Univariate polynomial factorization over finite fields with large extension degree

The best known asymptotic bit complexity bound for factoring univariate polynomials over finite fields grows with d1.5+o(1)\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$d^{1.5 + o (1)}$$\end{document} for input polynomials of degree d, and with the square of the bit size of the ground field. It relies on a variant of the Cantor–Zassenhaus algorithm which exploits fast modular composition. Using techniques by Kaltofen and Shoup, we prove a refinement of this bound when the finite field has a large extension degree over its prime field. We also present fast practical algorithms for the case when the extension degree is smooth.