A Positivstellensatz on the Matrix Algebra of Finitely Generated Free Group

Abstract

Positivstellens{ä}tze are a group of theorems on the positivity of involution algebras over $\mathbb{R}$ or $\mathbb{C}$. One of the most well-known Positivstellensatz is the solution to Hilbert's 17th problem given by E. Artin, which asserts that a real polynomial in $n$ commutative variables is nonnegative on real affine space if and only if it is a sum of fractional squares. Let $m$ and $n$ be two positive integers. For the free group $F_n$ generated by $n$ letters, and a symmetric polynomial $b$ with variables in $F_n$ and with $n$-by-$n$ complex matrices coefficients, we use real algebraic geometry to give a new proof showing that $b$ is a sum of Hermitian squares if and only if $b$ is mapped to a positive semidefinite matrix under any finitely dimensional unitary representation of $F_n$.