GROUP CHARACTERS

AND THE
KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL
RAYMOND N. FULLER

Abstract. We review the elementary properties of a multiplicative character

of a finite abelian group, and examine in detail one specific example, the
Kronecker-Jacobi symbol.

1. Elementary Properties
1.1. The Legendre Symbol. Since our goal in these notes is to gain an understanding of what group charcters are, we may as well begin with one of the simplest
and well known examples, the Legendre symbol.
Definition 1. Let p be an odd prime and let a be an integer relatively prime to
p. We say that a is a quadratic residue modulo p if the quadratic congruence
x2 a (mod p) has a solution in Z, otherwise we say a is a quadratic nonresidue
modulo p. For a fixed odd prime p, we define the Legendre Symbol
 

: Z {1, 0, 1}
p
by

  1 if n is a quadratic residue modulo p,

n
1 if n is a quadratic nonresidue modulo p,
=

p
0 if p | n.
The Legendre symbol is, appropriately, named for A.-M. Legendre, who introduced and investigated the symbol. We collect some of the more useful properties
of the Legendre symbol in the following theorem.
Theorem 1. Let p, q be distinct odd primes, and let a, b be integers relatively prime
to p. Then the Legendre symbol satisfies the following properties:
    
ab
a
b
(1.1)
=
p
p
p
   
a
b
=
(1.2)
If a b (mod p) then
p
p



1
1 if p 1 (mod 4),
(p1)/2
= (1)
=
(1.3)
1 if p 3 (mod 4).
p
Date: Thursday 28 July, 2011.
This set of notes is part of an independent study in the summer of 2011. It is a collaborative
effort with Emily Cilli-Turner and Cara Mullen, as well as my classmates from MATH514 in the
spring of 2011, under the supervision of Prof. Cojocaru.
1

(1.4)
(1.5)

RAYMOND N. FULLER

 

2
2
1 if p 1, 7 (mod 8),
= (1)(p 1)/8 =
1 if p 3, 5 (mod 8).
p
  
q
p
= (1)(p1)(q1)/4
q
p


There are scores of proofs of the various properties above, ranging from the elementary to deep proofs from algebraic number theory. Property (1.5) in particular
is the celebrated Law of Quadratic Reciprocity, first proven by Gauss. Although
we shall make use of these properties in what follows, for the sake of brevity we
omit all proof and refer the interested reader to, e.g., [1].
The Legendre symbol map Z {1, 0, 1} restricts in a natural way to a map
(Z/pZ) {1} by defining
   
a
a
=
p
p

where a is the equivalence class of (Z/pZ) with representative a (since no confusion

is likely to occur, we shall suppress the bar in our notation). Property (1.2) tells us
that this map is well-defined. Since the representatives of (Z/pZ) are all relatively
prime to p, it is clear that under this restriction, the Legendre symbol takes on the
values 1, never zero. If we view {1} as a multiplicative group (in particular, the
square roots of unity, as a subgroup of C ), then property (1.1) of Theorem 1 gives
us that the Legendre symbol is a homomorphism of multiplicative groups:
 

: (Z/pZ) {1} C .
p
In an analagous (though admittedly, far more complicated) manner, one can define the higher power Legendre symbols. Define the number fields K = Q(e2i/3 )
and L = Q(i), together with their associated rings of integers, OK and OL , respectively. Let n C denote the multiplicative group of nth roots of unity. The
cubic and biquadratic Legendre symbols give rise to the group homomorphisms

: (OK /OK ) 3 C
3

: (OL /OL ) 4 C .
4
(For full details of the definition and properties of these symbols, see [2, 3].) In
all three of these symbols, we see that they give rise to a homomorphism from a
finite multiplicative abelian group into a multiplicative subgroup of C . This is the
defining property of a group character.
1.2. Multiplicative Group Characters. The previous examples give us an idea
of what a group character should be.
Definition 2. Let G be a finite multiplicative abelian group. A character of G
is a homomorphism : G C .
Property (1.1) and Definition 2 imply that the Legendre symbol is a group character.
For the rest of this section, we shall assume that G is a finite multiplicative
abelian group. Suppose that |G| = n. Since (1) = 1 = (g n ) = (g)n for all
g G, we see that (g) is an nth root of unity, so that : G n C . Note

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

that there always exists a distinguished character, which we shall denote by 0 ,

defined by 0 (g) = 1 for all g G. We shall call 0 the trivial character of G.
b denote the set of all characters of G. G
b is non-empty, since 0 G.
b Given
Let G
b define their product 1 2 to be
1 , 2 G,
(1.6)

1 2 (g) = 1 (g)2 (g) for all g G.

