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<!-- ##  methods.xml        FactInt documentation         Stefan Kohl  ## -->
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<Chapter Label="ch:Methods">
<Heading>The Routines for Specific Factorization Methods</Heading>

Descriptions of the factoring methods implemented in this package can
be found in&nbsp;<Cite Key="Bressoud89"/> and <Cite Key="Cohen93"/>.
Cohen's book contains also descriptions of the other methods mentioned
in the preface.

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<Section Label="sec:TrialDivision">
<Heading>Trial division</Heading>

<Index Key="trial division">trial division</Index>

<ManSection>
  <Func Name="FactorsTD" Arg="n [, Divisors ]" Label="trial division"/>
  <Returns>
    A list of two lists: The first list contains the prime factors found,
    and the second list contains remaining unfactored parts of <A>n</A>,
    if there are any.
  </Returns>
  <Description>
    This function tries to factor <A>n</A> by trial division.
    The optional argument <A>Divisors</A> is the list of trial divisors.
    If not given, it defaults to the list of primes <M>p &lt; 1000</M>.
<Example>
<![CDATA[
gap> FactorsTD(12^25+25^12);
[ [ 13, 19, 727 ], [ 5312510324723614735153 ] ]
]]>
</Example>
  </Description>
</ManSection>

</Section>

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<Section Label="sec:PollardsPminus1">
<Heading>Pollard's <M>p-1</M></Heading>

<Index Key="Pollard's p-1">Pollard's <M>p-1</M></Index>

<ManSection>
  <Func Name="FactorsPminus1" Arg="n [, [ a, ] Limit1 [, Limit2 ] ]"
        Label="Pollard's p-1"/>
  <Returns>
    A list of two lists: The first list contains the prime factors found,
    and the second list contains remaining unfactored parts of <A>n</A>,
    if there are any.
  </Returns>
  <Description>
    This function tries to factor <A>n</A> using Pollard's&nbsp;<M>p-1</M>.
    It uses <A>a</A> as base for exponentiation, <A>Limit1</A> as first
    stage limit and <A>Limit2</A> as second stage limit.
    If the function is called with three arguments, these arguments are
    interpreted as <A>n</A>, <A>Limit1</A> and <A>Limit2</A>. Defaults are
    chosen for all arguments which are omitted. <P/>

    Pollard's <M>p-1</M> is based on the fact that exponentiation
    (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>) can be done efficiently enough to compute
    <M>a^{k!}</M> mod&nbsp;<M>n</M> for sufficiently large&nbsp;<M>k</M>
    in a reasonable amount of time. Assume that <M>p</M> is a prime factor
    of <M>n</M> which does not divide&nbsp;<M>a</M>, and that <M>k!</M>
    is a multiple of&nbsp;<M>p-1</M>. Then
    <Index Key="Lagrange's Theorem">Lagrange's Theorem</Index>
    Lagrange's Theorem states that <M>a^{k!} \equiv 1</M>
    (mod&nbsp;<M>p</M>). If <M>k!</M> is not a multiple of <M>q-1</M> for
    another prime factor <M>q</M> of&nbsp;<M>n</M>, it is likely that the
    factor&nbsp;<M>p</M> can be determined by computing
    <M>\gcd(a^{k!}-1,n)</M>. A prime factor <M>p</M> is usually found if
    the largest prime factor of <M>p-1</M> is not larger than <A>Limit2</A>,
    and the second-largest one is not larger than <A>Limit1</A>.
    (Compare with <Ref Func="FactorsPplus1" Label="Williams' p+1"/>
    and&nbsp;<Ref Func="FactorsECM" Label="Elliptic Curves Method, ECM"/>.)
<Example>
<![CDATA[
gap> FactorsPminus1( Factorial(158) + 1, 100000, 1000000 );
[ [ 2879, 5227, 1452486383317, 9561906969931, 18331561438319, 
      4837142997094837608115811103417329505064932181226548534006749213\
4508231090637045229565481657130504121732305287984292482612133314325471\
3674832962773107806789945715570386038565256719614524924705165110048148\
7161609649806290811760570095669 ], [  ] ]
gap> List( last[ 1 ]{[ 3, 4, 5 ]}, p -> Factors( p - 1 ) );
[ [ 2, 2, 3, 3, 81937, 492413 ], [ 2, 3, 3, 3, 5, 7, 7, 1481, 488011 ]
    , [ 2, 3001, 7643, 399613 ] ]
]]>
</Example>
  </Description>
</ManSection>

