Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 November 2018
Mahler's measure is a natural generalization of Jensen's formula to polynomials in several variables. Its definition is as follows:
The importance of Mahler's measure for polynomials in several variables lies in its connection to Lehmer's classical question which can be phrased in terms of Mahler's measure for polynomials in one variable:
Given , are there any polynomials p with integer coefficients in one variable for which ?
Surprisingly, Boyd [1] has shown that to answer this question, it is necessary to investigate the larger question involving polynomials in several variables.