We study density and partition properties of polynomial equations in prime variables. We consider equations of the form $a_1h(x_1) + \cdots + a_sh(x_s)=b$, where the ai and b are fixed coefficients and h is an arbitrary integer polynomial of degree d. We establish that the natural necessary conditions for this equation to have a monochromatic non-constant solution with respect to any finite colouring of the prime numbers are also sufficient when the equation has at least $(1+o(1))d^2$ variables. We similarly characterize when such equations admit solutions over any set of primes with positive relative upper density. In both cases, we obtain lower bounds for the number of monochromatic or dense solutions in primes that are of the correct order of magnitude. Our main new ingredient is a uniform lower bound on the cardinality of a prime polynomial Bohr set.

We investigate exponential sums over those numbers ${\leqslant}x$ all of whose prime factors are ${\leqslant}y$. We prove fairly good minor arc estimates, valid whenever $\log ^{3}x\leqslant y\leqslant x^{1/3}$. Then we prove sharp upper bounds for the $p$th moment of (possibly weighted) sums, for any real $p>2$ and $\log ^{C(p)}x\leqslant y\leqslant x$. Our proof develops an argument of Bourgain, showing that this can succeed without strong major arc information, and roughly speaking it would give sharp moment bounds and restriction estimates for any set sufficiently factorable relative to its density. By combining our bounds with major arc estimates of Drappeau, we obtain an asymptotic for the number of solutions of $a+b=c$ in $y$-smooth integers less than $x$ whenever $\log ^{C}x\leqslant y\leqslant x$. Previously this was only known assuming the generalised Riemann hypothesis. Combining them with transference machinery of Green, we prove Roth’s theorem for subsets of the $y$-smooth numbers whenever $\log ^{C}x\leqslant y\leqslant x$. This provides a deterministic set, of size ${\approx}x^{1-c}$, inside which Roth’s theorem holds.