Mean values and correlations of multiplicative functions : the ``pretentious" approach

The main theme of this thesis is to study mean values and correlations of multiplicative functions and apply the corresponding results to tackle some open problems. The first chapter contains discussion of several classical facts about mean values of multiplicative functions and statement of the main results of the thesis. The second chapter consists of the article “Mean values of multiplicative functions over the function fields". The main purpose of this chapter is to formulate and prove analog of several classical results due to Wirsing, Hall and Tenenbaum over the function field Fq[x], thus answering questions raised in the recent work of Granville, Harper and Soundararajan. We explain some features of the behaviour of multiplicative functions that are not present in the number field settings. This is accomplished by, among other things, introducing the notion of “pretentiousness" over the function fields. Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 include results of the article “Correlations of multiplicative functions and applications". Here, we give an asymptotic formula for correlations X n_x f1(P1(n))f2(P2(n)) · · · · · fm(Pm(n)) where f . . . ,fm are bounded “pretentious" multiplicative functions, under certain natural hypotheses. We then deduce several desirable consequences. First, we characterize all multiplicative functions f : N ! {−1,+1} with bounded partial sums. This answers a question of Erdos from 1957 in the form conjectured by Tao. Second, we show that if the average of the first divided difference of multiplicative function is zero, then either f(n) = ns for Re(s) < 1 or |f(n)| is small on average. This settles an old conjecture of Kátai. Third, we apply our theorem to count the number of representations of n = a + b where a,b belong to some multiplicative subsets of N. This gives a new "circle method-free" proof of the result of Brüdern. Chapters 5 and Chapter 6 are based on the results obtained in the article “Effective asymptotic formulae for multilinear averages and sign patterns of multiplicative functions," joint with Alexander Mangerel. Using an analytic approach in the spirit of Halász’ mean v value theorem, we compute multidimensional averages x−l X n2[x]l Y 16j6k fj(Lj(n)) as x ! 1, where [x] := [1,x] and L1, . . . ,Lk are affine linear forms that satisfy some natural conditions. Our approach gives a new proof of a result of Frantzikinakis and Host that is distinct from theirs, with explicit main and error terms. As an application of our formulae, we establish a local-to-global principle for Gowers norms of multiplicative functions. We reveal and explain irregularities in the distribution of the sign patterns of multiplicative functions by computing the asymptotic densities of the sets of integers n such that a given multiplicative function f : N ! {−1, 1} yields a fixed sign pattern of length 3 or 4 on almost all 3- and 4-term arithmetic progressions, respectively, with first term n. The latter generalizes and refines the work of Buttkewitz and Elsholtz and complements the recent work of Matomaki, Radziwiłł and Tao. We conclude this thesis by discussing some work in progress.

Keyphrases: Analytic number theory, Multiplicative functions, Correlations of multiplicative functions, Erdős discrepancy problem, Function fields