Given g, h G, we see that

1 2 (gh)

= 1 (gh)2 (gh)
= 1 (g)1 (h)2 (g)2 (h)
= 1 (g)2 (g)1 (h)2 (h)
= 1 2 (g)1 2 (h)

and so 1 2 is a homomorphism G C , and hence a character of G. Therefore,

b
multiplication of characters is a binary operation on G.
b of characters of G with the multiplication defined in (1.6)
Theorem 2. The set G
is a finite abelian group, called the dual group of G.
b g, h G. The trivial character 0 is the identity element,
Proof. Let 1 , 2 , 3 G,
since
0 1 (g)

= 0 (g)1 (g)
=

1 1 (g)

= 1 (g)
= 1 (g) 1
= 1 (g)0 (g)
= 1 0 (g).
Associativity of multiplication follows from associativity in C , since
(1 2 )3 (g)

1 2 (g)3 (g)

1 (g)2 (g)3 (g)

= 1 (g)2 3 (g)
= 1 (2 3 )(g).
b define 1 by 1 (g) = (g), where the bar here denotes complex
Given G,
conjugation. Since is a character, we have that
1 (gh)

(gh)

(g)(h)

(g) (h)

1 (g)1 (h)

b As the notation suggests, 1 is the inverse of : for

and so therefore 1 G.
suppose that (g) = z. Then
(g)1 (g) = (g)(g) = zz = 1 = 0 (g)
1 (g)(g) = (g)(g) = zz = 1 = 0 (g)
where the third equalities follow from the fact that z is a root of unity. We have
b is a group. G
b is a finite group, since its elements are maps from
verified that G

RAYMOND N. FULLER

a finite set to a finite set, and there are only finitely many such maps. Suppose
1 (g) = z1 and 2 (g) = z2 . Then
1 2 (g) = 1 (g)2 (g) = z1 z2 = z2 z1 = 2 (g)1 (g) = 2 1 (g)
b is abelian. This concludes the proof.
and so G

b
In the language of category theory, we have G
= Hom(G, C ). In fact, the group
b as we shall now show.
G is isomorphic to its dual G,
b
Lemma 1. If G is cyclic, then G
= G.
Proof. Suppose |G| = n, and let a G be a generator. Recall that since G and n
are both cyclic of order n, then G
= n . Let w n be a generator of n . Let
b Define
: G n be the isomorphism defined by (a) = w, so that G.
b
b
b
: G n by () = (a) for all G. Let 1 , 2 G. Then
(1 2 ) = 1 2 (a) = 1 (a)2 (a) = (1 )(2 )
and so is a homomorphism. Let z n . Since n is cyclic, there exists k Z
b Then
such that z = wk . Define = k G.
() = (k ) = ( )k = (a)k = wk = z
b such that 1 6= 2 . Since G is cyclic
and so is a surjection. Now let 1 , 2 G
b
with generator a, a character G is completely determined by the image of a in
n . Therefore, since 1 6= 2 , we must have 1 (a) 6= 2 (a). But therefore
(1 ) = 1 (a) 6= 2 (a) = (2 )
b
and so is an injection. Therefore, G
= n , we conclude that
= n , and since G

b

G = G.
When G is cyclic, the isomorphism in Lemma 1 is not, in general, unique,
as any homomorphism taking a generator of G to a generator of n gives rise to

