The Coble hypersurfaces (Q1428310)

\textit{A. B. Coble} [Algebraic geometry and theta functions (AMS Coll. Publ. 10) (1929; JFM 55.0808.02)] established by explicit computation a unique \(A_2\)-invariant quartic hypersurface in \(\mathbb{P}(V_2)= \mathbb{C}\mathbb{P}^7\) that is singular along \(\varphi_2(A)\). Here \(A\) is a complex abelian variety of dimension 3 with a principal polarization given by an ample line bundle \({\mathcal L}\) with \(\dim H^0(A,{\mathcal L})= 1\), \((A,{\mathcal L})\) indecomposable and \(V_2= H^0(A,{\mathcal L}^2)\). \(\varphi_2: A\to \mathbb{P}(V_2)\) is defined by global sections in \({\mathcal L}^2\), and \(A_2\) is the kernel of the multiplication by 2 in \(A\). There is an analogous result for \(A\) of dimension 2, with \({\mathcal L}^3\), multiplication by 3, and an \(A_3\)-invariant cubic hypersurface in \(\mathbb{P}(V_3)= \mathbb{C}\mathbb{P}^8\). The author's main observation is that a general result about representations of the Heisenberg group implies these facts. The following proposition is given. Let \(n= 3\) or \(4\); \(\nu=3\) if \(n= 3\) and \(\nu= 2\) if \(n= 4\); let \((T_1,\dots, T_N)\) be a coordinate system on \(\mathbb{P}(V_\nu)\); then, for \(X= A_\nu\)-invariant subvariety in \(\mathbb{P}(V_\nu)\), the space of hypersurfaces of degree \(n-1\) containing \(X\) admits a basis \((\partial F_i/\partial T_j)\), where \(F_1,\dots, F_m\) are forms of degree \(n\) on \(\mathbb{P}(V_\nu)\) such that the hypersurfaces \(F_i= 0\) are \(A_\nu\)-invariant and singular along \(X\).