Solving polynomials by radicals with roots of unity in minimum depth

Abstract

Let k be an algebraic number field. Let α be a root of a polynomial f ∈ k[x] which is solvable by radicals. Let L be the splitting field of α over k. Let n be a natural number divisible by the discriminant of the maximal abelian subextension of L, as well as the exponent of G(L/k), the Galois group of L over k. We show that an optimal nested radical with roots of unity for α can be effectively constructed from the derived series of the solvable Galois group of L(ζ n ) over k(ζ n ).