To any homogeneous polynomial $h$ we naturally associate a variety $Ω_h$ which maps birationally onto the graph $Γ_h$ of the gradient map $\nabla h$ and which agrees with the space of complete quadrics when $h$ is the determinant of the generic symmetric matrix. We give a sufficient criterion for $Ω_h$ being smooth which applies for example when $h$ is an elementary symmetric polynomial. In this case $Ω_h$ is a smooth toric variety associated to a certain generalized permutohedron. We also give examples when $Ω_h$ is not smooth.
We study rationality problems for smooth complete intersections of two quadrics. We focus on the three-dimensional case, with a view toward understanding the invariants governing the rationality of a geometrically rational threefold over a non-closed field.
In this paper we classify all free actions of finite groups on Calabi-Yau complete intersection of 4 quadrics in $\PP^7$, up to projective equivalence. We get some examples of smooth Calabi-Yau threefolds with large nonabelian fundamental groups. We also observe the relation between some of these examples and moduli of polarized abelian surfaces.
Given a smooth projective variety V of dimension n, one may say that V has motivic dimension less than d+1 if the cohomology of V comes from varieties of dimensions less than d+1 in some geometric way. In this paper, we show that a smooth complete interesection of k quadrics has a motivic dimension less than k.
We study the moduli space of smooth complete intersections of two quadrics in $\mathbb{P}^n$ by relating it to the geometry of the singular members of the corresponding pencils. Giving an alternative presentation for the moduli space of complete intersections, we compute the Picard group for all $n\geq 3$.
Fix a finite group $G$. We seek to classify varieties with $G$-action equivariantly birational to a representation of $G$ on affine or projective space. Our focus is odd-dimensional smooth complete intersections of two quadrics, relating the equivariant rationality problem with analogous Diophantine questions over nonclosed fields. We explore how invariants -- both classical cohomological invariants and recent symbol constructions -- control rationality in some cases.
We study the birational geometry of the moduli space of complete $n$-quadrics $X$. We exhibit generators for Eff$(X)$ and Nef$(X)$, the cone of effective divisors and the cone of nef divisors, respectively. As a corollary X is a Mori Dream space. Furthermore, we run the MMP on $X$ and find a moduli interpretation for the models induced by the generators of the nef cone. In the case of complete quadric surfaces, we describe all the birational models of $X$ induced by the movable cone and find a moduli interpretation for some of these models.
Let ϕ: \mathbb{P}^{r}\dashrightarrow Z be a birational transformation with a smooth connected base locus scheme, where Z\subseteq\mathbb{P}^{r+c} is a nondegenerate prime Fano manifold. We call ϕa quadro-quadric special briational transformation if ϕand ϕ^{-1} are defined by linear subsystems of |\mathcal{O}_{\mathbb{P}^{r}}(2)| and |\mathcal{O}_{Z}(2)| respectively. In this paper we classify quadro-quadric special birational transformations in the cases where either (i) Z is a complete intersection and the base locus scheme of ϕ^{-1} is smooth, or (ii) Z is a hypersurface.
We describe explicit birational maps from some rational complete intersections of three quadrics in $\mathbb{P}^7$ to some prime Fano manifolds together with their Sarkisov decomposition via a single Secant Flop, allowing us to recover the cohomologically associated Castelnuovo surface of general type with $K^2=2$ and $χ=4$ (the double cover of $\mathbb{P}^2$ ramified along the discriminant curve of the net of quadrics defining the complete intersection) as the minimal model of the non ruled irreducible component of the base locus of the inverse maps. In passing we also revisit and reformulate…
Our main results concern complete intersections of three real quadrics. We prove that the maximal number $B^0_2(N)$ of connected components that a regular complete intersection of three real quadrics in $\Bbb{P}^N$ can have differs at most by one from the maximal number of ovals of the submaximal depth $[(N-1)/2]$ of a real plane projective curve of degree $d=N+1$. As a consequence, we obtain a lower bound \smash{$\frac14 N^2+O(N)$} and an upper bound \smash{$\frac38 N^2+O(N)$} for $B^0_2(N)$.
