Optimal bounds for T-singularities in stable surfaces (Q1721964)

Normal projective surfaces with \(T\)-singularities are important objects in a natural compactification of the Gieseker moduli space of surfaces of general type with fixed \(K^2\) and \(\chi\). This compactified moduli space is coarsely represented by a projective scheme because of Alexeev's proof of boundedness [\textit{V. Alexeev} and \textit{S. Mori}, in: Algebra, arithmetic and geometry with applications. Papers from Shreeram S. Ahhyankar's 70th birthday conference, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA, July 19--26, 2000. Berlin: Springer. 143--174 (2003; Zbl 1103.14021)]. Thus we have a proper KSBA (Kollár, Shepherd-Barron, Alexeev) moduli space of stable surfaces, which includes classical canonical surfaces of general type. In particular, after fixing \(K^2\), we should have a finite list of singularities appearing on stable surfaces. But it is a hard problem to classify that finite list explicitly depending only on \(K^2\). The \(T\) singularity is a special cyclic quotient surface singularity which has a local \(\mathbb Q\)-Gorenstein smoothing. These are \(\frac{1}{dn^2}(1, dna-1)\) singularities, with \(\mathrm{gcd}(n, a) = 1\), classified by \textit{J. Wahl} [Topology 20, 219--246 (1981; Zbl 0484.14012)], and by \textit{J. Kollár} and \textit{N. I. Shepherd-Barron} [Invent. Math. 91, No. 2, 299--338 (1988; Zbl 0642.14008)]. The main result of the paper is to bound \(T\)-singularities on normal projective surfaces \(W\) with one singularity, and \(K_W\) ample. The authors find optimal explicit bound when \(W\) is not rational. This answers effectiveness of bounds for those surfaces, and improves previous results by \textit{V. Alexeev} and \textit{S. Mori} [in: Algebra, arithmetic and geometry with applications. Papers from Shreeram S. Ahhyankar's 70th birthday conference, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA, July 19--26, 2000. Berlin: Springer. 143--174 (2003; Zbl 1103.14021)], and by \textit{Y. Lee} [Int. J. Math. 10, No. 1, 79--92 (1999; Zbl 0970.14010)]. The authors also find some useful bound when \(W\) is rational, but this bound tends to go to infinity if there is no theoretical bound by Alexeev. \textit{J. D. Evans} and \textit{I. Smith} find similar bounds for \(T\) singularities and when \(p_g > 0\) in the symplectic setting [Algebr. Geom. 7, No. 1, 59--85 (2020; Zbl 1458.14054)].