Polynomial Averages Converge to the Product of Integrals

Abstract

We answer a question posed by Vitaly Bergelson, showing that in a totally ergodic system, the average of a product of functions evaluated along polynomial times, with polynomials of pairwise differing degrees, converges in $L^{2}$ to the product of the integrals. Such averages are characterized by nilsystems and so we reduce the problem to one of uniform distribution of polynomial sequences on nilmanifolds.