On ruled surfaces with big anti-canonical divisor and numerically trivial divisors on weak log Fano surfaces (Q2049516)

If \(X\) is a smooth surface such that \(-K_X\) is big and nef then \(X\) is called a weak del Pezzo surface. The classification of such surfaces is classical and well known. If one drops some positivity and only requires \(-K_X\) to be big, then the question is more subtle. When \(X\) is rational this has been settled in [\textit{D. Testa} et al., Math. Ann. 351, No. 1, 95--107 (2011; Zbl 1226.14049)]. The main point of the paper under review is to complete such classification when \(X\) is not rational. This essentially reduces to the following result: Corollary 1.4 (1). Let \(C\) be a smooth curve of genus \(g\geqslant 1\) and let \(E\) be a rank two vector bundle on \(C\). Set \(X=\operatorname{Proj}_C (E)\). Suppose \(\operatorname{char}(k)=0\). Then \(-K_X\) is big if and only if \(E\cong L\oplus M\) for some line bundles \(L\) and \(M\) on \(C\) such that \(\operatorname{deg}(L)-\operatorname{deg}(M)>2g-2\). The authors give an analogous characterization in positive characteristic and a few applications. For example, they show that the Picard group of weak log del Pezzo surfaces is free of finite rank.