It is possible for a(z) to be prime even if its degree is composite.For instance, let n be any prime number, and p and q two prime numbers, so large that pq > (p + 8 + 2)».Let pq = kn+r, where 0 < r < n.The most general polynomial a(z), of degree pq and of the form *rg(2") contains k+l parameters.But the most general composite polynomial of degree pq contains only £+g+2 parameters.Hence a(z) is generally prime.t Case (a) with m = 2 can be reduced to Case (6) by a linear transformation.
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J. F. Ritt (1922) studied this question.