</Section>

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<Section Label="sec:WilliamsPplus1">
<Heading>Williams' <M>p+1</M></Heading>

<Index Key="Williams' p+1">Williams' <M>p+1</M></Index>

<ManSection>
  <Func Name="FactorsPplus1" Arg="n [, [ Residues, ] Limit1 [, Limit2 ] ]"
        Label="Williams' p+1"/>
  <Returns>
    A list of two lists: The first list contains the prime factors found,
    and the second list contains remaining unfactored parts of <A>n</A>,
    if there are any.
  </Returns>
  <Description>
    This function tries to factor <A>n</A> using Williams'&nbsp;<M>p+1</M>.
    It tries <A>Residues</A> different residues, and uses <A>Limit1</A>
    as first stage limit and <A>Limit2</A> as second stage limit.
    If the function is called with three arguments, these arguments are
    interpreted as <A>n</A>, <A>Limit1</A> and <A>Limit2</A>. Defaults are
    chosen for all arguments which are omitted. <P/>

    Williams' <M>p+1</M> is very similar to Pollard's&nbsp;<M>p-1</M>
    (see <Ref Func="FactorsPminus1" Label="Pollard's p-1"/>).
    The difference is that the underlying group here can either have order
    <M>p+1</M> or <M>p-1</M>, and that the group operation takes more time.
    A prime factor <M>p</M> is usually found if the largest prime factor
    of the group order is at most <A>Limit2</A> and the second-largest one
    is not larger than <A>Limit1</A>.
    (Compare also with <Ref Func="FactorsECM"
                            Label="Elliptic Curves Method, ECM"/>.)
<Example>
<![CDATA[
gap> FactorsPplus1( Factorial(55) - 1, 10, 10000, 100000 );
[ [ 73, 39619, 277914269, 148257413069 ], 
  [ 106543529120049954955085076634537262459718863957 ] ]
gap> List( last[ 1 ], p -> [ Factors( p - 1 ), Factors( p + 1 ) ] );
[ [ [ 2, 2, 2, 3, 3 ], [ 2, 37 ] ], 
  [ [ 2, 3, 3, 31, 71 ], [ 2, 2, 5, 7, 283 ] ], 
  [ [ 2, 2, 2207, 31481 ], [ 2, 3, 5, 9263809 ] ], 
  [ [ 2, 2, 47, 788603261 ], [ 2, 3, 5, 13, 37, 67, 89, 1723 ] ] ]
]]>
</Example>
  </Description>
</ManSection>

</Section>

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<Section Label="sec:ECM">
<Heading>The Elliptic Curves Method (ECM)</Heading>

<Index Key="Elliptic Curves Method (ECM)">
  Elliptic Curves Method (ECM)
</Index>

<ManSection>
  <Func Name="FactorsECM"
        Arg="n [, Curves [, Limit1 [, Limit2 [, Delta ] ] ] ]"
        Label="Elliptic Curves Method, ECM"/>
  <Func Name="ECM"
        Arg="n [, Curves [, Limit1 [, Limit2 [, Delta ] ] ] ]"
        Label="shorthand for FactorsECM"/>
  <Returns>
    A list of two lists: The first list contains the prime factors found,
    and the second list contains remaining unfactored parts of <A>n</A>,
    if there are any.
  </Returns>
  <Description>
    This function tries to factor <A>n</A> using the Elliptic Curves
    Method (ECM).
    The argument <A>Curves</A> is the number of curves to be tried.
    The argument <A>Limit1</A> is the initial
    <Index Key="first stage limit">first stage limit</Index>
    first stage limit, and <A>Limit2</A> is the initial
    <Index Key="second stage limit">second stage limit</Index>
    second stage limit.
    The argument <A>Delta</A> is the increment per curve for the first stage
    limit. The second stage limit is adjusted appropriately. Defaults are
    chosen for all arguments which are omitted. <P/>

    <C>FactorsECM</C> recognizes the option <A>ECMDeterministic</A>.
    If set, the choice of the curves is deterministic.
    This means that in repeated runs of <C>FactorsECM</C> the same
    curves are used, and hence for the same&nbsp;<M>n</M> the same
    factors are found after the same number of trials. <P/>

