Polarized varieties whose points are joined by rational curves of small degress (Q1300139)

In this article the authors propose an effective measure of rational chain connection on projective algebraic varieties. A few years back, \textit{F. Campana} [Ann. Sci. Éc. Norm. Supér., IV. Sér. 25, No. 5, 539-545 (1992; Zbl 0783.14022)] and \textit{J. Kollár, Y. Miyaoka} and \textit{S. Mori} [J. Algebr. Geom. 1, No. 3, 429-448 (1992; Zbl 0780.14026), J. Differ. Geom. 36, No. 3, 765-779 (1992; Zbl 0759.14032) and in: Classification of irrgular varieties, minimal models and abelian varieties, Proc. Conf., Trento 1990, Lect. Notes Math. 1515, 100-105 (1992; Zbl 0776.14012)], have introduced the concept of rational chain connection: A projective algebraic variety \(X\) is said to be rationally connected, if for two generally chosen points \(x\), \(y\) of \(X\) there exists a rational curve \(C = C_{x, y}\) inside \(X\) which passes through \(x\) and \(y\). Among others they proved that a non-singular Fano variety satisfies this property. There are at least two main reasons by which this result had called significant attention: First, the non-singular Fano varieties in each dimension were proved to form a bounded moduli, which essentially relied on this rational connectedness theorem. Second, it was discovered that some of Fano varieties are irrational [e.g. \textit{V. A. Iskovskikh} and \textit{Yu. I. Manin}, Math. USSR, Sb. 15, 141-166 (1972); translation from Mat. Sb., Nov. Ser. 86(128), 140-166 (1971; Zbl 0222.14009)] and \textit{C. H. Clemens} and \textit{P. A. Griffiths} [Ann. Math., II. Ser. 95, 281-356 (1972; Zbl 0214.48302)], and accordingly the concept of rational connection was considered as a reasonable compensation for such failure to rationality. Thus, it was considered by all means natural to attempt to study in detail the class of rationally connected varieties [the book of \textit{J. Kollár}: ``Rational curves on algebraic varieties'' (1995; Zbl 0877.14012)]. In the present article, the authors propose to introduce a hierarchy into the category of rationally connected varieties, by means of measuring the length of rational curves connecting points with respect to a polarization of \(X\). Namely, let \(X\) be a normal projective variety, and assume that for an \(r\)-tuple of generally chosen points \(x_1, \cdots, x_r\) in \(X\) there exists a rational curve \(C = C_{x_1, \cdots, x_r}\) in \(X\) which passes through \(x_1, \cdots, x_r\). When \(r = 2\), this assumption is equivalent to the rational connection. The authors consider the following problem: Assuming that \(X\) has an ample line bundle \(L\), such that \((L . C) = \int_C c_1(L) \leq d\), extract any geometric properties one can find out from \(X\), for each (reasonable) pair of positive integers \((d, r)\). Classify them when \(d\) and \(r\) are small. In Math. Ann. 297, No. 2, 191-198 (1993; Zbl 0789.14011), \textit{M. Andreatta, E. Ballico} and \textit{J. A. Wiśniewski} formerly proved a result, which can be interpreted in the above framework as follows: When \((d,r)=(1,2)\), then such \(X\) is the projective space \(\mathbb P^n\), in pursuit of investigating the structure of extremal contractions in higher dimensions, based on the observation of \textit{T. Fujita} [e.g. Nagoya Math. J. 115, 105-123 (1989; Zbl 0699.14002)]. An exposition by \textit{M. Andreatta} and \textit{J. A. Wiśniewski} [in: Algebraic Geometry, Proc. Summer Res. Inst., Santa Cruz 1995, Proc. Symp. Pure Math. 62, No. 1, 153-183 (1997)] covers much of their perspective. In the present article the authors generalize this to the case \((d, r) = (2, 3)\); they prove that such \(X\) is isomorphic either to \(\mathbb P^n\), or a quadric \(Q^n\) in \(\mathbb P^{n+1}\). This, along with Andreatta-Ballico-Wiśniewski's theorem indeed generalizes the Kobayashi-Ochiai theorem on the characterization of \(\mathbb P^n\) and \(Q^n\) as Fano varieties having the two highest Fano indices [cf. \textit{S. Kobayashi} and \textit{T. Ochiai}, J. Math. Kyoto Univ. 13, 31-47 (1973; Zbl 0261.32013)]. Methodologywise, the present article extensively considers the pro-algebraic relation arisen from the Hilbert scheme of the variety, after Campana and Kollár. They prove the existence of the algebraic quotient for such pro-algebraic relation under the circumstance that the members of the prescribed family form a complete intersection of divisors (codimension 1 cycles) of certain type, by making use of the intersection theory. As a consequence, the authors derive the existence of a flat family \(\{S_z\}_{z \in X}\) of divisors which are ruled by rational curves of length \(1\) passing through the common point \(z\), where (morally) the set of closed points of \(X\) itself serves as the space of its parameters. With this, along with the base-change theorem, and the inversion of Mori theory [\textit{S. Mori}, Ann. Math., II. Ser. 110, 593-606 (1979; Zbl 0423.14006)] or the so-called algebraic Sard theorem, the authors prove that the Picard number (or the second Betti number) of \(X\) is equal to \(1\). This way they obtain \(X \simeq \mathbb P^n\) or \(Q^n\). (This part is subtle, indeed a complete rework will become necessary when the characteristic of the base field is no longer assumed zero, as is shown recently by Kachi and Kollár.) The authors remark also that their result remains to hold true even when \(X\) has considerably general class of singularities, by virtue of the argument of Fujita and Mella. Overall, the present article is a step toward the understanding of the birational and biregular behavior of Fano and uniruled varieties from a slightly unconventional angle, and its scope may have potential to lead to a search of further clarifying the geography of those varieties in a more unified framework.