Local Oort groups and the isolated differential data criterion (Q2155606)

The paper concerns the \textit{local lifting problem}: Let \(k\) be an algebraically closed field of characteristic \(p\) and \(G\) a finite group. Let \(k[[z]]/k[[t]]\) be a \(G\)-Galois extension (which is referred to as a \textit{local G-extension}). Does this extension lift to characteristic zero? That is, does there exist a DVR \(R\) of characteristic zero with residue field \(k\) and a \(G\)-Galois extension \(R[[Z]]/R[[S]]\) that reduces to \(k[[z]]/k[[s]]\)? It is known that any group \(G\) ocurring in the extension above is of the form \(P \rtimes \mathbb{Z}/m\), with \(P\) a \(p\)-group and \(p \nmid m\). A group \(G\) is called a \textit{local Oort group} (for a prime \(p\)) if any local \(G\)-extension lifts to characteristic zero. It follows from [\textit{T. Chinburg} et al., Ann. Sci. Éc. Norm. Supér. (4) 44, No. 4, 537--605 (2011; Zbl 1239.14024)] and [\textit{L. H. Brewis} and \textit{S. Wewers}, Math. Ann. 345, No. 3, 711--730 (2009; Zbl 1222.14045)] that any local Oort group for \(p\) is either \(A_4\) (for \(p = 2\)), cyclic, or dihedral of order \(2p^n\). The only previously known dihedral local Oort groups are \(D_4\), \(D_9\) and \(D_{2p}\) for \(p\) odd. It is conjectured in [\textit{A. Obus}, Comment. Math. Helv. 92, No. 3, 551--620 (2017; Zbl 1395.14023)] that if \(G = \mathbb{Z}/p^n \rtimes \mathbb{Z}/m\) is non-abelian with \(p \nmid m\) and \(k[[z]]/k[[t]]\) is a local \(G\)-extension whose \(\mathbb{Z}/p^n\)-subextensions satisfy certain ramification condition then \(k[[z]]/k[[t]]\) lifts to characteristics zero. In the same paper the conjecture was reduced to showing that the so-called \textit{isolated differential data criterion} holds in sufficiently many cases. The criterion ensures the existence of a certain meromorphic differential form \(\omega\) on \(\mathbb{P}^1_k\) with prescribed poles that transforms in a particular way under the Cartier operator and such that small deformations of \(\omega\) do not satisfy this. Such a form is uniquely determined by a polynomial \(f \in k[t]\). The authors show that in fact one needs to check the criterion only for finitely many cases. Then they prove that the criterion can be reformulated in terms of the vanishing or non-vanishing of certain polynomials in the coefficients of \(f\). Using these observations the authors conclude that the isolated differential data criterion is satisfied iff a certain ideal is not the unit ideal, which allows to write a verification algorithm in terms of Grobner bases. Finally, they use these results to prove that \(D_{25}\) and \(D_{27}\) are local Oort.