    The Elliptic Curves Method is based on the fact that exponentiation
    in the
    <Index Key="elliptic curve groups">elliptic curve groups</Index>
    elliptic curve groups <M>E(a,b)/n</M> can be performed fast enough
    to compute for example <M>g^{k!}</M> for <M>k</M> large enough
    (e.g. 100000 or so) in a reasonable amount of time and without
    using much memory, and on Lagrange's Theorem.
    Assume that <M>p</M> is a prime divisor of&nbsp;<M>n</M>.
    Then Lagrange's Theorem states that if <M>k!</M> is a multiple of
    <M>|E(a,b)/p|</M>, then for any
    <Index Key="elliptic curve point">elliptic curve point</Index>
    elliptic curve point&nbsp;<M>g</M>, the power <M>g^{k!}</M> is the
    identity element of <M>E(a,b)/p</M>.
    In this situation -- under reasonable circumstances --
    the factor&nbsp;<M>p</M> can be determined by taking an appropriate gcd.
    <P/>

    In practice, the algorithm chooses in some sense <Q>better</Q>
    products <M>P_k</M> of small primes rather than <M>k!</M> as exponents.
    After reaching the first stage limit with <M>P_{Limit1}</M>, it
    considers further products <M>P_{Limit1}q</M> for primes&nbsp;<M>q</M>
    up to the second stage limit <A>Limit2</A>, which is usually set equal
    to something like 100 times the first stage limit.
    The prime&nbsp;<M>q</M> corresponds to the largest prime factor of the
    order of the group <M>E(a,b)/p</M>. <P/>

    A prime divisor <M>p</M> is usually found if the largest prime factor
    of the order of one of the examined elliptic curve groups <M>E(a,b)/p</M>
    is at most <A>Limit2</A> and the second-largest one is at most
    <A>Limit1</A>. Thus trying a larger number of curves increases the chance
    of factoring <A>n</A> as well as choosing a larger value
    for <A>Limit1</A> and/or <A>Limit2</A>. It turns out to be not optimal
    either to try a large number of curves with very small <A>Limit1</A>
    and <A>Limit2</A> or to try only a few curves with very large limits.
    (Compare with&nbsp;<Ref Func="FactorsPminus1"
                            Label="Pollard's p-1"/>.)
    <P/>

    The elements of the group <M>E(a,b)/n</M> are the points <M>(x,y)</M>
    given by the solutions of <M>y^2 = x^3 + ax + by</M> in the residue
    class ring (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>), and an additional point <M>\infty</M>
    at infinity, which serves as identity element.
    To turn this set into a group, define the product (although elliptic
    curve groups are usually written additively, I prefer using the
    multiplicative notation here to retain the analogy
    to <Ref Func="FactorsPminus1" Label="Pollard's p-1"/> and
    <Ref Func="FactorsPplus1" Label="Williams' p+1"/>)
    of two points <M>p_1</M> and&nbsp;<M>p_2</M> as follows:
    If <M>p_1 \neq p_2</M>, let <M>l</M> be the line through <M>p_1</M>
    and&nbsp;<M>p_2</M>, otherwise let <M>l</M> be the tangent to the
    curve&nbsp;<M>C</M> given by the above equation in the point
    <M>p_1 = p_2</M>. The line <M>l</M> intersects <M>C</M> in a third
    point, say&nbsp;<M>p_3</M>. If <M>l</M> does not intersect the curve in
    a third affine point, then set <M>p_3 := \infty</M>.
    Define <M>p_1 \cdot p_2</M> by the image of&nbsp;<M>p_3</M> under
    the reflection across the <M>x</M>-axis.
    Define the product of any curve point <M>p</M> and <M>\infty</M> by
    <M>p</M> itself. This -- more or less obviously, checking associativity
    requires some calculation -- turns the set of points on the given curve
    into an abelian group <M>E(a,b)/n</M>. <P/>

    However, the calculations are done in
    <Index Key="projective coordinates">projective coordinates</Index>
    projective coordinates to have an explicit representation of the
    identity element and to avoid calculating inverses (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>)
    for the group operation. Otherwise this would require using an
    <M>O((log \ n)^3)</M>-algorithm, while multiplication (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>)
    is only <M>O((log \ n)^2)</M>. The corresponding equation is given by
    <M>bY^2Z = X^3 + aX^2Z + XZ^2</M>. This form allows even more efficient
    computations than the
    <Index Key="Weierstrass model">Weierstrass model</Index>
    Weierstrass model <M>Y^2Z = X^3 + aXZ^2 + bZ^3</M>, which is the
    projective equivalent of the affine representation
    <M>y^2 = x^3 + ax + by</M> mentioned above. The algorithm only keeps
    track of two of the three coordinates, namely <M>X</M> and&nbsp;<M>Z</M>.
    The curves are chosen in a way that ensures the order of the
    corresponding group to be divisible by&nbsp;12. This increases the chance
    that it is smooth enough to find a factor of&nbsp;<M>n</M>.
    The implementation follows the description of R. P. Brent given in
    <Cite Key="Brent96"/>, pp. 5 -- 8. In terms of this paper,
    for the second stage the <Q>improved standard continuation</Q> is used.
<Example>
<![CDATA[
gap> FactorsECM(2^256+1,100,10000,1000000,100);
[ [ 1238926361552897, 
      93461639715357977769163558199606896584051237541638188580280321 ]
    , [  ] ]
]]>
</Example>
  </Description>
</ManSection>

