Some remarks on the Kronheimer-Mrowka classes of algebraic surfaces (Q1891962)

It is conjectured by Friedman and Morgan that the canonical class of the minimal model of a surface with non-negative Kodaira dimension is invariant under oriented diffeomorphisms up to sign \((K_{\min}\) conjecture). The main corollary in the article states that the \(K_{\min}\) conjecture holds for a regular surface of general type with \(p_ g > 0\) if the surface is of simple type, and the canonical class is a basic class (the minimality condition in the article is superfluous). The basic classes \(K_ 1, \dots, K_ N \in H^ 2 (X)\) in Kronheimer and Mrowka's structure theorem for the Donaldson polynomials of 4- manifolds of simple type with \(b_ + > 0\) and \(b_ 1 = 0\) [see \textit{P. B. Kronheimer} and \textit{T. S. Mrowka}, Bull. Am. Math. Soc., New Ser. 30, No. 2, 215-221 (1994; Zbl 0815.57010) and ``Embedded surfaces and the structure of Donaldson's polynomial invariants'' (Preprint, Merton College 1994)]. They are the Kronheimer-Mrowka classes of the title. It is shown that for algebraic surfaces of simple type the basic classes are of type (1,1), i.e. divisors, and in an algebraic geometric sense bounded by the canonical class \(K_ X\). The extremality of \(K_ X\) means that \(K_ X\) is basic if and only if there is some smooth hyperplane section \(H_ 0\) such that \(2g(H_ 0) - 2 = H^ 2_ 0 + \max_ i | K_ i \cdot H_ 0 |\). Such a \(H_ 0\) exists if \(p_ g\) is even and the linear system of the canonical class of the minimal model \(| K_{\min} |\) contains a reduced curve [see the cited preprint]. Witten predicts that the Donaldson series of a surface with \(p_ g > 0\) are determined by the decomposition of the generic canonical class [\textit{E. Witten}, J. Math. Phys. 35, No. 10, 5101-5135 (1994; Zbl 0822.58066)]. The results in the article are a weak form of this prediction for surfaces of simple type.