Images of graded polynomials on matrix algebras

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to start the study of images of graded polynomials on full matrix algebras. We work with the matrix algebra $M_n(K)$ over a field $K$ endowed with its canonical $\mathbb{Z}_n$-grading (Vasilovsky's grading). We explicitly determine the possibilities for the linear span of the image of a multilinear graded polynomial over the field $\mathbb Q$ of rational numbers and state an analogue of the L'vov-Kaplansky conjecture about images of multilinear graded polynomials on $n\times n$ matrices, where $n$ is a prime number. We confirm such conjecture for polynomials of degree 2 over $M_n(K)$ when $K$ is a quadratically closed field of characteristic zero or greater than $n$ and for polynomials of arbitrary degree over matrices of order 2. We also determine all the possible images of semi-homogeneous graded polynomials evaluated on $M_2(K)$.