Prime Factorization in Models of PV$_1$

Assuming that no family of polynomial-size Boolean circuits can factorize a constant fraction of all products of two $n$-bit primes, we show that the bounded arithmetic theory $\text{PV}_1$, even when augmented by the sharply bounded choice scheme $BB(Σ^b_0)$, cannot prove that every number has some prime divisor. By the completeness theorem, it follows that under this assumption there is a model $M$ of $\text{PV}_1$ that contains a nonstandard number $m$ which has no prime factorization.

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Publication Details

Journal
Logical Methods in Computer Science
Published
2026-04-07
DOI
https://doi.org/10.46298/lmcs-22(2:1)2026
Primary Topic
Advanced Mathematical Theories
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Prime Factorization in Models of PV$_1$

Ondřej Ježil
Logical Methods in Computer Science
Advanced Mathematical Theories
article

Prime Factorization in Models of PV$_1$

Ondřej Ježil
article en

Abstract

Assuming that no family of polynomial-size Boolean circuits can factorize a constant fraction of all products of two $n$-bit primes, we show that the bounded arithmetic theory $\text{PV}_1$, even when augmented by the sharply bounded choice scheme $BB(Σ^b_0)$, cannot prove that every number has some prime divisor. By the completeness theorem, it follows that under this assumption there is a model $M$ of $\text{PV}_1$ that contains a nonstandard number $m$ which has no prime factorization.

Logical Methods in Computer ScienceVol. Volume 22, Issue 2
Univerzita Karlova v Praze, Grantová Agentura, Univerzita Karlova, University of Warwick
Openalex Percentile: Top 96%
Advanced Mathematical Theories
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