b nonan isomorphism G
n . For this reason, we call the isomorphism G
=G
canonical.
Lemma 2. Let H be a subgroup of G. Then any character of H extends to a
character of G.
Proof. We proceed by induction on the index [G : H] of H in G. If [G : H] = 1 then
the statement is trivial. Assume the statement is true for any subgroup of index
less than [G : H]. Let g G be such that g
/ H, and let k be the smallest positive
b and let z = (g k ). Let w C be such that
integer such that g k H. Let H,
wk = z. Let H 0 be the subgroup of G generated by H and g. Then every element
h0 H 0 can be written as h0 = hg m for some h H and some m Z. Define
the map 0 : H 0 C by 0 (h0 ) = (h)wm . We must first verify that 0 is welldefined. Suppose that h0 H 0 has two different factorizations h0 = h1 g a = h2 g b

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

with h1 , h2 H and a, b Z. Then h2 = h1 g ab . Therefore,

0 (h1 g a )

= (h1 )wa
= (h1 )wab wb
= (h1 )(g ab )wb
= (h1 g ab )wb
= (h2 )wb
= 0 (h2 g b )

and so 0 is well-defined. It follows that 0 is a homomorphism since is, and so

c0 . From the way in which we have defined 0 , it is clear that the restriction of
0 H
0
to H is exactly ; in this way, extends to 0 . But since H ( H 0 , we have that
[G : H 0 ] < [G : H], and so by our induction hypothesis, we have that 0 extends to
a character of G. This concludes the proof.

b have the same order.
Theorem 3. The groups G and G
b H
b defined by
Proof. Let H be a subgroup of G. Consider the map : G
b
restriction; i.e., () = |H for all G. The multiplicative nature of characters
means that is a homomorphism, since
(1 2 ) = (1 2 )|H = 1 |H 2 |H = (1 )(2 ).
Lemma 2 says that is a surjection. The set of characters of G which restrict to
[ and furthermore it is
the trivial character on H form a group isomorphic to G/H,
[ Let : G/H
[ G
b be the inclusion map; it is
clear that the kernel of is G/H.
clearly an injective homomorphism. We therefore obtain the short exact sequence
b b
[
1 G/H
G

H1

where the 1 here denotes the trivial group. Therefore

[
b
b G/H)
H
= G/(
and since these are all finite groups, we have
(1.7)

[
b = |H|
b |G/H|.
|G|

With these observations, we now proceed by induction on n = |G|. If n = 1, the

desired statement is trivial. For n > 1, assume the desired statement for all groups
of order less than n. Choose a nontrivial cyclic subgroup H of G. By (1.7), we have
[ However, both H
b is equal to the orders of H
b and G/H.
b and
that the order of G
[ have order strictly less than n, so by our inductive hypothesis, their orders
G/H
are equal respectively to that of their dual. Therefore,
[ = |H| |G/H| = |G|,
b = |H|
b |G/H|
|G|
and we have proven the desired statement.

b
Theorem 4. The group G is isomorphic to its dual G.
Proof. The proof follows immediately from the previous theorems and the Fundamental Theorem of finite abelian groups. Recall that the Fundamental Theorem
states that G can be factored as the direct product of cyclic groups, say,
G
= G1 G2 Gk ,

RAYMOND N. FULLER

and that this factorization is unique up to isomorphism. By Lemma 1, for each

c
i = 1, . . . , k, there exists an isomorphism i : Gi
Gi , and Lemma 2 states
ci extends to a character of G;
b i.e., G
ci is a subgroup of
that every character of G
b
b
G for i = 1, . . . , k. Theorem 3 states that |G| = |G|. We therefore have two
finite abelian groups of the same order with isomorphic cyclic subgroups. Since
the factorization in the Fundamental Theorem is unique up to isomorphism, we
b
conclude that G

= G.
b Then
Proposition 1. Let |G| = n, and let G.

X
n if = 0
(g) =
0 if 6= 0 .
gG

Proof. The first case is clear, as if = 0 , then we are adding 1 together n times.
In the case 6= 0 , choose h G such that (h) 6= 1; such an h exists, since is
non-trivial. Then
X
X
X
(h)
(g) =
(hg) =
(g)
gG

gG

gG

since the product hg varies over all the elements of G as g varies over all the elements
of G. Therefore,
X
((h) 1)
(g) = 0,
gG

and since (h) 6= 1, we conclude that

X

(g) = 0.

gG


b = n and let g G. Then
Corollary 1. Let |G|

X
n if g = 1G
(g) =
0 if g 6= 1G .
b
G

Proof. This follows immediately from the previous Proposition applied to the dual
b
group G.

