Extending the double ramification cycle using Jacobians (Q1999437)

Let \(\mathcal M_{g,n}\) be the moduli space of genus \(g\) curves with \(n\) marked points. For a tuple of integers \((k; a_1, \ldots, a_n)\), the double ramification cycle \(\mathrm{DR}\subset \mathcal M_{g,n}\) is defined to be the locus of pointed curves \((C, p_1, \ldots, p_n)\) such that \(a_1 p_1 + \cdots + a_np_n \sim \omega_C^{\otimes k}\). Recently, there have been great interests and efforts in studying compactification of the double ramification cycle, aiming at computing the related cycle class from the viewpoints of Gromov-Witten theory and tautological ring structure. For instance, the first-named author described a compactification using modifications of the stack of stable curves [\textit{D. Holmes}, ``Extending the double ramification cycle by resolving the Abel-Jacobi map'', \url{arXiv:1707.02261}] and the last-two named authors described another compactification using an extended Brill-Noether locus on a suitable compactified universal Jacobian [\textit{J. L. Kass} and \textit{N. Pagani}, ``The stability space of compactified universal Jacobians'', \url{arXiv:1707.02284}]. The main result of this paper shows that these two compactifications coincide. Moreover, the authors also relate these compactifications to that of Li and Graber-Vakil which uses a virtual fundamental class on a space of rubber maps [\textit{J. Li}, J. Differ. Geom. 57, No. 3, 509--578 (2001; Zbl 1076.14540); \textit{J. Li}, J. Differ. Geom. 60, No. 2, 199--293 (2002; Zbl 1063.14069); \textit{T. Graber} and \textit{R. Vakil}, Duke Math. J. 130, No. 1, 1--37 (2005; Zbl 1088.14007); \textit{F. Janda} et al., Publ. Math., Inst. Hautes Étud. Sci. 125, 221--266 (2017; Zbl 1370.14029)].