We prove birational superrigidity of generic Fano complete intersections $V$ of type $2^{k_1}\cdot 3^{k_2}$ in the projective space ${\mathbb P}^{2k_1+3k_2}$, under the condition that $k_2\geq 2$ and $k_1+2k_2=\mathop{\rm dim} V\geq 12$, and of a few families of Fano complete intersections of dimension 10 and 11. This is the third version: minor corrections were made, including a few typos.
We construct wonderful compactifications of the spaces of linear maps, and symmetric linear maps of a given rank as blow-ups of secant varieties of Segre and Veronese varieties. Furthermore, we investigate their birational geometry and their relations with some spaces of degree two stable maps.
We study rationality constructions for smooth complete intersections of two quadrics over nonclosed fields. Over the real numbers, we establish a criterion for rationality in dimension four.
We study rationality properties of smooth complete intersections of three quadrics in $\mathbb{P}^7$. We exhibit a smooth family of such intersections with both rational and non-rational fibers.
We determine SL(n)-stable, SL(2)-regular subvarieties of the variety of complete quadrics. We extend the results of Akyıldız and Carrell on Kostant-Macdonald identity by computing the Poincar{é} polynomials of these regular subvarieties.
Using an action of the Richardson-Springer monoid on involutions, we study the weak order on the variety of complete quadrics. Maximal chains in the poset are explicitly determined. Applying results of Brion, our calculations describe certain cohomology classes in the complete flag variety.
Let X -> Y be a fibration whose fibers are complete intersections of two quadrics. We develop new categorical and algebraic tools---a theory of relative homological projective duality and the Morita invariance of the even Clifford algebra under quadric reduction by hyperbolic splitting---to study semiorthogonal decompositions of the bounded derived category of X. Together with new results in the theory of quadratic forms, we apply these tools in the case where X -> Y has relative dimension 1, 2, or 3, in which case the fibers are curves of genus 1, Del Pezzo surfaces of degree 4, or Fano three…
For each nonsingular hyperelliptic curve of arbitrary genus, we construct a natural injection from the Galois cohomology of 2-torsion subgroups of Jacobian varieties of the curve to the set of isomorphism classes of nonsingular complete intersections of two quadrics. This gives a generalization of the result of Flynn and Skorobogatov.
A wonderful compactification of an orbit under the action of a semi-simple and simply connected group is a smooth projective variety containing the orbit as a dense open subset, and where the added boundary divisor is simple normal crossing. We construct the wonderful compactification of the space of symmetric and symplectic matrices, and investigate its geometry. As an application, we describe the birational geometry of the Kontsevich spaces parametrizing conics in Lagrangian Grassmannians.
We give uniform upper bounds for the number of rational points of height at most $B$ on non-singular complete intersections of two quadrics in $\mathbb{P}^3$ defined over $\mathbb{Q}$. To do this, we combine determinant methods with descent arguments.
In this paper, we investigate the existence of Ulrich bundles on a smooth complete intersection of two $4$-dimensional quadrics in $\mathbb P^5$ by two completely different methods. First, we find good ACM curves and use Serre correspondence in order to construct Ulrich bundles, which is analogous to the construction on a cubic threefold by Casanellas-Hartshorne-Geiss-Schreyer. Next, we use Bondal-Orlov's semiorthogonal decomposition of the derived category of coherent sheaves to analyze Ulrich bundles. Using these methods, we prove that any smooth intersection of two 4-dimensional quadrics in…
We study the maximum likelihood (ML) degree of linear concentration models in algebraic statistics. We relate it to an intersection problem on the variety of complete quadrics. This allows us to provide an explicit, basic, albeit of high computational complexity, formula for the ML-degree. The variety of complete quadrics is an exact analog for symmetric matrices of the permutohedron variety for the diagonal matrices.