2. The Kronecker-Jacobi Symbol
Our goal is to describe the Kronecker-Jacobi symbol, which is a generalization of
the Legendre symbol, and which provides the foundation of Eulers Reciprocity step
in the characterization of primes of the form x2 + ny 2 . In defining and examining
the properties of the Kronecker-Jacobi symbol, we make heavy use of the properties
of the Jacobi symbol. For that reason, we shall begin by defining the Jacobi sybol,
and presenting several lemmas concerning its properties, before proving our main
theorem.
Definition 3. Let m > 0 be an odd integer, and

let M be an integer relatively
prime to m. We define the Jacobi symbol M
m to be the product
  Y


r
M
M
=
m
pi
i=1

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

where m = p1 pr is the prime factorization of m, and the

side are all Legendre symbols.

M
pi

on the right hand

The Jacobi symbol satisfies analogs of the properties of the Legendre symbol,
as we shall see in the lemmas below. Chief among these is the analoe of quadratic
reciprocity, which allows us to write
 
m
M
=
m
M
where the sign is explicitly determined by M and m (this is Lemma 4). Before
continuing, note
that from the way in which we have defined the Jacobi symbol,
m
the symbol M
is undefined whenever M is even and/or negative. This is not
a problem, as the first two parts of Lemma 4 allow us to factor out a 1 or a
power of 2 from the numerator, and evaluate the resultant symbols using quadratic
reciprocity. Specifically, if M < 0, we may write


  
1
M
M
=
,
m
m
m
and if M = 2r M 0 is even, we may write
   r  0 
M
2
M
=
.
m
m
m
The various properties that allow us to evaluate the Jacobi symbol in this manner
are verified below.
The problem which we may encounter concerns the Kronecker-Jacobi symbol. Let D be a
nonzero integer, D 0, 1 (mod 4), and define : (Z/DZ) {1}
D
. If D < 0 this is no problem, by our discussion above. However, if
by ([m]) = m
m < 0, the Kronecker-Jacobi symbol is undefined. However, we may always choose
a representative m0 that is odd and positive in order to evaluate the symbol, as the
following remark makes clear.
Remark 1. Let D be a nonzero integer, D 0, 1 ( mod 4). Let [m] (Z/DZ) .
Then there exists k Z such that [m] = [m0 ] and m0 is odd and positive, where
m0 = m + kD.
Proof If m is odd and positive, take k = 1 and we are done. If m < 0 we may
choose k sufficiently large in absolute value, and having the same sign as D, so that
m0 = m + kD > 0, and so clearly we may always find a positive representative. If
D is odd and m is odd, then choosing k even ensures m0 is odd. If D is even and
m is odd, then m0 is always odd. If m is even, then we must have D 1 (mod 4),
and so D is odd. Choosing k odd ensures that m0 is odd. As we have considered
all possible cases, we conclude the desired statement.

We will use the previous remark, together with Lemma 5, in the proof of Theorem
6. For now, lets verify the various properties of the Jacobi symbol.
Lemma 3. Let m > 0, n > 0 be odd integers, and let M and N be integers
relatively prime to both m and n. Then the Jacobi symbol satisfies the following
three properties:



N

(i) MmN = M
,
m



Mm

M
M
(ii) mn = m
n ,




N
(iii) If M N ( mod m), then M
m = m .