</Section>

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<Section Label="sec:CFRAC">
<Heading>The Continued Fraction Algorithm (CFRAC)</Heading>

<Index Key="Continued Fraction Algorithm (CFRAC)">
  Continued Fraction Algorithm (CFRAC)
</Index>

<ManSection>
  <Func Name="FactorsCFRAC" Arg="n"
        Label="Continued Fraction Algorithm, CFRAC"/>
  <Func Name="CFRAC" Arg="n"
        Label="shorthand for FactorsCFRAC"/>  
  <Returns>
    A list of the prime factors of&nbsp;<A>n</A>.
  </Returns>
  <Description>
    This function tries to factor <A>n</A> using the Continued Fraction
    Algorithm (CFRAC), also known as Brillhart-Morrison Algorithm.
    In case of failure an error is signalled. <P/>

    Caution: The runtime of this function depends only on the size
    of&nbsp;<A>n</A>, and not on the size of the factors.
    Thus if a small factor is not found during the preprocessing
    which is done before invoking the sieving process, the runtime is
    as long as if <A>n</A> would have two prime factors of roughly
    equal size. <P/>

    The Continued Fraction Algorithm tries to find integers <M>x</M>
    and&nbsp;<M>y</M> such that <M>x^2 \equiv y^2</M> (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>),
    but not <M>\pm x \equiv \pm y</M> (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>).
    In this situation, taking <M>\gcd(x - y,n)</M> yields a nontrivial
    divisor of&nbsp;<M>n</M>. For determining such a pair <M>(x,y)</M>,
    the algorithm uses the continued fraction expansion of the square root
    of&nbsp;<M>n</M>. If <M>x_i/y_i</M> is a
    <Index Key="continued fraction approximation">
      continued fraction approximation
    </Index>
    continued fraction approximation of the square root of&nbsp;<M>n</M>,
    then <M>c_i := x_i^2 - ny_i^2</M> is bounded by a small constant times
    the square root of&nbsp;<M>n</M>.
    The algorithm tries to find as many <M>c_i</M> as possible which factor
    completely over a chosen
    <Index Key="factor base">factor base</Index>
    factor base (a list of small primes) or with only one factor not in the
    factor base. The latter ones can be used if and only if a second
    <M>c_i</M> with the same <Q>large</Q> factor is found.
    <Index Key="factor base" Subkey="large factors">factor base</Index>
    Once enough values <M>c_i</M> have been factored, as a final stage
    <Index Key="Gaussian Elimination">Gaussian Elimination</Index>
    Gaussian Elimination over GF(2) is used to determine which of the
    congruences <M>x_i^2 \equiv c_i</M> (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>) have to be
    multiplied together to obtain a congruence of the desired form
    <M>x^2 \equiv y^2</M> (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>).
    Let <M>M</M> be the corresponding matrix. Then the entries
    of&nbsp;<M>M</M> are given by <M>M_{ij} = 1</M> if an odd power of
    the <M>j</M>-th element of the factor base divides the <M>i</M>-th
    usable factored value, and <M>M_{ij} = 0</M> otherwise.
    To obtain the desired congruence, it is necessary that the rows
    of&nbsp;<M>M</M> are linearly dependent.
    In other words, this means that the number of factored <M>c_i</M>
    needs to be larger than the rank of&nbsp;<M>M</M>, which is
    approximately given by the size of the factor base. (Compare
    with&nbsp;<Ref Func="FactorsMPQS"
                   Label="Multiple Polynomial Quadratic Sieve, MPQS"/>.)
<Example>
<![CDATA[
gap> FactorsCFRAC( Factorial(34) - 1 );
[ 10398560889846739639, 28391697867333973241 ]
]]>
</Example>
  </Description>
</ManSection>

</Section>

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<Section Label="sec:MPQS">
<Heading>The Multiple Polynomial Quadratic Sieve (MPQS)</Heading>

