MAGIC073: Commutative Algebra

Course details

A core MAGIC course

Semester

Autumn 2025
Monday, October 6th to Friday, December 12th

Hours

Live lecture hours
20
Recorded lecture hours
0
Total advised study hours
80

Description

This course in commutative algebra is aimed at non-experts. The pre-requisites are those of standard undergraduate courses in abstract algebra and linear algebra. Commutative algebra has wide-ranging applications in pure maths, and the objective of the course is to learn the fundaments of the subject.
In this course, the first two sections present the essential concepts of commutative algebra, while the remaining sections present topics which may not have been seen in an undergraduate introductory course on commutative algebra.
The content of the notes has been selected from the material in the references at the end, and students are encouraged to consult these textbooks if they want to explore some topics in greater depth, or their applications to a broad range of research areas.

Within the lecture notes, there are several exercises at the end of each section. The lecture notes are a "living document"", which may be altered during the semester to reflect the lectures, and possibly respond to student feedback (always welcome).
Every student is encouraged to attempt as many exercises as they can, including from the selected bibliography.
Your lecturer will recommend some exercises, mostly taken from the notes. Model solutions of these will be made available on the MAGIC website by the end of the course.
Every student is assumed to understand the importance of engaging with the practical aspects of a course.

The entire material covered during the lectures (not necessarily all the lecture notes) is examinable, including the exercises. More details about examination will follow in due time.

For the computer-algebra enthusiasts, I included a reference of a resource which may be of interest, and I also would recommend the numerous possibilities offered by MAGMA: http://magma.maths.usyd.edu.au/magma/ and other software such as python or sagemath.
No assessment will require the use of such software, but, unless specified, it's not forbidden to use computing tools.

Accessibility: please contact your lecturer if you need an alternative format for the lecture notes and exercises.


Prerequisites

The pre-requisites are those of standard undergraduate courses in abstract algebra and linear algebra. It may help to have some background in commutative rings and ideal theory, but this is not essential.

Syllabus

1. Commutative algebra: the essentials (rings, ideals, homomorphisms, localisation)
2. Modules
3. Integral dependence
4. Prime and maximal ideal spectra
5. A brief taste of algebraic geometry: algebraic sets and Hilbert's Nullstellensatz
6. Primary decomposition
7. Dimension in commutative rings.

Lecturer

  • Professor Jan Grabowski

    Professor Jan Grabowski

    University
    University of Lancaster

Bibliography

No bibliography has been specified for this course.

Assessment

The assessment for this course will be released on Monday 12th January 2026 at 00:00 and is due in before Friday 23rd January 2026 at 11:00.

Assessment for all MAGIC courses is via take-home exam which will be made available at the release date (the start of the exam period).

You will need to upload a PDF file with your own attempted solutions by the due date (the end of the exam period).

If you have kept up-to-date with the course, the expectation is it should take at most 3 hours’ work to attain the pass mark, which is 50%.

Please note that you are not registered for assessment on this course.

Files

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Lectures

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