RAYMOND N. FULLER

Proof
(i) We recall a property of the Legendre symbol: if p is an odd prime, then
    
ab
a
b
=
.
p
p
p
Therefore, letting m = p1 pr be the prime factorization of m, we have



r 
Y
MN
MN
=
m
pi
i=1

 
r
Y
M
N
=
pi
pi
i=1
  
N
M
.
=
m
m
(ii) Let m = p1 pr and n = q1 qs be the prime factorizations of m and
n. Letting pr+j = qj for 1 j s, we have the prime factorization
mn = p1 pr pr+1 pr+s . Therefore,


r+s
Y M 
M
=
mn
pi
i=1
 r+s
r 
Y
Y M 
M
=
pi i=r+1 pi
i=1

 s  
r
Y
M Y M
=
pi j=1 qj
i=1
  
M
M
=
m
n
(iii) 
Another
of the Legendre symbol is that m n( mod p) implies

property

m
n
=
.
Suppose
that M N ( mod m) and m = p1 pr is the
p
p
prime factorization of m. Then,
 

r 
Y
M
M
=
m
pi
i=1

r
Y N
=
pi
i=1
 
N
.
=
m

Lemma 4. Let m > 0 be an odd integer, and let M be an integer relatively prime to
m. Then the Jacobi symbol satisfies the following version of quadratic reciprocity:


(m1)/2
(i) 1
,
m
= (1)
2
(m2 1)/8
(ii) m = (1)
,




(M 1)(m1)/4 m
(iii) M
=
(1)
m
M .
Proof

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

(i) Recall one of the supplementary laws for the Legendre symbol: if p is an
odd prime, then


1
= (1)(p1)/2 .
p
Consider first the case where m = rs is the product of two odd primes. Since
r and s are odd, r 1 and s 1 are both even, and so (r 1)(s 1) 0(
mod 4). Therefore, rs r s + 1 0( mod 4) from which rs 1
(r 1) + (s 1)( mod 4), and upon division by 2 we obtain
rs 1
r1 s1
(2.1)

+
( mod 2).
2
2
2
Therefore,





1
1
1
=
m
r
s
=

(1)(r1)/2 (1)(s1)/2

(1)

(1)(rs1)/2

(1)(m1)/2

r1
s1
2 + 2

where the fourth line follows from (1), above. Proceeding by induction on
the number of prime divisors of m, we obtain the desired result.
(ii) As before, recall another supplementary property of the Legendre symbol.
if p is an odd prime, then
 
2
2
= (1)p 1)/8 .
p
Consider first the case where m = rs is the product of two odd primes. Since
r and s are both odd, we have r2 1 s2 1 0( mod 4). Therefore,
(r2 1)(s2 1) 0( mod 16), from which we obtain r2 s2 1 (r2 1) +
(s2 1)( mod 16), and upon division by 8 we have
r2 s2 1
r2 1 s2 1

+
(
8
8
8

(2.2)

mod 2).

Therefore,


2
m

  
2
2
=
r
s
=
=
=
=

(1)(r
(1)

1)/8

r 2 1

(1)(r

(1)(s

1)/8

s2 1
8

2 2

(1)(m

s 1)/8

1)/8

where the fourth line follows from (2), above. Proceeding by induction on
the number of prime divisors of m, we obtain the desired result.
(iii) By our discussion preceeding Remark 2, we may assume that M is odd
and positive, as if it were not, we could factor out a 1 and/or a power
of 2 from the numerator and use the previous two parts of this lemma to
evaluate the Jacobi symbol. Let m = p1 pr and M = q1 qs be the

10

RAYMOND N. FULLER

prime

factorizations of m and M . Therefore, the Jacobi symbols
m
M are given by

  Y
r Y
s 
M
qj
=
m
pi
i=1 j=1
m
M


r Y
s 
Y
pi

qj

i=1 j=1

M
m

and

By our previous arguments in part (i), we have

r
X
pi 1
i=1

and

m1
(
2

s
X
qj 1
M 1

(
2
2
j=1

mod 2)

mod 2),

and so
(2.3)

r X
s
X
m1M 1
pi 1 qj 1

(
2
2
2
2
i=1 j=1

mod 2).

Recall by quadratic reciprocity that

  
pi 1 qj 1
pi
qj
= (1) 2 2 .
qj
pi
Therefore,


M
m



m
=
M

s
r Y
Y

(1)

i=1 j=1
Pr

(1)

(1)

i=1

pi 1 qj 1
2
2

Ps

j=1

pi 1 qj 1
2
2

m1 M 1
2
2

and therefore

as desired.

