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Automatic partition identities

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Abstract

We encode certain sets of partitions by regular languages of boundary words, so that their generating functions become rational series in the quantum plane RU=qURRU=qUR. An equality between two partition counts is certified by writing the difference of their series as (1−U)a+b(1−R)(1-U)a+b(1-R), with a,ba,b converging qq-adically. We show that a,ba,b may be chosen as solutions of finite holonomic systems of qq-difference equations computed from the automata, and describe finite certificates of their convergence, together with bounded searches for such certificates; the searches need not succeed, but a false identity is always detected. As an application, we prove the three-row, level-two case of Primc's conjecture, which equates counts of coloured partitions subject to local multiplicity conditions with counts of coloured partitions whose parts lie in prescribed residue classes modulo eight.

on veut seulement être sûr que c’est elle, ne pas se tromper sur l’identité […] cet extrait algébrique... — Albertine disparue

Taking a cue from Marcel Proust, I propose an algebraic approach to partition identities, via regular grammars. Many partition identities take the form ‘A(n)=B(n)A(n)=B(n)’, where A(n)A(n) and B(n)B(n) count the partitions of nn satisfying constraints given by regular expressions. I give in Theorem A a method that (if it doesn’t run forever) produces algebraically verifiable certificates of such identities. As an application, I prove in Theorem B the three-row, level-two case of Primc’s conjecture.

A teaser: Euler's identity

Here is an illustration of how it works. In Euler’s identity, the archetypal example, A(n)A(n) counts the partitions of nn into odd parts and B(n)B(n) those into distinct parts. Draw the Ferrers diagram of λ⊢n\lambda\vdash n with λi\lambda_i boxes in row ii, the longest row on top, and read its lower right boundary from bottom left to top right, writing RR for a unit step to the right and UU for a unit step up. Nonempty partitions thus correspond to words in R{R,U}∗UR\{R,U\}^{*}U; we ignore the empty partition unless stated otherwise. The odd and distinct constraints correspond to the regular languages

Lo=R(U+RR)∗U,Ld=R(R+UR)∗UL_o=R(U+RR)^{*}U,\qquad L_d=R(R+UR)^{*}U

whose generating functions are the series

Ho=R(1−U−R2)−1U,Hd=R(1−R−UR)−1UH_o=R(1-U-R^2)^{-1}U,\qquad H_d=R(1-R-UR)^{-1}U

in the skew field of fractions of the quantum plane A=Q[q]⟨U,R⟩/(RU−qUR)\mathbb{A}=\mathbb{Q}[q]\langle U,R\rangle/(RU-qUR). Expanded as sums over words, these rational expressions define elements of the qq-adic completion A^\widehat{\mathbb{A}} of A\mathbb{A}: the outer letters RR and UU make the sums converge, see §3.5. This ring is convenient because the boundary word of λ=(λ1≥⋯≥λℓ>0)\lambda=(\lambda_1\geq\cdots\geq\lambda_\ell>0) satisfies

w(λ)=RλℓURλℓ−1−λℓU⋯Rλ1−λ2U=qnURλ1in A.(1)w(\lambda)=R^{\lambda_\ell}UR^{\lambda_{\ell-1}-\lambda_\ell}U\cdots R^{\lambda_1-\lambda_2}U=q^{n}UR^{\lambda_1} \quad\text{in }\mathbb{A}. \tag*{(1)}

every pair formed by a letter RR and a later letter UU contributes a factor qq, and the UU recording a part jj has exactly jj such predecessors.

Every s∈A^s\in\widehat{\mathbb{A}} has a unique normal form ∑i,jsi,jUiRj\sum_{i,j}s_{i,j}U^iR^j with si,j∈Q[[q]]s_{i,j}\in\mathbb{Q}[[q]]. Its normal-ordered evaluation

ε(s)=∑i,jsi,j∈Q[[q]]\varepsilon(s)=\sum_{i,j}s_{i,j}\in\mathbb{Q}[[q]]

is linear but not multiplicative: ε(RU)=q≠ε(R)ε(U)\varepsilon(RU)=q\ne\varepsilon(R)\varepsilon(U). The generating functions of odd and of distinct partitions are ε(Ho)\varepsilon(H_o) and ε(Hd)\varepsilon(H_d), and Euler’s identity is ε(Ho−Hd)=0\varepsilon(H_o-H_d)=0. A certificate of it is a decomposition

Ho−Hd=(1−U)a+b(1−R),a,b∈A^.H_o-H_d=(1-U)a+b(1-R),\qquad a,b\in\widehat{\mathcal A}.

Left multiplication by UU and right multiplication by RR shift normal exponents without changing coefficients, so ε((1−U)a)=ε(b(1−R))=0\varepsilon((1-U)a)=\varepsilon(b(1-R))=0 by telescoping, and such a decomposition proves the identity.

