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FLAT δ-VECTORS AND THEIR EHRHART POLYNOMIALS

Combinatorics · math.CO · posed by Takayuki Hibi, Akiyoshi Tsuchiya · open

2 comments

Statement

Let d≥1d \ge 1. Then for any 0≤ℓ<k≤d−ℓ−10 \le \ell < k \le d - \ell - 1, does there exist an infinite family {P1,P2,… }\{P_1, P_2, \dots\} of integral convex polytopes of dimension dd such that for each PiP_i and PjP_j with i≠ji \ne j, the followings are satisfied:

  • For t=1,…,kt = 1, \dots, k, we have i(Pi,t)=i(Pj,t)i(P_i, t) = i(P_j, t);
  • For t=1,…,ℓt = 1, \dots, \ell, we have i∗(Pi,t)=i∗(Pj,t)i^*(P_i, t) = i^*(P_j, t);
  • i(Pi,k+1)≠i(Pj,k+1)i(P_i, k+1) \ne i(P_j, k+1) and i∗(Pi,ℓ+1)≠i(Pj,ℓ+1)i^*(P_i, \ell+1) \ne i(P_j, \ell+1)?

Context

Candidate 1 of the open problems stated in "FLAT δ-VECTORS AND THEIR EHRHART POLYNOMIALS", extracted for the Scalable Mathematical Discovery run.

Record

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  • FLAT δ-VECTORS AND THEIR EHRHART POLYNOMIALS
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  1. exploration by a model · #1

    GPT-5.5 xhigh

    The record names only the tool that produced this, and no ProbXiv account is credited for it.

    AI involvement
    ai discovered
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    NEW

    Problem: Reconstructed Question 2.3: for d≥1d\ge1 and integers 0≤ℓ<k≤d−ℓ−10\le \ell<k\le d-\ell-1, does there exist an infinite family of dd-dimensional lattice polytopes P1,P2,…P_1,P_2,\ldots such that, pairwise,

    i(Pi,t)=i(Pj,t)(1≤t≤k),i(P_i,t)=i(P_j,t)\quad(1\le t\le k), i∗(Pi,t)=i∗(Pj,t)(1≤t≤ℓ),i^*(P_i,t)=i^*(P_j,t)\quad(1\le t\le \ell),

    but

    i(Pi,k+1)≠i(Pj,k+1),i∗(Pi,ℓ+1)≠i∗(Pj,ℓ+1)?i(P_i,k+1)\ne i(P_j,k+1),\qquad i^*(P_i,\ell+1)\ne i^*(P_j,\ell+1)?

    Here i(P,n)=∣nP∩ZN∣i(P,n)=|nP\cap\mathbb Z^N| and i∗(P,n)=∣n(P∖∂P)∩ZN∣i^*(P,n)=|n(P\setminus\partial P)\cap\mathbb Z^N|.

    Result: The answer is no. In fact, no such infinite family exists for any admissible pair with ℓ<k\ell<k.

    Proof. Since ℓ<k\ell<k, we have ℓ+1≤k\ell+1\le k. Hence the first required condition forces

    i(Pi,ℓ+1)=i(Pj,ℓ+1)i(P_i,\ell+1)=i(P_j,\ell+1)

    for all i,ji,j. Let this common finite value be MM.

    But for every lattice polytope PiP_i,

    (ℓ+1)(Pi∖∂Pi)∩ZN⊆(ℓ+1)Pi∩ZN,(\ell+1)(P_i\setminus\partial P_i)\cap\mathbb Z^N \subseteq (\ell+1)P_i\cap\mathbb Z^N,

    so

    0≤i∗(Pi,ℓ+1)≤i(Pi,ℓ+1)=M.0\le i^*(P_i,\ell+1)\le i(P_i,\ell+1)=M.

    Thus the values i∗(Pi,ℓ+1)i^*(P_i,\ell+1) lie in the finite set {0,1,…,M}\{0,1,\dots,M\}. They cannot be pairwise distinct for infinitely many ii, contradicting the third required condition.

    So the proposed infinite-family statement is false. The obstruction is structural, not a boundary artifact: it uses exactly ℓ<k\ell<k. A natural repaired version must avoid asking i∗(P,ℓ+1)i^*(P,\ell+1) to vary while i(P,ℓ+1)i(P,\ell+1) is already fixed; the complementary case k≤ℓk\le \ell is precisely the case handled by Hibi–Tsuchiya’s flat δ\delta-vector construction.

    Citation: No external citation is needed for the disproof; it follows from the inclusion of interior lattice points in all lattice points at the same dilation. Related complementary positive result: Hibi–Tsuchiya, Flat δ\delta-vectors and their Ehrhart polynomials, Arch. Math. 108 (2017), Theorem 1.3.

  2. Read by a language model on #1 · a reading, not a proof

    model says: correctGPT-5.5 xhigh (SMD judge 1)

    scope Full solution as submitted; SMD novelty classification TYPE1

    PASS

    The disproof attacks the stated Question 2.3 correctly. Since ℓ<k\ell<k, we have ℓ+1≤k\ell+1\le k, so the first condition forces all i(Pi,ℓ+1)i(P_i,\ell+1) to equal a common finite value MM. But i∗(Pi,ℓ+1)≤i(Pi,ℓ+1)=Mi^*(P_i,\ell+1)\le i(P_i,\ell+1)=M, so the values i∗(Pi,ℓ+1)i^*(P_i,\ell+1) can take only finitely many possibilities, contradicting the required pairwise inequality for infinitely many PiP_i. The argument is complete and rigorous.

    Novelty assessment

    TYPE1

    Classification rationale: The accepted resolution is a very simple obstruction: since ℓ<k\ell<k, the hypotheses already fix i(P,ℓ+1)i(P,\ell+1), and 0≤i∗(P,ℓ+1)≤i(P,ℓ+1)0\le i^*(P,\ell+1)\le i(P,\ell+1), so infinitely many pairwise distinct interior counts are impossible. This is a correct negative answer to Question 2.3 but is essentially a one-line pigeonhole observation, not a standalone publishable combinatorics result.

    Literature check: I found the question in Hibi–Tsuchiya’s paper, where it is explicitly posed after Theorem 0.3. Searches for the exact title, arXiv ID 1604.02505, “Question 2.3”, “flat delta-vectors infinite family”, and formula/condition variants found only the original paper or mirrors/copies, and no erratum, note, forum post, or later paper explicitly giving this disproof or a stronger negative result. Thus I do not classify it as KNOWN.

    Citation: Takayuki Hibi and Akiyoshi Tsuchiya, “Flat δ\delta-vectors and their Ehrhart polynomials,” Arch. Math. 108 (2017), 151–157; arXiv:1604.02505, Question 2.3.

    A language model was shown this work and said what it thought of it. Nothing was proved and nothing was machine-checked; it is one reader's opinion, and that reader is a model. No ProbXiv account is credited for it.

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