Uniform polynomial bounds on torsion from rational geometric isogeny classes

Abstract

In 1996, Merel showed there exists a function $B\colon \mathbb{Z}^+\rightarrow \mathbb{Z}^+$ such that for any elliptic curve $E/F$ defined over a number field of degree $d$, one has the torsion group bound $\# E(F)[\textrm{tors}]\leq B(d)$. Based on subsequent work, it is conjectured that one can choose $B$ to be polynomial in the degree $d$. In this paper, we show that such bounds exist for torsion from the family $\mathcal{I}_{\mathbb{Q}}$ of elliptic curves which are geometrically isogenous to at least one rational elliptic curve. More precisely, we show that for each $\epsilon>0$ there exists $c_\epsilon>0$ such that for any elliptic curve $E/F\in \mathcal{I}_{\mathbb{Q}}$, one has \[ \# E(F)[\textrm{tors}]\leq c_\epsilon\cdot [F:\mathbb{Q}]^{5+\epsilon}. \] This generalizes prior work of Clark and Pollack, as well as work of the second author in the case of rational geometric isogeny classes.