M
m

= (1)(m1)(M 1)/4

m
M


Lemma 5. If m n ( mod D) where m and n are odd, positive integers relatively

prime
to
D,
with
D 0, 1( mod 4), then
   
D
D
=
.
m
n
Proof We have four cases to consider, D positive or negative, and D 0, 1 (
mod 4).
Case 1: D 1 ( mod 4) and D > 0. By quadratic reciprocity proven in Lemma
3, we have
 
m
D
= (1)(D1)(m1)/4
m
D

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

11

and


D
n

= (1)(D1)(n1)/4

n
D

n
Note that m
D = D by lemma 2, since m n ( mod D). Since D 1 ( mod 4)
and both m and n are odd, we have
(D 1)(m 1)/4 (D 1)(n 1)/4 0(

mod 2)

so that
(1)(D1)(m1)/4 = (1)(D1)(n1)/4 = 1
and we have the desired result.
Case 2: D 0 (mod 4) and D > 0 . Let D = 2k D0 , where D0 is odd and k 2,
and note that


D
m


=

2k
m



D0
m


= (1)

m2 1
k
8

D0
m

m2 1
k
8

= (1)

(1)

m1 D 0 1
2
2

m
D0

Similarly,



n
n2 1
n1 D 0 1
D
= (1) 8 k (1) 2 2
n
D0
We will show that each factor in the first product is equal to the corresponding
factor in the second product.
0
0
Since m and n are both odd, D 21 m1
D 21 n1
2
2 0 (mod 2), which gives us
m1 D 0 1

n1 D 0 1

2
= (1) 2 2
(1) 2
Since m n (mod 2k D0 ) and (2k , D0 ) = 1, the Chinese Remainder Lemma gives
us that m
2k ) and m n (mod D0 ). The second congruence gives us

nn (mod


m
that D
=
.
0
D0
m2 1

n2 1

If k is even, then (1) 8 k = (1) 8 k = 1. If k is odd, then note that k 3.

Hence, 8 | m n, and since m and n are both odd, 2 | m + n, therefore
16 | m2 n2 = m2 1 (n2 1) and

n2 1
m2 1

8
8

(mod 2)

n2 1

m2 1
k
8

which gives us that (1)

= (1) 8 k = 1 when k is odd.
Case 3: D 1 (mod 4) and D < 0 . Then, D > 0, and D 3 (mod 4), and


D
m

But


=

D1
2

(1)

1
m



D
m


= (1)

m1
2

D
m


= (1)

m1
2

(1)

m1 D1
2
2

m
D

is odd, so

m1 D1
2
2

= (1)

D1
2

 m1
2

= (1)

m1
2


=

D
m


=

m
D

 n 
Similarly, D
n = D , and m n (mod D), therefore the left hand sides of
these equations are equal.
Case 4: D 0 (mod 4) and D < 0 . The argument is very similar to that of
Case 2. Let D = 1 2k D0 , where D0 is a positive odd integer, and

12

RAYMOND N. FULLER

D
m


=

1
m



2k
m



D0
m


= (1)

m1
2

(1)

m2 1
k
8

(1)

m1 D 0 1
2
2

m
D0

Similarly,


D
n


= (1)

n1
2

(1)

m1

n2 1
k
8

(1)

n1 D 0 1
2
2

n
D0

n1

and m n (mod 4), so (1) 2 = (1) 2 . The remaining factors can be

shown to be equal with exactly the same arguments as in Case 2.

