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In algebraic number theory, the conductor of a finite abelian extension of local or global fields provides a quantitative measure of the ramification in the extension. The definition of the conductor is related to the Artin map.

Local conductor
Let L/K be a finite abelian extension of non-archimedean local fields. The conductor of L/K, denoted $$\mathfrak{f}(L/K)$$, is the smallest non-negative integer n such that the higher unit group $$U_K^{(n)}$$ is contained in NL/K(L×), where NL/K is field norm map. Equivalently, n is smallest such that the local Artin map is trivial on $$U_K^{(n)}$$. Sometimes, the conductor is defined as
 * $$\mathfrak{m}_K^n$$

where n is as above and $$\mathfrak{m}_K$$ is the maximal ideal of K.

The conductor of an extension measures the ramification. Qualitatively, the extension is unramified if, and only if, the conductor is zero, and it is tamely ramified if, and only if, the conductor is 1. More precisely, the conductor computes the non-triviality of higher ramification groups: if s is the largest integer for which the "lower-numbering" higher ramification group Gs is non-trivial, then $$\mathfrak{f}(L/K)=\eta_{L/K}(s)+1$$, where ηL/K is the function that translates from "lower-numbering" to "upper-numbering" of higher ramification groups.

The conductor of L/K is also related to the Artin conductors of characters of the Galois group Gal(L/K). Specifically,
 * $$\mathfrak{m}_K^{\mathfrak{f}(L/K)}=\underset{\chi}{\mathrm{lcm}}\,\mathfrak{m}_K^{\mathfrak{f}_\chi}$$

where χ varies over all multiplicative complex characters of Gal(L/K), $$\mathfrak{f}_\chi$$ is the Artin conductor of χ, and lcm is the least common multiple.

More general fields
The conductor can be defined as the same way for L/K a not necessarily abelian finite Galois extension of local fields. However, it only depends on L ab /K the maximal abelian extension of K in L because of the norm limitation theorem, which states that, in this situation,
 * $$N_{L/K}(L^\times)=N_{L^{\text{ab}}/K}\left((L^{\text{ab}})^\times\right).$$

Additionally, the conductor can be defined when L and K are allowed to be slightly more general than local, namely if they are complete valued fields with quasi-finite residue field.

Archimedean fields
Mostly for the sake of global conductors, the conductor of the trivial extension R/R is defined to be 0, and the conductor of the extension C/R is defined to be 1.

Algebraic number fields
The conductor of an abelian extension L/K of number fields can be defined, similarly to the local case, using the Artin map. Specifically, let θ : Im → Gal(L/K) be the global Artin map where m is a defining modulus for L/K, then the conductor of L/K, denoted $$\mathfrak{f}(L/K)$$, is the smallest modulus such that θ factors through the ray class group modulo $$\mathfrak{f}(L/K)$$. It can also be defined as the greatest common divisor of all defining moduli of θ.

Example

 * Let p be a prime number and let L/K be $$\mathbf{Q}(\sqrt{d})/\mathbf{Q}$$ where d is a squarefree integer. Then,
 * $$\mathfrak{f}\left(\mathbf{Q}(\sqrt{d})/\mathbf{Q}\right)=\left\{\begin{matrix}

\left|\Delta_{\mathbf{Q}(\sqrt{d})}\right| & \text{for }d>0 \\ \infty\left|\Delta_{\mathbf{Q}(\sqrt{d})}\right| & \text{for }d<0 \end{matrix}\right.$$
 * where $$\Delta_{\mathbf{Q}(\sqrt{d})}$$ is the discriminant of $$\mathbf{Q}(\sqrt{d})/\mathbf{Q}$$.

Relation to local conductors and ramification
The global conductor is the products of local conductors:
 * $$\displaystyle \mathfrak{f}(L/K)=\prod_\mathfrak{p}\mathfrak{p}^{\mathfrak{f}(L_\mathfrak{p}/K_\mathfrak{p})}.$$

As a consequence, a finite prime is ramified in L/K if, and only if, it divides $$\mathfrak{f}(L/K)$$. An infinite prime v occurs in the conductor if, and only if, v is real and becomes complex in L.