Explicit equivalence of quadratic forms over [formula omitted

Abstract

We propose a randomized polynomial time algorithm for computing non-trivial zeros of quadratic forms in 4 or more variables over Fq(t), where Fq is a finite field of odd characteristic. The algorithm is based on a suitable splitting of the form into two forms and finding a common value they both represent. We make use of an effective formula for the number of fixed degree irreducible polynomials in a given residue class. We apply our algorithms for computing a Witt decomposition of a quadratic form, for computing an explicit isometry between quadratic forms and finding zero divisors in quaternion algebras over quadratic extensions of Fq(t).