Exceptional Hodge classes on certain abelian varieties (Q1055498)

Let \(A\) be an abelian variety defined over \({\mathbb{C}}\). The ''Hodge ring'' \({\mathcal H}(A)\) of \(A\) is the graded ring which is 0 in odd degrees and which in degree \(2p\) is given by \({\mathcal H}(A)_{2p}=H^{2p}(A,{\mathbb{Q}})\cap H^{pp}.\) Let \({\mathcal D}(A)\) denote the subring of \({\mathcal H}(A)\) generated by \(H^ 2(A,{\mathbb{Q}})\cap H^{11}.\) The Hodge conjecture states that all elements of \({\mathcal H}(A)\) are Poincaré dual to algebraic cycles on A. This is known to be true for elements of \({\mathcal D}(A)\). Let \(V=H_ 1(A,{\mathbb{Q}})\). Mumford and Tate defined a reductive subgroup Hod(A) of GL(V) satisfying \(H^\ast (A^ k,{\mathbb{Q}})^{\mathrm{Hod}(A)}={\mathcal H}(A^ k)\) for all \(k\geq 1\), where \(A^ k=A\times\dots\times A\) (\(k\) times). We define a larger reductive subgroup L(A) of \(GL(V)\) satisfying \(H^ 2(A^ k,{\mathbb{Q}})^{L(A)}=H^ 2(A^ k,{\mathbb{Q}})\cap H^{11}\) for all \(k\geq 1\). This group can be explicitly calculated using the classification of End(\(A\)) given by Albert and Shimura. We show that the following are equivalent: \((1)\quad {\mathcal H}(A^ k)={\mathcal D}(A^ k)\) for all \(k\geq 1\); \((2)\quad A\) has no factor of type III and \(\mathrm{Hod}(A)=L(A).\) (\(A\) is of type III if \(\mathrm{End}(A)\otimes {\mathbb{Q}}\) is a totally definite quaternion division algebra over a totally real field.) If \(A\) has a factor of type III, we show that there is a class \(\omega \in {\mathcal H}(A)-{\mathcal D}(A)\) such that \(\pi^\ast_ 1\omega \otimes \pi^\ast_ 2\omega \in {\mathcal D}(A\times A)\), \(\pi_ 1\) and \(\pi_ 2\) being the two projections \(A\times A\to A\). This is consistent with a suggestion of Weil that Hodge classes on \(A\) should ``correspond'' to algebraic cycles on powers of \(A\).