Moduli spaces of complete collineations are wonderful compactifications of spaces of linear maps of maximal rank between two fixed vector spaces. We investigate the birational geometry of moduli spaces of complete collineations and quadrics from the point of view of Mori theory. We compute their effective, nef and movable cones, the generators of their Cox rings, and their groups of pseudo-automorphisms. Furthermore, we give a complete description of both the Mori chamber and stable base locus decompositions of the effective cone of the space of complete collineations of the 3-dimensional proj…
In our previous works (2012, 2013), we provided a finite list of properties characterizing all potential types of quadratic birational transformations of a projective space into a factorial variety, whose base locus is smooth and irreducible. However, some existence problems remained open. Among them one had to prove that the image of a given transformation was factorial, but in two particular situations, even the mere existence of the transformation was left as an open problem. In this paper, we use computer algebra methods to construct explicitly four examples of such transformations; two of…
We give a complete classification of globally generated vector bundles of rank 3 on a smooth quadric threefold with $c_1\leq 2$ and extend the result to arbitrary higher rank case. We also investigate the existence of globally generated indecomposable vector bundles, and give the sufficient and necessary conditions on numeric data of vector bundles for indecomposability.
We study the variety of common tangents for up to four quadric surfaces in projective three-space, with particular regard to configurations of four quadrics admitting a continuum of common tangents. We formulate geometrical conditions in the projective space defined by all complex quadric surfaces which express the fact that several quadrics are tangent along a curve to one and the same quadric of rank at least three, and called, for intuitive reasons: a basket. Lines in any ruling of the latter will be common tangents. These considerations are then restricted to spheres in Euclidean three-spa…
We show that the residual categories of quadric surface bundles are equivalent to the (twisted) derived categories of some scheme under the following hypotheses. Case 1: The quadric surface bundle has a smooth section. Case 2: The total space of the quadric surface bundle is smooth and the base is a smooth surface. We provide two proofs in Case 1 describing the scheme as the hyperbolic reduction and as a subscheme of the relative Hilbert scheme of lines, respectively. In Case 2, the twisted scheme is obtained by performing birational transformations to the relative Hilbert scheme of lines. Fin…
We develop several combinatorial models that are useful in the study of the $SL_n$-variety $\mathcal{X}$ of complete quadrics. Barred permutations parameterize the fixed points of the action of a maximal torus $T$ of $SL_n$, while $μ$-involutions parameterize the orbits of a Borel subgroup of $SL_n$. Using these combinatorial objects, we characterize the $T$-stable curves and surfaces on $\mathcal{X}$, compute the $T$-equivariant $K$-theory of $\mathcal{X}$, and describe a Białynicki-Birula cell decomposition for $\mathcal{X}$. Furthermore, we give a computational characterization of the Bruha…
The derived category of a general complete intersection of four quadrics in P^{2n-1} has a semi-orthogonal decomposition < O(-2n+9), ..., O(-1), O, D >, where D is the derived category of twisted sheaves on a certain non-algebraic complex 3-fold coming from a moduli problem. In particular, when n=4 we obtain a (twisted) derived equivalence of Calabi-Yau 3-folds predicted by Gross. This differs from Kuznetsov's result in that our construction is geometric and avoids non-commutative varieties.
Let $Y$ be a smooth complete intersection of three quadrics, and assume the dimension of $Y$ is even. We show that $Y$ has a multiplicative Chow-Künneth decomposition, in the sense of Shen-Vial. As a consequence, the Chow ring of (powers of) $Y$ displays K3-like behaviour. As a by-product of the argument, we also establish a multiplicative Chow-Künneth decomposition for double planes.
We establish connections between: the maximum likelihood degree (ML-degree) for linear concentration models, the algebraic degree of semidefinite programming (SDP), and Schubert calculus for complete quadrics. We prove a conjecture by Sturmfels and Uhler on the polynomiality of the ML-degree. We also prove a conjecture by Nie, Ranestad and Sturmfels providing an explicit formula for the degree of SDP. The interactions between the three fields shed new light on the asymptotic behaviour of enumerative invariants for the variety of complete quadrics. We also extend these results to spaces of gene…
We complete a classification of quadratic forms over a field of characteristic 2 of type (1,3) that become isotropic over the function field of a quadric.
