Totally real algebraic integers in short intervals, Jacobi polynomials, and unicritical families in arithmetic dynamics

Abstract

We classify all post-critically finite unicritical polynomials defined over the maximal totally real algebraic extension of ${\mathbb Q}$. Two auxiliary results used in the proof of this result may be of some independent interest. The first is a recursion formula for the $n$-diameter of an interval, which uses properties of Jacobi polynomials. The second is a numerical criterion which allows one to the give a bound on the degree of any algebraic integer having all of its complex embeddings in a real interval of length less than $4$.