Families of elliptic curves with genus 2 covers of degree 2 (Q2492118)

The purpose of this article is to study minimal covers \(f\colon C\longrightarrow E\) over a base \(S\), where \(C/S\) is a (smooth proper) genus \(2\) curve, \(E/S\) is an elliptic curve and \(S\) is a locally noetherian scheme over \(\mathbb{Z}[1/2]\). \textit{E. Kani} [Collect. Math. 54, 1--51 (2003; Zbl 1077.14529)] introduced a normalization on these covers by imposing certain condition on the direct image of the Weierstrass divisor of \(C\) on \(E\), and he described a moduli space for normalized minimal covers of degree \(N\geq3\) . For fixed \(S\), \(E\) and \(N\), these covers are parameterized by pairs \((E',\psi)\) where \(E'/S\) is an elliptic curve and \(\psi\colon E[N]\to E'[N]\) is an isomorphism of \(S\)-group schemes which is anti-isometric with respect to the Weil pairing and is ``theta-smooth''. The author extends these results to the case of degree \(N\geq 2\). The crucial point is a Torelli theorem for relative genus \(2\) curves. With this result at hand, the construction of Kani works for \(N\geq 2\) and several arguments can be simplified. For \(N=2\) the pairs \((E',\psi)\) as well as the normalized covers \(f\colon C\longrightarrow E\) have a non-trivial automorphism of order \(2\). This leads to certain non-rigidity in Kani's construction. In the paper, a symmetric basic construction is proposed, which leads to a more rigid statement. Instead of a cover, symmetric pairs \((C,f,f')\) are considered, where \(f\colon C\longrightarrow E\), \(f'\colon C\longrightarrow E'\) are minimal covers such that \(\ker f_*=\in (f')^*\), and it is proven that any \((E',\psi)\) as above is associated to a unique, up to a unique isomorphism, symmetric pair \((C,f,f')\) such that \((f^*)_{| E[N]}=(f')^*\circ \psi\). Finally, the covers of degree \(N=2\) are studied in more detail, and their construction is reinterpreted in terms of \(\mathbb{P}^1\)-bundles over \(S\).