Cohen-Macaulay local rings with \(e_2 = e_1 - e + 1\) (Q2079225)

Let \((A,\mathfrak{m}, k)\) be a local ring of dimension \(d\). It is known that there are a degree d polynomial \(P(x)\in \mathbb{Q}[x]\) and integers \(e_0, e_1,\dots , e_d\) such that \[P(n)=\sum_{i=0}^{d}(-1)^ie_i \binom{n+d-i}{d-i}=\ell_R(R/\mathfrak{m}^{n+1})\] for all integers \(n\gg 0\). For each \(i=0,\dots , d\), the integer \(e_i\) is called the \(i\)-th \textit{Hilbert\ coefficient} of \(A\). Especially, \(e:=e_0\) is called the \textit{multiplicity} of \(A\). Assume that \(A\) is Cohen-Macaulay and \(e_2=e_1-e+1\neq 0\). The authors shows that \(\text{type}(A) \geq e+d-\mu(\mathfrak m)-1\). Furthermore, they prove that if \(\mathrm{type}(A)=e+d-\mu(\mathfrak m)-1\), then \(G(A)=\underset{i\geq 0}\bigoplus\mathfrak m^i/\mathfrak m^{i+1}\), the associated graded ring of \(R\), is Cohen-Macaulay. (Here, \(\mu(\mathfrak m)\) and \(\text{type}(A)\) denote the rank of the \(k\)-vector spaces \(\mathfrak m/\mathfrak m^2\) and \(\mathrm{Ext}_R^d(k,A)\), respectively.)