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Zusatztext "Once a certain basic understanding is reached, this book, like the others written by N. Katz, reveals itself to be very precisely and sharply written, and to be full of riches. And finally, this theory shows spectacularly how some of the most abstract ideas of algebra and algebraic geometry may be essential to solving extremely concrete problems." ---Emmanuel Kowalski, Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society Informationen zum Autor Nicholas M. Katz Klappentext Convolution and Equidistribution explores an important aspect of number theory--the theory of exponential sums over finite fields and their Mellin transforms--from a new, categorical point of view. The book presents fundamentally important results and a plethora of examples, opening up new directions in the subject. The finite-field Mellin transform (of a function on the multiplicative group of a finite field) is defined by summing that function against variable multiplicative characters. The basic question considered in the book is how the values of the Mellin transform are distributed (in a probabilistic sense), in cases where the input function is suitably algebro-geometric. This question is answered by the book's main theorem, using a mixture of geometric, categorical, and group-theoretic methods. By providing a new framework for studying Mellin transforms over finite fields, this book opens up a new way for researchers to further explore the subject. Zusammenfassung Convolution and Equidistribution explores an important aspect of number theory--the theory of exponential sums over finite fields and their Mellin transforms--from a new, categorical point of view. The book presents fundamentally important results and a plethora of examples, opening up new directions in the subject. The finite-field Mellin transform (of a function on the multiplicative group of a finite field) is defined by summing that function against variable multiplicative characters. The basic question considered in the book is how the values of the Mellin transform are distributed (in a probabilistic sense), in cases where the input function is suitably algebro-geometric. This question is answered by the book's main theorem, using a mixture of geometric, categorical, and group-theoretic methods. By providing a new framework for studying Mellin transforms over finite fields, this book opens up a new way for researchers to further explore the subject. ...
