The Normal Distribution as a Limit of Generalized Sato-Tate Measures

Abstract

With suitable order of limits, as p, m, and n all tend to infinity, the distribution of the normalized trace of Frobenius on H^1 of a "random" plane curve of degree n over the field with p^m elements, tends to a Gaussian distribution. The same is true of a "random" curve of genus g over the field with p^m elements.