of prime order
We show that if f is an injection from an n-dimensional Boolean cube (considered as an additive group) to a group of prime order then the probability that f(x+y)=f(x)+f(y) is O(2^{-n/11}).
math.CO↗
Solving xz=yy in certain subsets of finite groups
We show that if G is a finite group and A is a subset of G with no non-trivial solutions to xz=yy then |A| < |G|/(log log |G|)^c.
math.CA↗
Bounds in Cohen's idempotent theorem
We show that if $G$ is a finite Abelian group and $f$ is an integer-valued map on $G$ with algebra norm at most $M$ then there is some $L < \exp(M^{4+o(1)})$, cosets of (possibly different) subgroups $W_1,...,W_L$, and $s_1,...,s_L \in \{-1,1\}$ such that $f=\sum_i{s_i1_{W_i}}$.
math.CA↗
A statistical approach to covering lemmas
We discuss a statistical variant of Ruzsa's covering lemma and use it to show that if G is an Abelian group of bounded exponent and A in G has |A+A| < K|A| then the subgroup generated by A has size at most exp(O(K log^22K))|A|, where the constant in the big-O depends on the exponent of the group only.
math.CO↗
Fourier uniformity on subspaces
Let $\mathbb{F}$ be a fixed finite field, and let $A \subset \mathbb{F}^n$. It is a well-known fact that there is a subspace $V \leq \mathbb{F}^n$, $\mbox{codim} V \ll_{\delta} 1$, and an $x$, such that $A$ is $\delta$-uniform when restricted to $x + V$ (that is, all non-trivial Fourier coefficients of $A$ restricted to $x + V$ have magnitude at most $\delta$). We show that if $\mathbb{F} = \mathbb{F}_2$ then it is possible to take $x = 0$; that is, $A$ is $\delta$-uniform on a subspace $V \leq \mathbb{F}^n$. We give an example to show that this is not necessarily possible when $\mathbb{F} = \mathbb{F}_3$. ADDED July 2016: shortly after this paper appeared on the arxiv, F. Manners showed us a rather short argument he had found in 2013, giving a better bound for our main theorem. We do not, therefore, intend to publish this note. The example over $\mathbb{F}_3$ may still be of interest to some readers and so we will not withdraw the paper from the arxiv.
math.NT↗