The series a,ba,b are typically not rational, but they can be chosen holonomic, that is, defined by finitely many qq-difference equations. The normal symbol of ss is the commutative series ∑i,jsi,jxiRj\sum_{i,j}s_{i,j}x^iR^j, and its marginal is obtained by setting x=1x=1. Since UiRj⋅U=qjUi+1RjU^iR^j\cdot U=q^jU^{i+1}R^j, right multiplication by UU acts on symbols by g↦x Υgg\mapsto x\,\Upsilon g, where

(Υg)(x,R)=g(x,qR),(\Upsilon g)(x,R)=g(x,qR),

and right multiplication by RR acts by g↦Rgg\mapsto Rg; on marginals, UU acts by Υ\Upsilon alone. Since ΥR=qRΥ\Upsilon R=qR\Upsilon, the assignment U↦ΥU\mapsto\Upsilon, R↦RR\mapsto R embeds A\mathcal A into the opposite of the algebra of qq-difference operators in RR. Consequently, a series defined by a linear system over A\mathcal A, such as HoH_o or HdH_d, has a symbol defined by a linear system of qq-difference equations in RR, with xx as a parameter. A certificate then consists of such systems for aa and bb, finitely many values selecting their solutions, and finite data guaranteeing that their coefficients tend qq-adically to 0. For instance, write ν\nu for the qq-adic valuation, and call a series qq-integral if it has no negative powers of qq. If b=qΥb′b=q\Upsilon b' with b′b' qq-integral, that is, b′∈Q[[q,R]]b'\in\mathbb{Q}[[q,R]], then [Rn]b=qn+1[Rn]b′[R^n]b=q^{n+1}[R^n]b' has valuation at least n+1n+1, so b∈A^b\in\widehat{\mathcal A}. A holonomic kernel for b′b', together with finite data certifying its integrality, is such a guarantee.

For Euler’s identity, moving the outer letters inwards gives Ho=qU(1−qU−q2R2)−1RH_o=qU(1-qU-q^2R^2)^{-1}R and Hd=qU(1−qR−q2UR)−1RH_d=qU(1-qR-q^2UR)^{-1}R. Hence Ho−HdH_o-H_d has normal symbol

D(x,R)=qR(mo,x−md,x),{(1−qxΥ−q2R2)mo,x=x,(1−qR−q2xRΥ)md,x=x.D(x,R)=qR(m_{o,x}-m_{d,x}), \qquad \begin{cases} (1-qx\Upsilon-q^2R^2)m_{o,x}=x,\\ (1-qR-q^2xR\Upsilon)m_{d,x}=x. \end{cases}

Both operators are congruent to 1 modulo qq, so these equations have unique solutions in Q[x,R][[q]]\mathbb{Q}[x,R][[q]]. The canonical a,ba,b are given by

(1−x)a=D(x,R)−D(1,R),(1−R)b=D(1,R),(1-x)a=D(x,R)-D(1,R),\qquad(1-R)b=D(1,R),

and are holonomic. It remains to certify their convergence in A^\widehat{\mathcal A}. The integral kernels (§ 3.7)

u=1+R2α(Υ)u,v=1+R2β(Υ)v,α(U)=(1−qU)−1,β(U)=(1+qU)(1+q2U),u=1+R^2\alpha(\Upsilon)u,\qquad v=1+R^2\beta(\Upsilon)v,\qquad\alpha(U)=(1-qU)^{-1},\qquad\beta(U)=(1+qU)(1+q^2U),

select u,v∈Q[[q,R]]u,v\in\mathbb{Q}[[q,R]], and χ(U)=1−q2U\chi(U)=1-q^2U is a dilation witness for θ=β/α\theta=\beta/\alpha:

θ(U)χ(U)=(1−q2U2)(1−q4U2)=χ(U2)χ(q2U2).\theta(U)\chi(U)=(1-q^2U^2)(1-q^4U^2)=\chi(U^2)\chi(q^2U^2).

Thus u−v=q2Υwu-v=q^2\Upsilon w with w∈Q[[q,R]]w\in\mathbb{Q}[[q,R]], see Proposition 3.7, and the equations of uu, vv, mo,1m_{o,1} and md,1m_{d,1} give

b=(1+R(1−qΥ)−1)u−(1+R(1+qΥ))v=qΥb′(2)b=(1+R(1-q\Upsilon)^{-1})u-(1+R(1+q\Upsilon))v=q\Upsilon b' \tag*{(2)}

with b′=qw+R(1−qΥ)−1(w+Υv)∈Q[[q,R]]b'=qw+R(1-q\Upsilon)^{-1}(w+\Upsilon v)\in\mathbb{Q}[[q,R]]. Thus b∈A^b\in\widehat{\mathcal A}; moreover a∈A^a\in\widehat{\mathcal A} by Theorem A(2), and the certificate is complete. Corollary 4.2 gives the details, and §4.1 applies the same mechanism to Glaisher’s identity, of which Euler’s is the case λ=2\lambda=2.

Main results

The scheme of §1 applies to any two partition languages in R⟨R,U⟩∗U\mathcal R\langle R,U\rangle^*U recognized by unambiguous finite automata, and more generally to weighted automata recording colours or other statistics; a boundary word is then counted with the total weight of its accepting paths. Section 3.2 explains how classical constraints are compiled into such automata. Stripping the first RR and the last UU yields interior automata with s1s_1 and s2s_2 states. They give a normalized realization

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