Towards a criterion for slope stability of Fano manifolds along divisors (Q2341648)

Let \(X\) be a Fano manifold, that is, a complex projective manifold with ample anticanonical bundle. The notion of \(K\)-stability (with respect to the natural polarisation \(-K_X\)) and its relation with the existence of Kähler-Einstein metrics has been studied intensively over the last years, however \(K\)-stability is a property that is quite difficult to check in practice. Therefore, \textit{J. Ross} and \textit{R. Thomas} [J. Algebr. Geom. 16, No. 2, 201--255 (2007; Zbl 1200.14095)] introduced the more tractable property of slope stability along subschemes. While slope stability along curves was studied by the author [Proc. Japan Acad., Ser. A 87, No. 10, 199--202 (2011; Zbl 1236.14040)] and Jun-Muk Hwang, Hosung Kim, Yongnam Lee and Jihun Park [\textit{J.-M. Hwang} et al. Bull. Lond. Math. Soc. 43, No. 5, 827-839 (2011; Zbl 1244.14028)], the goal of the paper under review is to give a simple description of slope stability along an effective divisor \(D \subset X\). Recall that the Seshadri constant of an effective divisor \(D\) with respect to an ample divisor \(L\) is the maximum such that \(L-cD\) is nef. The first result of the author is a criterion for the slope (semi-)stability along \(D\) in terms of an invariant that depends only on the Seshadri constant of \(D\) with respect to \(-K_X\) and certain volumes, data that can be easily computed. As an application the author proves that a Fano manifold is slope stable along any ample divisor unless \(X\) is the projective space and \(D\) a hyperplane. This settles in particular the question of slope stability along divisors for Fano manifolds with Picard number one. If \(X\) has Picard number at least two, the author uses the Mori-Mukai list [\textit{S. Mori} and \textit{S. Mukai}, Manuscr. Math. 36, 147--162 (1981; Zbl 0478.14033); erratum ibid. 110, 407 (2003)] to describe the Fano threefolds which are not slope (semi)stable along a divisor. Another outcome of his study is a series of examples of Fano manifolds with ``small'' volume that do not admit Kähler-Einstein metrics, because they are not slope semistable along a certain divisor.