Strong Weil curves over \(\mathbb F_q(T)\) with small conductor (Q616427)

Let \(E\) be an elliptic curve over the rational function field \({\mathbb F}_q(T)\) of characteristic \(p\) with split multiplicative reduction at the place \(\infty\) at infinity. If \(\mathfrak n\) denotes the ``finite part'' of the conductor of \(E/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\), then \(E\) admits a Weil uniformization \(\pi:\: X_0(\mathfrak n) \longrightarrow E\) through the Drinfeld modular curve \(X_0(\mathfrak n)/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\) of Hecke type with conductor \(\mathfrak n \cdot \infty\) [see the reviewer and \textit{M. Reversat}, J. Reine Angew. Math. 476, 27--93 (1996; Zbl 0848.11029)]. This allows to reduce questions on arithmetic properties of such \(E\) to the arithmetic of \(X_0(\mathfrak n)\), which is more easily accessible. Typical questions are: {\parindent=7mm \begin{itemize}\item[(a)]For given \(\mathfrak n\), classify \(E/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\) up to isogeny. \item[(b)]Given \(E/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\), determine the strong Weil curve \(E'\) in the isogeny class of \(E\) and the degree of the strong Weil uniformization \(X_0(\mathfrak n)\longrightarrow E'\); in particular, (b') is \(E'\) Frobenius-minimal, i.e., \(j(E')\) not a \(p\)-th power in \({\mathbb F}_q(T)\)? \item[(c)]Under which conditions is the elliptic surface \({\mathcal E}/{\mathbb F}_q\) associated with \(E/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\) rational or unirational? \end{itemize}} Note that, as \(j(E)\) is necessarily non-constant and so the powers \(j(E)^{p^n}\) are all different, the isogeny class of \(E\) contains infinitely many elements. As is easy to see, there are no such \(E/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\) if \(\deg(\mathfrak n)\) is less than 3, and in this case the genus of \(X_0(\mathfrak n)\) is zero. Therefore, continuing work of himself and others (see the references), the author focuses on the case \(\deg( \mathfrak n) = 3\), where he is able to give satisfactory and explicit answers to the above questions, provided \(\mathfrak n\) contains a square factor. The general case can be dealt with by the same methods. As the author writes ``... for any finite field \({\mathbb F}_q\) and any given \(\mathfrak n \in {\mathbb F}_q[T]\), writing down all elliptic curves over \({\mathbb F}_q(T)\) with conductor \(\mathfrak n\) is (at least in principle) mainly a matter of patience.'' Typical results are Theorems 2.1, 2.2, 2.4, where explicit Weierstrass equations are given for the \(E\) in question, Theorem 2.6, which states that semistable strong Weil curves \(E/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\) with conductor \(\mathfrak n \cdot \infty\) are Frobenius minimal (this fails without the semistability condition!), and Theorem 2.8: The elliptic surface \({\mathcal E}\) is rational over \({\overline{\mathbb F}}_q \) if \(E/{\mathbb F}_q(T)\) is a strong Weil curve. Apart from the intrinsic interest of these results, they provide useful examples of many questions on elliptic curves over function fields, including the Birch/Swinnerton-Dyer conjectures (or rather Tate conjectures) for such curves.