We are now ready to state and prove the theorem.
Theorem 5. If D 0, 1 ( mod 4) is a nonzero integer, then there is a unique homomorphism
 
for odd primes p not dividing D.
: (Z/DZ) {1} such that ([p]) = D
p


D
Proof The desired homomorphism is ([m]) = m
. Recall that the Jacobi


D
is only defined when m is odd, positive, and relatively prime to D.
symbol m
Since [m] (Z/DZ) , then m is relatively prime to D. However, if our representative m is even or negative, then the Jacobi symbol is undefined. Remark
2 together with Lemma 5 ensures that we may always choose m0 Z with m0
odd and positive such that [m] = [m0 ] in (Z/DZ) , so that the Kronecker-Jacobi
symbol is always defined. To see that is well-defined, let m and m0 be two different representatives of the equivalence class [m] (Z/DZ) . Then by definition
m m0 ( mod D). Therefore,
 
D
([m]) =
m
 
D
=
m0
= ([m0 ])
where the second equality follows from Lemma 4. Additionally, is a homomorphism,
since,
if
[m], [n] (Z/DZ) , we have
([m][n])

= ([mn])


D
=
mn
  
D
D
=
m
n
= ([m])([n])

where the third equality follows from Lemma 2. Our last step is to prove uniqueness.
Suppose that  is not unique; that is, suppose there exists : (Z/DZ) {1}

with ([p]) =

D
p

for all primes p not dividing D such that ([m]) 6= ([m])

for some [m] (Z/DZ) . Recall the celebrated theorem of Dirichlet: every residue
class modulo D which consists of numbers relatively prime to D contains an infinite

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

13

number of prime numbers. Then [m] contains some prime representative p such that
[m] = [p]. Therefore,
 
D
([m]) = ([p]) =
= ([p]) = ([m])
p
contradicting our assumption that ([m]) 6= ([m]). Therefore, is uniquely determined. This concludes the proof of the theorem.

Corollary 2. Let : (Z/DZ) {1} be the homomorphism as above. Then,
(i)

([1]) =

1
1

(ii) If D 1 ( mod 4) then,


1
([2]) =
1

when D > 0
when D < 0,

if D 1( mod 8)
if D 5( mod 8).

Proof The proof uses quadratic reciprocity, and considers several cases.
(i) Case 1: D 0 (mod 4), D > 0
1 (mod D) 1 + D (mod D)

Note that 1 + D is both odd and positive.


=

([1]) = ([1 + D]) =

D
1 + D

Note that D (mod 1 + D) 1 (mod 1 + D). This implies that



D
1 + D


=

1
1 + D

(1+D1)(11)
4

(1)

(1)0 (1)




1 + D
1

([1]) = 1.

Case 2: D 0 (mod 4), D < 0

=

1 (mod D) 1 D (mod D)

Note that 1 D is both odd and positive.


=

([1]) = ([1 D]) =

D
1 D

Note that D (mod 1 D) 1 (mod 1 D). This implies that

14

RAYMOND N. FULLER

D
1 D

D2
2

Now we observe that

1 (mod 2).


=

1
1 D

(1)

(1)

(1D1)
2
D2
2

(mod 4) 1 (mod 4) 3 (mod 4)

([1]) = 1.

Case 3: D 1 (mod 4), D > 0

=

1 (mod D) 1 + 2D (mod D)

Note that 1+2D is both odd and positive, and D is both odd and positive.


D
= ([1]) = ([1 + 2D]) =
1 + 2D
Now we see that D (mod 1 D) 1 (mod 1 D).




(D1)(2D11)
2D 1
D
4
=
= (1)
2D 1
D
Note that 2D 1 (mod D) 1 (mod D). Thus,




(D1)(2D2)
(D1)(2D2)
2D 1
1
4
4
(1)
= (1)
D
D

Finally, we observe that

D(D1)
2

(1)

(1)

(D1)(D1)
2

(1)

D1
2

D 2 D
2

(mod 4) 0 (mod 4) 0 (mod 2).

([1]) = 1.

Case 4: D 1 (mod 4), D < 0

=

1 (mod D) 1 2D (mod D)

Note that 1 2D is both odd and positive, and -D is both odd and
positive.


D
= ([1]) = ([1 2D]) =
1 2D
Then we have that D (mod 1 2D) 1 D (mod 1 2D), so that


D
1 2D


1 D
=
1 2D



1
1+D
=
1 2D
1 2D

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

15

Now note that D + 1 (mod 1 2D) D (mod 1 2D).



