A structure theorem for multiplicative functions over the Gaussian integers and applications

Abstract: We prove a structure theorem for multiplicative functions on the Gaussian integers, showing that every bounded multiplicative function on the Gaussian integers can be decomposed into a term which is approximately periodic and another which has a small U^{3}-Gowers uniformity norm. We apply this to prove partition regularity results over the Gaussian integers for certain equations involving quadratic forms in three variables. For example, we show that for any finite coloring of the Gaussian integers, there exist distinct nonzero elements x and y of the same color such that x^{2}-y^{2}=n^{2} for some Gaussian integer n. The analog of this statement over Z remains open.