Quadratic recursion relations of Hodge intervals via localization (Q1396011)

There are two kinds of canonically defined bundles on the moduli space \(\overline{\mathcal{M}}_{g,n}\). They are the Hodge bundle \({\mathbf{E}}\) and the cotangent bundles \(L_j\) determined by the marked points, and they give rise to classes \(\lambda_i=c_i({\mathbf{E}})\) and \(\psi_j=c_1(L_j)\), respectively. An integral of the form \(\int_{\overline{\mathcal{M}}_{g,n}} \prod_{i=1}^n \psi_i^{a_i} \prod_{j=1}^g\lambda_j^{b_j}\) is called a Hodge integral. It appears in the calculation of higher genus Gromov-Witten invariants by localization techniques. The actual calculation of Hodge integrals is, however, a challenging problem, especially since it involves complicated recursions. In the paper under review, three types of closed formulas are obtained for Hodge integrals by making use of virtual localizations on \(\overline{\mathcal{M}}_{g,n}({\mathbf{P}}^1,k)\) with \(k=1,2\). For instance, one of the formulas for Hodge integrals is \[ 1+\sum_{g>0} \lambda^{2g}\int_{\overline{\mathcal{M}}_{g,1}} {{\Lambda_g^{\vee}(1)\Lambda_g^{\vee}(\alpha)\Lambda_g^{\vee}(\beta)}\over {1-\psi_0}}=\Biggl({{\sin(\lambda/2)}\over{\lambda/2}}\Biggr)^{\alpha+\beta} \] where \(\Lambda_g^{\vee}(t):=\sum_{j=0}^g (-1)^j\lambda_jt^{g-j}\). \smallskip The virtual localization techniques also give rise to some quadratic recursion relations for some Hodge integrals: \[ -A_2^2+2\,A_{11}+\lambda^2\,A_{11}^2=0 \] where \[ A_2=1+\sum_{g>0}\lambda^{2g}\int_{\overline{\mathcal{M}}_{g,1}} {{\Lambda_g^{\vee}(1)}\over{{1\over 2}({1\over 2}-\psi_0)}}={1\over 2} \Biggl({{\text{sinh}(\lambda/2)}\over{\lambda/2}}\Biggr)^2 \] \[ A_{11}={1 \over 2}+\sum_{g>0} \lambda^{2g}\int_{\overline{M}_{g,2}} {{\Lambda_g^{\vee}(1)}\over{(1-\psi_0)(1-\psi_1)}}= {{\text{sinh\,} \lambda}\over {\lambda}}. \] As an application of the obtained formulas for Hodge integrals, the lowest degree Gromov-Witten invariants for the local geometry of a toric Fano surface in a Calabi-Yau threefold are computed, verifying a formula on the functional form of potential functions of Calabi-Yau threefolds, i.e., local mirror symmetry prediction, in the lowest degree (namely degree \(1\)).