 


1
1+D
1
D
=
=
1 2D
1 2D
1 2D
1 2D


(D1)(12D1)
12D1
1 2D
2
4
= (1)
(1)
D
Finally, 1 2D (mod D) 1 (mod D). Thus,




(D1)(22D)
(D1)(22D)
22D
22D
1 2D
1
4
4
(1) 2 (1)
= (1) 2 (1)
D
D

Now we observe that

1 (mod 2).

D 2 D1
2

(1)

(1)

(1)

22D
2

(D1)(D1)
2

(1)

D1
2

2
22D
+ D +2D+2
+ D1
2
2
2
D 2 D1
2

1
2

(mod 4)

(1)

(mod 4) 1 (mod 2)

([1]) = 1.

=
(ii) Case 1:
D 1 (mod 8), D > 0
=

2 (mod D) 2 + D (mod D)

Note that 2 + D is both odd and positive.


=

([2]) = ([2 + D]) =

D
2+D

Note that D (mod 2 + D) 2 (mod 2 + D). This implies that



D
2+D


=
=


2
2+D



1
2
2+D
2+D

(1)

(1)

(1)

(1)

(2+D)1
2
D+1
2

(1)

(1)

((2+D)2 1)
8

D 2 +4D+3
8

D 2 +8D+7
8
(D+7)(D+1)
8

Now we observe that (D+7)(D+1)

(mod 8) 2 (mod 8) 0 (mod 2).
8
Thus,


D
= (1)0 = 1
2+D
=

([2]) = 1.

16

RAYMOND N. FULLER

Case 2: D 1 (mod 8), D < 0

2 (mod D) 2 D (mod D)

Note that 2 D is both odd and positive.


([2]) = ([2 D]) =

=


D
2D


=

(1)

(1)

(1)

D
2D

((2D)2 1)
8

D 2 4D+3
8
(D3)(D1)
8

(mod 8) 0 (mod 8) 0 (mod 2).

Now we observe that (D3)(D1)
8
Thus,


D
= (1)0 = 1
2D
=

([2]) = 1.

Case 3: D 5 (mod 8), D > 0

=

2 (mod D) 2 + D (mod D)

Note that 2 + D is both odd and positive.


=

([2]) = ([2 + D]) =

D
2+D

Note that D (mod 2 + D) 2 (mod 2 + D). This implies that



D
2+D


=
=

Now we observe that

Thus,



2
2+D



2
1
2+D
2+D

(1)

(1)

(1)

(1)

(2+D)1
2
D+1
2

(1)

((2+D)2 1)
8

D 2 +4D+3
8

D 2 +8D+7
8
(D+7)(D+1)
8

(D+7)(D+1)
8

D
2+D

(1)

(mod 8) 1 (mod 8) 1 (mod 2).

= (1)1 = 1

([2]) = 1.

GROUP CHARACTERS AND THE KRONECKER-JACOBI SYMBOL

17

Case 4: D 5 (mod 8), D < 0

= 2 (mod D) 2 D (mod D)
Note that 2 D is both odd and positive.


D
= ([2]) = ([2 D]) =
2D


((2D)2 1)
D
8
= (1)
2D

Now we observe that

Thus,


(1)

(1)

(D3)(D1)
8

D 2 4D+3
8
(D3)(D1)
8

(mod 8) 1 (mod 8) 1 (mod 2).


D
= (1)1 = 1
2D
= ([2]) = 1.
and this concludes the proof of the corollary.

References
[1] A. Baker, A Concise Introduction to the Theory of Numbers, Cambridge University Press,
1984.
[2] D. A. Cox, Primes of the Form x2 + ny 2 , John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1989.
[3] K. Ireland and M. Rosen, A Classical Introduction to Modern Number Theory, Springer-Verlag,
1982.
[4] H. Iwaniec and E. Kowalski, Analytic Number Theory, American Mathematical Society, 2004.
[5] J.-P. Serre, A Course in Arithmetic, Springer-Verlag, 1973.
Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science, The University of
Illinois at Chicago, 322 Science and Engineering Offices, 851 S. Morgan St. Chicago IL
60607
E-mail address: rfuller@math.uic.edu
URL: http://www.math.uic.edu/~rfuller/