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In 2009 Mihailescu published a proof of the famous Leopoldt conjecture on the arxiv. Later on, in 2011, he published a 'lightweight' version that proves the conjecture for CM fields. Also compare

Is the Leopoldt conjecture almost always true?

But as far as I can see from MathSciNet, none of his papers has been published in any math journal. So here are my questions:

  1. Has anybody information if Mihailescu intends to get his proof printed in some math journal or if it's destined solely to the arxiv (like Perelman has done) ?

  2. In his obituary for Leopoldt from 10.01.2012, Roquette mentions in a footnote, "recently Mihailescu has announced a proof of Leopoldt's conjecture for all number fields". Is this a new announcement or refers Roquette to Mihailescu's 2009 paper ?

  3. What's the current status of the Leopoldt conjecture ?

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    $\begingroup$ In view of the answer to the question linked to I vote to close this. Alos, there seems to be no clear motivation for this question beyond general interest. $\endgroup$
    – user9072
    Commented Jun 17, 2012 at 0:08
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    $\begingroup$ @quid: It may be of interest to someone who wants to attack Leopoldt conjecture himself. To the OP: regarding 1., have you tried emailing Mihailescu? $\endgroup$
    – Kevin Ventullo
    Commented Jun 17, 2012 at 4:08
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    $\begingroup$ @quid: I think it's of general interest to know about the status (that may change over time) of important conjectures in a field. That's why I used the big picture tag. @Kevin: No, I thought I ask at first on MO before contacting him. $\endgroup$
    – KBuck
    Commented Jun 17, 2012 at 8:17
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    $\begingroup$ I think that a question on the status of Leopoldt's conjecture might be appropriate and even interesting if carefully formulated. However, I agree with quid that question 1 is extremely inappropriate: submission and rejection should not be public, only acceptance should. $\endgroup$
    – Olivier
    Commented Jun 17, 2012 at 20:20
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    $\begingroup$ I think if someone publishes a paper in the internet, saying I'm the one who proved this important conjecture, then it's no longer his private affair. He then has to reckon that people start asking about the work's approval status. Moreover if an important proof is sent to a journal with high reputation then it should be possible to decide within 3 years if it's correct or if there are gaps. Hence the unclear status of Mihailescu's work is unsatisfying. But I agree that it's up to him to give information about the approval status - that shouldn't be done by /asked to third parties. $\endgroup$
    – KBuck
    Commented Jun 18, 2012 at 6:54

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