Let $Y$ be a smooth complete intersection of a quadric and a cubic in $\mathbb{P}^n$, with $n$ even. We show that $Y$ has a multiplicative Chow-Künneth decomposition, in the sense of Shen-Vial. As a consequence, the Chow ring of (powers of) $Y$ displays K3-like behaviour. As a by-product of the argument, we also establish a multiplicative Chow-Künneth decomposition for the resolution of singularities of a general nodal cubic hypersurface of even dimension.
We use a generalization of Horrocks monads for arithmetic Cohen-Macaulay (ACM) varieties to establish a cohomological characterization of linear and Steiner bundles over projective spaces and quadric hypersurfaces. We also study resolutions of bundles on ACM varieties by line bundles, and characterize linear homological dimension in the case of quadric hypersurfaces.
We study the deep interplay between geometry of quadrics in d-dimensional space and the dynamics of related integrable billiard systems. Various generalizations of Poncelet theorem are reviewed. The corresponding analytic conditions of Cayley's type are derived giving the full description of periodical billiard trajectories; among other cases, we consider billiards in arbitrary dimension d with the boundary consisting of arbitrary number k of confocal quadrics. Several important examples are presented in full details demonstrating the effectiveness of the obtained results. We give a thorough a…
We complete the topological classification of real algebraic non-singular curves of bidegree $(5, 5)$ on the quadric ellipsoid. We show in particular that previously known restrictions form a complete system for this bidegree. Therefore, the main part of the paper concerns the construction of real algebraic curves. Our strategy is first to reduce to the construction of curves in the second Hirzebruch surface by degenerating the quadric ellipsoid to the quadratic cone. Next, we combine different classical construction methods on toric surfaces, such as Dessin d'enfants and and Viro's patchworki…
We examine quadratic surfaces in 3-space that are tangent to nine given figures. These figures can be points, lines, planes or quadrics. The numbers of tangent quadrics were determined by Hermann Schubert in 1879. We study the associated systems of polynomial equations, also in the space of complete quadrics, and we solve them using certified numerical methods. Our aim is to show that Schubert's problems are fully real.
Let X be a very general complete intersection in complex projective space and we denote by $F_r(X)$ the variety of r-planes in X, for $r\geq 1$. We show that the Picard number of $F_r(X)$ is 1, as soon as $\dim F_r(X)\geq 2$, except when X is a quadric of dimension 2r or 2r+2, or X is a complete intersection of two quadrics of dimension 2r+2. We also apply this result to determine the cohomology class of the variety of planes of a cubic fivefold contained (by the Abel-Jacobi map) in the intermediate Jacobian.
We consider artinian algebras $A=\mathbb{C}[x_0,\ldots,x_m]/I$, with $I$ generated by a regular sequence of homogeneous forms of the same degree $d\geq 2$. We show that the multiplication by a general linear form from $A_{d-1}$ to $A_d$ is injective. We prove that the Weak Lefschetz Property holds for artinian complete intersection algebras as above, with $d=2$ and $m\leq 4$. Apparently, this was previously known only for $m\leq 3$. Although we are proposing only very limited progress towards the WLP conjecture for complete intersections, we hope that the methods of the present article can ill…
Let $f : X \rightarrow B$ be a proper flat dominant morphism between two smooth quasi-projective complex varieties $X$ and $B$. Assume that there exists an integer $l$ such that all closed fibres $X_b$ of $f$ satisfy $CH_j(X_b) = \Q$ for all $j \leq l$. Then we prove an analogue of the projective bundle formula for $CH_i(X)$ for $i \leq l$. When $B$ is a surface, $X$ is projective and $l = \lfloor \frac{\dim X - 3}{2} \rfloor$, this makes it possible to construct a Chow-Künneth decomposition for $X$ that satisfies Murre's conjectures. For instance we prove Murre's conjectures for complex smoot…
We give a complete description of the bigraded Bredon cohomology ring of smooth projective real quadrics, with coefficients in the constant Mackey functor $ \mathbf{Z} $. These invariants are closely related to the integral motivic cohomology ring, which is not known for these varieties. Some of the results and techniques introduced can be applied to other geometrically cellular real varieties.
