An arithmetic Hilbert-Samuel theorem for pointed stable curves (Q409040)

The aim of the paper under review is to compute the arithmetic degree of a family of special determinant lines on pointed stable curves in the sense of Arakelov theory. As a byproduct, the author obtains an arithmetic Hilbert-Samuel formula. Precisely, let \((\mathcal{O},\Sigma,F_\infty)\) be an arithmetic ring of Krull dimension at most \(1\), \(S=\text{Spec}(\mathcal{O})\) and \((\mathcal{X}\to \mathcal{S}; \sigma_1,\dots,\sigma_n)\) an \(n\)-pointed stable curve of genus \(g\) with smooth generic fibre. Write \(\mathcal{U}=\mathcal{X}\setminus \bigcup_j \sigma_j(\mathcal{S})\). The connected components of the complex analytic space \(\mathcal{U}_\infty:=\bigsqcup_{\sigma\in \Sigma}\mathcal{U}_\sigma(\mathbb{C})\) are hyperbolic Riemann surfaces of finite type. The space \(\mathcal{U}_\infty\) admits a unique complete hyperbolic metric of constant curvature \(-1\) which induces a \(F_\infty\)-invariant hermitian metric \(\|\cdot\|_{\text{hyp}}\) on the invertible sheaf \(\omega_{\mathcal{X}/\mathcal{S}}(\sigma_1+\dots+\sigma_n)\). The metric \(\|\cdot\|_{\text{hyp}}\) is not smooth, but it has logarithmic singularities in the sense of \textit{J. I. Burgos Gil, J. Kramer} and \textit{U. Kühn} [J. Inst. Math. Jussieu 6, No. 1, 1--172 (2007; Zbl 1115.14013)]. The metrized invertible sheaf \(\omega_{\mathcal{X}/\mathcal{S}}(\sigma_1+\dots+\sigma_n)_{\text{hyp}}\) can be attached several arithmetic invariants via a generalization of arithmetic intersection theory using a pre-log-log arithmetic Chow group \(\widehat{\text{CH}}^{\cdot}_{\text{pre}}(\mathcal{X})\) studied in Burgos Gil, Kramer and Kühn [loc. cit.]. In the present work the author induces a Quillen type metric on the determinant \(\lambda(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}^{k+1}(k\sigma_1+\dots+k\sigma_n)):=\text{det}R\pi_*(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}^{k+1}(k\sigma_1+\dots+k\sigma_n))\), which is built up with the special values at \(k+1\) of the derivatives of the Selberg zeta function \(Z(\mathcal{U}_\sigma(\mathbb{C}),s), \sigma\in \Sigma\) and the natural \(L^2\) parings on \(\text{H}^0(\mathcal{X},\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}^{k+1}(k\sigma_1+\dots+k\sigma_n))\otimes_\sigma\mathbb{C}, \sigma\in \Sigma\). Let \(\psi_W\) be the \(\psi\) class on \(\overline{\mathcal{M}}_{g,n}\). Let \(\mathcal{O}(C(g,n))\) be the trivial bundle \(\mathcal{O}\) together with the metric \(C(g,n)\mid\cdot\mid\), where \(\mid\cdot\mid\) is the absolute value, \(C(g,n)=\text{exp}((2g-2+n)(\frac{\zeta'(-1)}{\zeta(-1)}+\frac{1}{2}))\) and \(\zeta\) is the Riemann zeta function. Let \(\Delta_{\mathcal{X}/\mathcal{S}}\in \widehat{\text{CH}}^1(\mathcal{S})\) be the class of the discriminant of \(\pi\). The main theorem in the paper under review reads: if \(\mathcal{X}\) is regular, then the identity \[ \begin{multlined} \widehat{\text{c}_1}(\lambda(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}^{k+1}(k\sigma_1+\dots+k\sigma_n))_Q)-\Delta_{\mathcal{X}/\mathcal{S}}+\widehat{\text{c}_1}(\psi_W) \\ = (6k^2+6k+1)\pi_*(\widehat{\text{c}_1}(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}(\sigma_1+\dots+\sigma_n)_{\text{hyp}})^2)+\widehat{\text{c}_1}(\mathcal{O}(C(g,n)))\end{multlined} \] holds in \(\widehat{\text{CH}}^1(\mathcal{S})\). In particular, if \(\mathcal{O}\) is the ring of integers of a number field, then there is an equality of real numbers \[ \begin{multlined} \widehat{\text{deg}}\widehat{\text{c}_1}(\lambda(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}^{k+1}(k\sigma_1+\dots+k\sigma_n))_Q)-\widehat{\text{deg}}\Delta_{\mathcal{X}/\mathcal{S}}+\widehat{\text{deg}}\widehat{\text{c}_1}(\psi_W) \\ = (6k^2+6k+1)(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}(\sigma_1+\dots+\sigma_n)_{\text{hyp}})^2+\widehat{\text{deg}}\widehat{\text{c}_1}(\mathcal{O}(C(g,n))). \end{multlined} \] The key input in the proof of this main theorem is an arithmetic Riemann-Roch theorem for pointed stable curves \textit{G. Freixas} and \textit{I. Montplet} [Ann. Sci. Éc. Norm. Supér. (4) 42, No. 2, 335--369 (2009; Zbl 1183.14038)]. An arithmetic Hilbert-Samuel type formula then follows: there is an asymptotic expansion \[ \widehat{\text{deg}}\widehat{\text{c}_1}(\lambda(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}^{k+1}(k\sigma_1+\dots+k\sigma_n))_{L^2})=\frac{k^2}{2}(\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}(\sigma_1+\dots+\sigma_n)_{\text{hyp}})^2+\mathcal{O}(k\log k). \] This formula provides a geometric interpretation of the arithmetic self-intersection number \((\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}(\sigma_1+\dots+\sigma_n)_{\text{hyp}})^2\). As an application, the author shows that the height of points on \(\overline{\mathbb{M}}_{0,n}=\overline{\mathcal{M}}_{0,n}/\text{isomorphism}\) with respect to \(\psi_W\) satisfies the usual Northcott finiteness property and he presents the first successive minima of the hermitian bundles \((\text{H}^0(\mathcal{X},\omega_{\mathcal{X/S}}^{k+1}(k\sigma_1+\dots+k\sigma_n)),\|\cdot\|_{\text{pet}})\), \(k\geq0\) for a pointed stable curve of genus \(0\), where \(\|\cdot\|_{\text{pet}}\) stands for the Petersson norm.