Ribet's Theorem - Implication of Fermat's Last Theorem

Implication of Fermat's Last Theorem

Suppose that the Fermat equation with exponent ℓ ≥ 3 had a solution in non-zero integers a, b, c. Let us form the corresponding Frey curve E. It is an elliptic curve and one can show that its discriminant Δ is equal to 16 (abc)2ℓ and its conductor N is the radical of abc, i.e. the product of all distinct primes dividing abc. By the Taniyama–Shimura conjecture, E is a modular elliptic curve. Since N is square-free, by the epsilon conjecture one can perform level descent modulo ℓ. Repeating this procedure, we will eliminate all odd primes from the conductor and reach the modular curve X₀(2) of level 2. However, this curve is not an elliptic curve since it has genus zero, resulting in a contradiction.