Topics in analytic number theory, Lent 2013.

Lecture 13: Using Bombieris density estimate

Bob Hough
February 25, 2013
Reference for this lecture: Bombieri, Le grand crible dans la theorie analytique des nombres.
Recall that Linniks Theorem is the statement that if a and q are coprime,
then there exists prime p a mod q with p < O(q O(1) ). We also recall the
statement of Bombieris Theorem from last lecture.
Theorem (Bombieri). There exists c > 0 such that, for all T > 2, and all
1/2 < 1,
X X
N (, T ; ) = O(T c(1) ).
qT mod q

Here the star on the sum over characters indicates that only primitive characters
are to be included.
If there exists a real primitive character 1 mod q1 with q1 < T , such that
(s, 1 ) has zero 1 > 1 log T , then we have the improved estimate
X X

N 0 (, T ; ) = O(T c(1) (1 1 ) log T ).

qT mod q

Here the
cluded.

on N 0 (, T ; ) indicates that the single exceptional zero is to be ex-

We now show that Bombieris Theorem implies Linniks Theorem.

Proof that Bombieri implies Linnik. In this proof we take T = q A1 with A1 > 3
and x = T A2 with A2 > 12 a large constant. In the proof we will think of A2
as a variable, so we indicate error terms that depend on A2 .
From the proof of PNT in AP, we have


X
X 0 x
X
1 (a)x1
1
x

(a)
log p =
(q)
(q)1
(q)

0
px
pa mod q

mod q

+ O(

(, )=0
||> log x
||<T

x(log x)2
) + O( x log x).
T

Here 0 indicates the primitive character inducing . Since x > T 12 , the second
error term may be absorbed into the first. Also, the term involving 1 is to be
1

included only if there exists an exceptional zero, and the prime on the sum over
zeros indicates that the exceptional 1 is to be excluded. In the remainder of
this proof we assume existence of the exceptional zero. It should be clear how
to modify the argument for the other case.
We first bound the contribution of zeros = + i with < 1/2. We have
0 x

X
(,0 )=0
||> log x
||<T
<1/2

= O(x1/2

X 1
) = O(x1/2 (log x)2 ),
||
...

which may be absorbed into the earlier error term.

1
For the remaining zeros, we note that ||
1/2, so that these are bounded
X
2
(q)

x .

mod q (, )=0
||<T
1/2

Wastefully embedding the set of primitive characters with conductor dividing

q into the set of all primitive characters with conductor at most T , and noting
0
that for the non-exceptional zeros we have a zero-free region 1 logc T , we
obtain a bound
Z 1c0 / log T
1 X X


x d(N 0 (, T ; )).
(q) 0
1/2
0
q T mod q

Integrating by parts, this has evaluation term at 1/2 given by



1 X
(q) 0

x 2 N 0 (1/2, T ; ) 

q T mod q 0

x(log x)2
x1/2 T 3 (log T )

,
(q)
T

where we have bounded the number of zeros by  T log T and the total number
of characters by  T 2 .
The integral term from integration by parts is
Z 1c0 / log T
X X
1
x log x
N 0 (, T ; )d
(q) 21
0
0
q T mod q
Z 1c0 / log T
(1 1 ) log T log x
x T c(1) d

1
(q)
2
by inserting
Bombieris bound. Now we assume that A2 2c + 1, so that
x/T c x. We thus obtain the bound
0

We deduce that
X
log p
px
pa mod q

x(1 1 ) log T (x/T c )c / log T

x(1 1 )(log T )ecc eA2 c

.
(q)
(q)

1
(q)

x1
x
1


C

x(log x)2
x(1 1 )(log T )ecA2
O(
).
(q)
T

Now
x

x1
x1 1
T 1 1
= x(1
) x(1
)  x(1 1 ) log T,
1
1
1
t1

as may be checked by applying the mean value theorem to the function t 7 T t

on the interval t [1 , 1]. It follows that if A2 is chosen sufficiently large, then
the term coming from the zeros is at most 21 (x x1 /1 ).
As regards the error term, we note that the lower bound L(1, 1 )  1T ,
which follows from the class number formula, implies the bound
c
1 1
,
T (log T )2
since L0 (, 1 )  (log T )2 for [1 1/ log T, 1] (see Lemma 9.2). Thus the
remaining error term is negligible compared to the main term.
Bombieris strategy for the zero-density estimate proceeds as follows. As
in the proof of the zero-free region, we expect that if = + i is a zero of
L(s, ) with 1, then L0 /L(1 + iv, ), and related functions, will be large
if v . Note that L0 /L(1 + iv, ) is a sum over primes. Using this idea, we
will construct a zero-detecting Dirichlet series
X ap (p)
P (t, ) =
p1+it
A<p<B

such that P (t, ) is large if t is near a zero close to the 1-line (of course, we do
not expect that these exist). Thus we may bound the number of nearby zeros
by considering the mean value
Z T
|P (t, )|2 dt.
T

We will then argue that P (t, ) cannot be large for many characters simultaneously, since the characters are approximately orthogonal. For this we will need
the Large Sieve.
To begin, we define for primitive mod q, q < T ,

L(s, )
if no exceptional 1
F (s) = F (s, ) =
L(s, )L(s (1 1 ), 1 )
if 1 is exceptional
In effect, in the case of exceptional 1 , L(s (1 1 ), 1 ) acts like an approximate inverse to L(s, ), since 1 (p) = 1 for many p, so that 1 (p) = (p)
for many p.
We record a pair of lemmas.
Lemma 13.1. Let mod q be induced by 0 mod q 0 . Let = <(s) 1/2. Then
L0 /L(s, ) = L0 /L(s, 0 ) + O(log q).
Proof. The difference is
X 0 (pn ) log p
p|q,n

pns

X
= O(
p|q

log p
) = O(log q).
1 p

(Note that the formula for the difference initially this holds only for <(s) > 1,
but continues to hold into the strip by analytic continuation).
3

Lemma 13.2. Let mod q be primitive, q < T . Let |v| < T , and let 1/ log T <
r < 1/4. Then
#{ : (, ) = 0, | (1 + iv)| < r} = O(r log T ).
This holds also for L(s, ) replaced by (s) if we assume |v| 2.
This is an extension of our bound for the number of zeros in an interval of
height 1, to the case of a small disc near the 1 line. The proof is also similar.
Proof. We have
<{

L0
(1 + r + iv, )} = O(log T )
L

X
(,)=0

1+r
(1 + r )2 + (v )2

Since |L0 /L(1 + r + iv, )| | 0 /(1 + r)| = O(1/r), we deduce that

X
(,)=0

1+r
= O(1/r) + O(log T ).
(1 + r )2 + (v )2

The sum in question has only positive terms, so we may discard all zeros except
for those with | (1 + iv)| < r. For such , we have | (1 + iv + r)| < 2r, so
that
r
4
1+r
2 .
2
2
(1 + r ) + (v )
4r
r
We deduce
4
#{ : (, ) = 0, | (1 + iv)| < r} = O(1/r) + O(log T ).
r