In this paper we describe the geometry of the 2m-dimensional Fano manifold G parametrizing (m-1)-planes in a smooth complete intersection Z of two quadric hypersurfaces in the complex projective space P^{2m+2}, for m>0. We show that there are exactly 2^{2m+2} distinct isomorphisms in codimension one between G and the blow-up of P^{2m} at 2m+3 general points, parametrized by the 2^{2m+2} distinct m-planes contained in Z, and describe these rational maps explicitly. We also describe the cones of nef, movable and effective divisors of G, as well as their dual cones of curves. Finally, we determin…
The Beilinson-Bloch type conjectures predict that the low degree rational Chow groups of intersections of quadrics are one dimensional. This conjecture was proved by Otwinowska. Making use of homological projective duality and the recent theory of (Jacobians of) noncommutative Chow motives, we give an alternative proof of this conjecture in the case of a complete intersection of either two quadrics or three odd-dimensional quadrics. Moreover, without the use of the powerful Lefschetz theorem, we prove that in these cases the unique non-trivial algebraic Jacobian is the middle one. As an applic…
It is well-known that theta characteristics on smooth plane curves over a field of characteristic different from two are in bijection with certain smooth complete intersections of three quadrics. We generalize this bijection to possibly singular hypersurfaces of any dimension over arbitrary fields including those of characteristic two. It is accomplished in terms of linear orbits of tuples of symmetric matrices instead of smooth complete intersections of quadrics. As an application of our methods, we give a description of the projective automorphism groups of complete intersections of quadrics…
We solve the following geometric problem, which arises in several three-dimensional applications in computational geometry: For which arrangements of two lines and two spheres in R^3 are there infinitely many lines simultaneously transversal to the two lines and tangent to the two spheres? We also treat a generalization of this problem to projective quadrics: Replacing the spheres in R^3 by quadrics in projective space P^3, and fixing the lines and one general quadric, we give the following complete geometric description of the set of (second) quadrics for which the 2 lines and 2 quadrics have…
In this note, we introduce and study position space Feynman quadrics that are the loci of divergences of the position space Feynman integrals for Euclidean massless scalar quantum field theories. We prove that the Feynman quadrics define objects in the category of mixed Tate motives for complete graphs with a bound on the number of vertices. This result shows a strong contrast with the graph hypersurfaces approach which produces also non-mixed Tate examples.
Let $ξ$ be a stable Chern character on $\mathbb{P}^1 \times \mathbb{P}^1$, and let $M(ξ)$ be the moduli space of Gieseker semistable sheaves on $\mathbb{P}^1 \times \mathbb{P}^1$ with Chern character $ξ$. In this paper, we provide an approach to computing the effective cone of $M(ξ)$ after showing that it is a Mori dream space for all $ξ$. We find Brill-Noether divisors spanning extremal rays of the effective cone using resolutions of the general elements of $M(ξ)$ which are found using the machinery of exceptional bundles. We use this approach to provide many examples of extremal rays in thes…
In this paper we introduce a certain class of families of Hessenberg varieties arising from Springer theory for symmetric spaces. We study the geometry of those Hessenberg varieties and investigate their monodromy representations in detail using the geometry of complete intersections of quadrics. We obtain decompositions of these monodromy representations into irreducibles and compute the Fourier transforms of the IC complexes associated to these irreducible representations. The results of the paper refine (part of) the Springer correspondece for the split symmetric pair (SL(N),SO(N)) in [CVX2…
We study geometry of confocal quadrics in pseudo-Euclidean spaces of an arbitrary dimension $d$ and any signature, and related billiard dynamics. The goal is to give a complete description of periodic billiard trajectories within ellipsoids. The novelty of our approach is based on introduction of a new discrete combinatorial-geometric structure associated to a confocal pencil of quadrics, a colouring in $d$ colours, by which we decompose quadrics of $d+1$ geometric types of a pencil into new relativistic quadrics of $d$ relativistic types. Deep insight of related geometry and combinatorics com…
