Order of finite fields is $p^n$

Let $p$ be the characteristic of a finite field $F$. Then since $1$ has order $p$ in $(F,+)$, we know that $p$ divides $|F|$. Now let $q\neq p$ be any other prime dividing $|F|$. Then by Cauchy's Theorem, there is an element $x\in F$ whose order in $(F,+)$ is $q$.

Then $q\cdot x=0$. But we also have $p\cdot x=0$. Now since $p$ and $q$ are relatively prime, we can find integers $a$ and $b$ such that $ap+bq=1$.

Thus $(ap+bq)\cdot x=x$. But $(ap+bq)\cdot x=a\cdot(p\cdot x)+b\cdot(q\cdot x)=0$, giving $x=0$, which is not possible since $x$ has order at least $2$ in $(F,+)$.

So there is no prime other than $p$ which divides $|F|$.


  1. Prove that the smallest multiple $m$ of 1 that gives zero has to be a prime. (Otherwise there are divisors of $m$ which are then divisors of zero.)

  2. Prove that a field is a vector space over a subfield.

  3. Count the elements of the field if the dimension of this vector space is $n$.


Let $F$ be a finite field. Then the underlying additive group of the field (let's denote this by $F^+$) has this interesting property:

For every two non-identity (i.e. non-zero) elements $a$ and $b\in F^+$, there is an automorphism $\phi$ of the additive group such that $\phi(a)=b$.

This can be seen by examining the map $(x\mapsto ba^{-1}x)$.

This means the set of automorphisms of $F^+$ act transitively on $F^+$. Since automorphisms permute elements of the same order, we can conclude that every element in $F$ has the same order.

But a finite group in which all non-identity elements have the same order is necessarily a $p$-group such that every element has prime order. This can be shown by Cauchy's Theorem.

Suppose the order of $F^+$ had two distinct prime factors $p$ and $q$. Then $F^+$ would contain an element of order $p$ and another element of order $q$ by Cauchy's Theorem. This contradicts that every element has the same order. So the order of $F$ is indeed a prime-power. Cauchy's Theorem implies that $F$ has an element of order $p$, thus all elements have order $p$ by the hypothesis.

So, $F$ must be of prime-power order $p^n$, and we have that $px=0$ for all $x\in F$.

Tags:

Finite Fields

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