Nonexistence results of generalized bent functions from $\mathbb{Z}_3^n$ to $ \mathbb{Z}_m$

Abstract

In this paper, we investigate generalized bent functions (GBFs) from $\mathbb{Z}_3^n$ to $\mathbb{Z}_m$. We show that GBFs exist whenever $3$ divides $m$, while several nonexistence results are obtained when $3\nmid m$. In particular, we prove that no GBFs exist for $n=1,2$ when $m$ is odd and not divisible by $3$. For the case $n=3$, we establish the nonexistence of GBFs $f:\mathbb{Z}_3^3 \rightarrow \mathbb{Z}_{5\cdot11^r}$ for all nonnegative integers $r$. Finally, we show that no GBF exists from $\mathbb{Z}_3$ to $\mathbb{Z}_{2m'}$ and $\mathbb{Z}_3^2$ to $\mathbb{Z}_{2m'}$, where $m'$ is odd and not divisible by $3$.