Elimination theory for tropical varieties (Q935895)

The authors prove a general result about morphisms of tropical varieties, here stated as Theorem 1.1: If \(\alpha: T^n\to T^d\) is a homomorphism of tori and \(A: \mathbb Z^n\to\mathbb Z^d\) is the corresponding linear map of lattices of one-parameter subgroups assuming that \(\alpha\) induces a generically finite morphism of finite degree, then \(A\) induces a generically finite map of tropical varieties from \(T(X) \) onto \(T(\alpha(X))\). It is a refinement of an equality given by the authors in [\textit{J. Tevelev}, Am. J. Math. 129, No. 4, 1087--1104 (2007; Zbl 1154.14039)] and [\textit{A. Dickenstein, E. M. Feichtner} and \textit{B. Sturmfels}, J. Am. Math. Soc. 20, No. 4, 1111--1133 (2007; Zbl 1166.14033)]. The paper is organized as follows. In section two the authors introduce basic material of tropical algebraic geometry. They introduce in theorem 2.6 a characterization of tropical varieties in terms of resolution of singularities. In section three they prove the main theorem of this paper, Theorem 1.1 which is reduced to the proof of Theorem 3.12. The authors remark that the identity \( A(T(X)) = T(Y) \) follows from Proposition 2.8. The assumptions of Theorem 3.12 are that if \(F\) is a fan in \(N_Q\) whose support is \(T(X)\) and \({\tilde F}\) is a fan in \({\tilde N}(Q)\) whose support is equal to \(T(Y)\) and if the map is generically finite of degree \(\delta \), the fan is tropical for \(X\) and the fan \({\tilde F}\) is tropical for \(Y\) and for any cone \(\Gamma\) of \(F\) the image \(A( \Gamma)\) is a union of cones of \({\tilde F}\) then the authors give a formula for the multiplicity of any maximal-dimensional cone of \({\tilde F}\) in 3.11. This formula depends on \(\delta\) the multiplicity of the cone and an index associated to each cone in the fan \(F\) defined precisely in this formula. The proof of Theorem 1.1 is based on Lemma 3.13, Lemma 3.2 a) which characterizes the multiplicity of the cone in terms of an intersection number and the push forward property of the intersection product. In section four the authors examine the case when \(X\) is a generic complete intersection. Corollary 4.8 gives a formula for the tropicalization of the image \(Y= \alpha(X)\) and computes its multiplicity function in terms of mixed volumes. Assuming that \(n\) is the dimension of the Minkowski sum of \(c\) polytopes, the authors show in theorem 4.9 that if \( c=n-d+1\) then the newton Polytope of the hypersurface \(Y = \alpha(X)\) is computed as the mixed fiber polytope in the sense described by formula 4.21. In section five the authors examine a special case of elimination called \textit{implicitization}. For that let \( f_1, \ldots, f_s\) be Laurent polynomials in \(s\) unknowns and let \( f: T^r\to T^s\) be the map defined by them. Let \(Y\) be the closure of the image of \(f\) in \(T^s\) assuming that the fiber of \(f\) over a generic point of \(Y\) is finite. They compute in Theorem 5.1 \(T(Y)\) in terms of the tropicalization of \(f\) and the multiplicity at any regular point of \(T(Y)\) given by formula 5.23. The authors conclude the paper by studying implicitization of maps that are not necessarily generic. The assumption is that the hypersurfaces \( E_i = \{ f_i = 0 \}\) are reduced, irreducible and distinct. Letting \( X= {T^r} - {\bigcup_{i=1}}^s E_i \) then \(f\) induces a morphism \(X \rightarrow Y\). The authors describe a construction for any compactification \(X \subset \overline{X}\) such that \(T(Y)\) is a union of cones defined by a simplicial complex \( \Delta(\overline{X})\), in which case they say that \(\overline{X} \) \textit{computes} \(T(X)\). A compactification is constructed such that if \( r =2 \) then \(\overline{X} \) computes the tropical surface \(T(Y)\) given in Proposition 5.3.