On the moduli space of diffeomorphic algebraic surfaces (Q1592911)

The paper under review deals with the differential topology of algebraic surfaces. More precisely, the author takes up one of the long-standing problems in Seiberg-Witten theory related to the so-called Friedman-Morgan conjecture [\textit{R. Friedman} and \textit{J. W. Morgan}, Smooth four-manifolds and complex surfaces, Ergeb. Math. Grenzgeb. 3. Folge, Band 27 (1994; Zbl 0817.14017)] and he investigates it in the special case of minimal complex surfaces of general type. According to Friedman and Morgan, two complex manifolds are called deformation equivalent, iff they occur as fibres of a proper smooth family over a connected base space. On the other hand, by a classical theorem of C. Ehresmann, every proper holomorphic map is a locally trivial differential fibre bundle, which implies that deformation equivalent manifolds must be orientedly diffeomorphic. In this context, the long-standing problem mentioned above is to determine to what extent the differential type of a compact complex surface determines its deformation type, i.e., its deformation equivalence class. The proof of the Friedman-Morgan conjecture for differential four-manifolds was given by R. Friedman and J.W. Morgan themselves in their book cited above, asserting that the number of deformation equivalence classes of complex structures on a fixed differential four-manifold is finite. Another theorem of R.Friedman states that for compact complex surfaces with \(b_1 = 0\) and Kodaira dimension strictly less than 2, the differential type uniquely determines the deformation type, thereby providing an affirmative answer so the so-called ``def=diff ?'' problem in this particular case. In the present paper, the author gives a moduli-theoretic interpretation of this problem in another special case, namely in the case of minimal compact complex surfaces of general type. His main result is the following one: Theorem A. For every smooth oriented compact differentiable four-manifold \(X\), the (possibly empty) moduli space \(\mathcal M_X\) of minimal surfaces of general type orientedly diffeomorphic to \(X\) is the union of a finite number of connected components of the moduli space \(\mathcal M\) of all surfaces of general type. Moreover, for any number \(h >0\) , there exists a four-fold as above, with \(b_1 (X) = 0\), such that \(\mathcal M_X\) has at least \(h\) connected components. Due to the fact that (for moduli reasons) deformation equivalent minimal surfaces do belong to the same connected component of \(\mathcal M_X\), where \(X\) denotes the differential four-manifold underlying the two surfaces, the main theorem implies the author's second central result: Theorem B. The number of deformation equivalence classes of complex structures on a fixed oriented differential four-manifold can be arbitrarily large. This observation shows, in contrast to the speculation of R.Friedman and J.W.Morgan, that the answer to the ``def=diff ?'' problem is in general strongly negative. As for the testing examples used in the proofs of the two principal theorems of the present paper, the author works with locally simple abelian covers of rational surfaces. His analysis involves the algebraic description of rational blow-downs, some classical Brill-Noether theory, and a thorough study of the deformation theory of normal flat abelian covers. Altogether, this is a highly important contribution towards the differential geometry of compact complex surfaces and Riemannian four-manifolds.