Local theory of several complex variables
In mathematics, the Weierstrass preparation theorem is a tool for dealing with analytic functions of several complex variables, at a given point "P". It states that such a function is, up to multiplication by a function not zero at "P", a polynomial in one fixed variable "z", which is monic, and whose coefficients of lower degree terms are analytic functions in the remaining variables and zero at "P".
There are also a number of variants of the theorem, that extend the idea of factorization in some ring "R" as "u"·"w", where "u" is a unit and "w" is some sort of distinguished Weierstrass polynomial. Carl Siegel has disputed the attribution of the theorem to Weierstrass, saying that it occurred under the current name in some of late nineteenth century "Traités d'analyse" without justification.
Complex analytic functions.
For one variable, the local form of an analytic function "f"("z") near 0 is "z""k""h"("z") where "h"(0) is not 0, and "k" is the order of the zero of "f" at 0. This is the result that the preparation theorem generalises. 
We pick out one variable "z", which we may assume is first, and write our complex variables as ("z", "z"2, ..., "zn"). A Weierstrass polynomial "W"("z") is
"zk" + "g""k"−1"z""k"−1 + ... + "g"0
where "g""i"("z"2, ..., "zn") is analytic and "g""i"(0, ..., 0) = 0.
Then the theorem states that for analytic functions "f", if
"f"(0, ...,0) = 0,
and
"f"("z", "z"2, ..., "zn")
as a power series has some term only involving "z", we can write (locally near (0, ..., 0))
"f"("z", "z"2, ..., "zn") = "W"("z")"h"("z", "z"2, ..., "zn")
with "h" analytic and "h"(0, ..., 0) not 0, and "W "a Weierstrass polynomial.
This has the immediate consequence that the set of zeros of "f", near (0, ..., 0), can be found by fixing any small values of "z"2, ..., "zn" and then solving the equation "W(z)=0". The corresponding values of "z" form a number of continuously-varying "branches", in number equal to the degree of "W" in "z". In particular "f" cannot have an isolated zero.
Division theorem.
A related result is the Weierstrass division theorem, which states that if "f" and "g" are analytic functions, and "g" is a Weierstrass polynomial of degree "N", then there exists a unique pair "h" and "j" such that "f" = "gh" + "j", where "j" is a polynomial of degree less than "N". In fact, many authors prove the Weierstrass preparation as a corollary of the division theorem. It is also possible to prove the division theorem from the preparation theorem so that the two theorems are actually equivalent.
Applications.
The Weierstrass preparation theorem can be used to show that the ring of germs of analytic functions in "n" variables is a Noetherian ring, which is also referred to as the "Rückert basis theorem".
Smooth functions.
There is a deeper preparation theorem for smooth functions, due to Bernard Malgrange, called the Malgrange preparation theorem. It also has an associated division theorem, named after John Mather.
Formal power series in complete local rings.
There is an analogous result, also referred to as the Weierstrass preparation theorem, for the ring of formal power series over complete local rings "A": for any power series formula_1 such that not all formula_2 are in the maximal ideal formula_3 of "A", there is a unique unit "u" in formula_4 and a polynomial "F" of the form formula_5 with formula_6 (a so-called distinguished polynomial) such that
formula_7
Since formula_4 is again a complete local ring, the result can be iterated and therefore gives similar factorization results for formal power series in several variables.
For example, this applies to the ring of integers in a p-adic field. In this case the theorem says that a power series "f"("z") can always be uniquely factored as π"n"·"u"("z")·"p"("z"), where "u"("z") is a unit in the ring of power series, "p"("z") is a distinguished polynomial (monic, with the coefficients of the non-leading terms each in the maximal ideal), and π is a fixed uniformizer.
An application of the Weierstrass preparation and division theorem for the ring formula_9 (also called Iwasawa algebra) occurs in Iwasawa theory in the description of finitely generated modules over this ring.
There exists a non-commutative version of Weierstrass division and preparation, with "A" being a not necessarily commutative ring, and with formal skew power series in place of formal power series.
Tate algebras.
There is also a Weierstrass preparation theorem for Tate algebras
formula_10
over a complete non-archimedean field "k". 
These algebras are the basic building blocks of rigid geometry. One application of this form of the Weierstrass preparation theorem is the fact that the rings formula_11 are Noetherian.
References.
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