Hankel determinantal rings have rational singularities (Q1669027)

The authors study the quotients of polynomial rings \(R/I_t\), where \(I_t\) is the ideal generated by the \(t\times t\) minors of a \textit{Hankel matrix} of indeterminates, i.e. a matrix of indeterminates in which, for all \(k\), all the entries \(x_{ij}\) with \(i+j=k\) are equal. The authors determine several proporties of these quotients, and describe their divisor class groups. In particular, by using a reduction mod \(p\) method, the authors prove that over a field of characteristic \(0\) the singularities of \(R/I_t\) are rational. The results have an application to the study of secant varieties, because the Hankel determinantal rings are the coordinate rings of higher secant varieties of rational normal curves. Thus, it turns out that secant varieties of rational normal curves, in characteristic \(0\), have rational singularities.