Cuspidal curves, minimal models and Zaidenberg's finiteness conjecture (Q1717243)

The article under review is a contribution the long standing classification problem of cuspidal algebraic rational curves \(E\) in the complex projective plane \(\mathbb{P}^{2}\). Pursuing a successful new strategy for the study of open surfaces of log-general type, which led already to a solution of the famous Coolidge-Nagata conjecture [\textit{M. Koras} and \textit{K. Palka}, Duke Math. J. 166, No. 16, 3085--3145 (2017; Zbl 1393.14029); \textit{K. Palka}, Adv. Math. 267, 1--43 (2014; Zbl 1327.14153)], the author develops further the study of the log-minimal model program for the log-pairs \((X,\frac{1}{2}D)\) associated to minimal log-resolutions \((X,D)\) of log-pairs \((\mathbb{P}^{2},E)\) for which \(\mathbb{P}^{2}\setminus E\) is of log-general type. Fine structure results for the corresponding minimal and almost minimal models and their boundaries are given. It is shown in particular that either \(\mathbb{P}^{2}\setminus E\) is endowed with a fibration over a curve with general fiber isomorphic to the twice punctured affine line \(\mathbb{C}^{**}\), or the log-resolution of the minimal model is ``bounded'', in the very strong sense that its Picard rank, its number of boundary components as well as their respective self-intersections are effectively bounded. As applications, the author derives an effective version of the Zaidenberg Finiteness Conjecture [\textit{R. V. Gurjar} et al., ``Open problems on open algebraic varieties'', Preprint, \url{arXiv:alg-geom/9506006}; \textit{G. Freudenburg} and \textit{P. Russell}, Contemp. Math. 369, 1--30 (2005; Zbl 1070.14528)] asserting the finiteness of possible Eisenbud-Neumann diagrams of cuspidal curves and new effective bounds relating the number of cusps of \(E\), the second log-plurigenus of the log pair \((X,\frac{1}{2}D)\) and the arithmetic genus of the boundary of the almost minimal model of the log-pair \((\mathbb{P}^{2},E)\). These imply in particular that a rational cuspidal curve \(E\subset\mathbb{P}^{2}\) has at most \(6\) cusps, which improves the previously known bound \(8\) obtained by \textit{K. Tono} [Math. Nachr. 278, No. 1--2, 216--221 (2005; Zbl 1069.14029)].