<Index Key="Multiple Polynomial Quadratic Sieve (MPQS)">
  Multiple Polynomial Quadratic Sieve (MPQS)
</Index>

<ManSection>
  <Func Name="FactorsMPQS" Arg="n"
        Label="Multiple Polynomial Quadratic Sieve, MPQS"/>
  <Func Name="MPQS" Arg="n"
        Label="shorthand for FactorsMPQS"/>  
  <Returns>
    A list of the prime factors of&nbsp;<A>n</A>.
  </Returns>
  <Description>
    This function tries to factor <A>n</A> using the Single Large Prime
    Variation of the Multiple Polynomial Quadratic Sieve (MPQS).
    In case of failure an error is signalled. <P/>

    Caution: The runtime of this function depends only on the size
    of&nbsp;<A>n</A>, and not on the size of the factors.
    Thus if a small factor is not found during the preprocessing
    which is done before invoking the sieving process, the runtime is
    as long as if <A>n</A> would have two prime factors of roughly
    equal size. <P/>

    The intermediate results of a computation can be saved by
    interrupting it with <C>[Ctrl][C]</C> and calling <C>Pause();</C>
    from the break loop. This causes all data needed for resuming
    the computation again to be pushed as a record <A>MPQSTmp</A>
    on the options stack.
    When called again with the same argument <A>n</A>, <C>FactorsMPQS</C>
    takes the record from the options stack and continues with the previously
    computed factorization data. For continuing the factorization process
    in another session, one needs to write this record to a file.
    This can be done by the function <C>SaveMPQSTmp(<A>filename</A>)</C>.
    The file written by this function can be read by the standard
    <C>Read</C>-function of&nbsp;&GAP;. <P/>

    The Multiple Polynomial Quadratic Sieve tries to find integers <M>x</M>
    and&nbsp;<M>y</M> such that <M>x^2 \equiv y^2</M> (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>),
    but not <M>\pm x \equiv \pm y</M> (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>).
    In this situation, taking <M>\gcd(x - y,n)</M> yields a nontrivial
    divisor of&nbsp;<M>n</M>. For determining such a pair <M>(x,y)</M>,
    the algorithm chooses polynomials <M>f_a</M> of the form
    <M>f_a(r) = ar^2 + 2br + c</M> with suitably chosen coefficients
    <M>a</M>, <M>b</M> and&nbsp;<M>c</M> which satisfy <M>b^2 \equiv n</M>
    (mod&nbsp;<M>a</M>) and <M>c = (b^2 - n)/a</M>.
    The identity <M>a \cdot f_a(r) = (ar + b)^2 - n</M> yields
    a congruence (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>) with a perfect square on one side
    and <M>a \cdot f_a(r)</M> on the other. The algorithm uses a sieving
    technique similar to the Sieve of Eratosthenes over an appropriately
    chosen
    <Index Key="sieving interval">sieving interval</Index>
    sieving interval to search for factorizations of values <M>f_a(r)</M>
    over a chosen factor base. Any two factorizations with the same single
    <Q>large</Q> factor which does not belong to the factor base can also be
    used. Taking more polynomials and hence shorter sieving intervals has
    the advantage of having to factor smaller values <M>f_a(r)</M> over the
    factor base. <P/>

    Once enough values <M>f_a(r)</M> have been factored, as a final stage
    Gaussian Elimination over GF(2) is used to determine which congruences
    have to be multiplied together to obtain a congruence of the desired
    form <M>x^2 \equiv y^2</M> (mod&nbsp;<M>n</M>). Let <M>M</M> be the
    corresponding matrix. Then the entries of&nbsp;<M>M</M> are given by
    <M>M_{ij} = 1</M> if an odd power of the <M>j</M>-th element of the
    factor base divides the <M>i</M>-th usable factored value, and
    <M>M_{ij} = 0</M> otherwise.
    To obtain the desired congruence, it is necessary that the rows
    of&nbsp;<M>M</M> are linearly dependent.
    In other words, this means that the number of usable factorizations of
    values <M>f_a(r)</M> needs to be larger than the rank of&nbsp;<M>M</M>.
    The latter is approximately equal to the size of the factor base.
    (Compare with&nbsp;<Ref Func="FactorsCFRAC"
                            Label="Continued Fraction Algorithm, CFRAC"/>.)
<Example>
<![CDATA[
gap> FactorsMPQS( Factorial(38) + 1 );
[ 14029308060317546154181, 37280713718589679646221 ]
]]>
</Example>
  </Description>
</ManSection>

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</Chapter>

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