Zero sums amongst roots and Cilleruelo's conjecture on the LCM of polynomial sequences

Abstract

We make progress on a conjecture of Cilleruelo on the growth of the least common multiple of consecutive values of an irreducible polynomial $f$ on the additional hypothesis that the polynomial be even. This strengthens earlier work of Rudnick--Maynard and Sah subject to that additional hypothesis when the degree of $f$ exceeds two. The improvement rests upon a different treatment of `large' prime divisors of $Q_f(N) = f(1)\cdots f(N)$ by means of certain zero sums amongst the roots of $f$. A similar argument was recently used by Baier and Dey with regard to another problem. The same method also allows for further improvements on a related conjecture of Sah on the size of the radical of $Q_f(N)$.