Unirationality of certain supersingular \(K3\) surfaces in characteristic 5 (Q858589)

Let \(k\) be an algebraically closed field of characteristic \(p>0\). Let \(X/k\) be a \(K3\)-surface. Then \(X\) is called supersingular (in the sense of Shioda) if the second Betti number \(b_2(X)\) equals the Picard number \(\rho(X)\). Artin showed that if \(X\) is supersingular then the discriminant of the intersection pairing on the Néron-Severi group NS\((X)\) equals \(-p^{2\sigma(X)}\), with \(\sigma(X)\) an integer between \(1\) and \(10\). The integer \(\sigma(X)\) is called the Artin-invariant. A conjecture by Shioda states that a supersingular \(K3\)-surface \(X\) is unirational, i.e., there exists a dominant rational map \(\mathbb{P}^2\dashrightarrow X\). In the paper under review it is proved that this conjecture holds when \(p=5\) and \(\sigma(X)\leq 3\). This extends results by \textit{A. N. Rudakov} and \textit{I. R. Shafarevich} [Math. USSR, Izv. 13, 147--165 (1979; Zbl 0424.14008) and J. Sov. Math. 22, 1476--1533 (1983); translation from Itogi Nauki Tekh., Ser. Sovrem. Probl. Mat. 18, 115--207 (1981; Zbl 0518.14015)] who proved the case \(\sigma(X)\leq 2\). Also the cases \(p=2\) and \((p=3,\sigma(X)\leq 6)\) are already known. The proof consists of showing first that every supersingular \(K3\)-surface in characteristic 5 with Artin-invariant at most 3 is birational equivalent to a normal surface with \(5\) \(A_4\) singularities (the proof of this is based on some lattice-theoretic considerations) and then showing that every \(K3\)-surface with \(5\) \(A_4\) singularities is birational equivalent to an affine surface given by \(w^2=y^5-f\), for some \(f\in k[x]\) of degree 6 with no double root.