Geometric interpretation of toroidal compactifications of moduli of points in the line and cubic surfaces (Q2656144)

The article under review establishes that the toroidal compactifications of the moduli spaces of finitely many points in \( {\mathbb P} ^1 ({\mathbb C} ) \) or cubic surfaces are isomorphic to some geometric compactifications of these moduli spaces. Let us suppose that the rational weights \( 1 > w_1 \geq w_2 \geq \ldots \geq w_n > 0, \) \( n \in {\mathbb N} \) with \( w_1 + w_2 + \ldots + w_n = 2\) satisfy the condition \( ( 1 - w_i - w_j) ^{-1} \in {\mathbb Z} \) for \( i \neq j, \) \( w_i \neq w_j, \) \( w_i + w_j < 1 \) or \( 2 (1 - 2 w_i) ^{-1} \in {\mathbb Z} \) for \( i \neq j, \) \( w_i = w_j, \) \( w_i + w_j < 1. \) In 1986 Deligne and Mostow showed that for any such \( w = ( w_1, \ldots , w_n) \) there is an arithmetic lattice \( \Gamma _w, \) acting on the complex ball \( {\mathbb B}_{n-3} \) of dimension \( n-3 \) and a natural number \( m < n, \) so that the GIT compactification \( ( {\mathbb P} ^1 ( {\mathbb C}) ) ^n // _w \mathrm{SL}_2 ( {\mathbb C}) \times S_m \) of the moduli space of \( n \) points in \( {\mathbb P}^1 ( {\mathbb C}) \) is isomorphic to the Baily-Borel compactification \( \overline{ \Gamma _w \setminus {\mathbb B} _{n-3}} ^{\mathrm{bb}} \) of \( \Gamma _w \setminus {\mathbb B} _{n-3}. \) By a result of Hassett from 2003, the moduli space \( M _{0,n} \) of \( n \) distinct points in \( {\mathbb P}^1 ( {\mathbb C}) \) is a Zariski open subset of the smooth projective moduli space \( \overline{M}_{0,w} \) of the stable rational curves of an appropriate Deligne-Mostow weight \( w. \) For a sufficiently small \( \varepsilon \in {\mathbb Q} \cap (0,1), \) let \( w + \varepsilon = ( w_1 + \varepsilon, \ldots , w_n + \varepsilon). \) The article under review shows that for any Deligne-Mostow weight \( w \) the quotient \( \overline{M} _{0, w+ \varepsilon} / S_m \) of Hassett's moduli space \( \overline{M} _{0, w + \varepsilon} \) by the symmetric group \( S_m \) is isomorphic to the toroidal compactification \( \overline{\Gamma _w \setminus {\mathbb B} _{n-3}} ^{\mathrm{tor}} \) of \( \Gamma _w \setminus {\mathbb B}_{n-3}. \) First, it is proved for the so called ancestral cases of \( 8 \) points in \( {\mathbb P} ^1 ( {\mathbb C}), \) associated with an arithmetic lattice \( \Gamma _{\left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8} \) over the Gaussian integers \( {\mathbb Z} [ \sqrt{-1}] \) and of \( 12 \) points in \( {\mathbb P} ^1( {\mathbb C}), \) corresponding to an arithmetic lattice \( \Gamma _{\left( \frac{1}{6} \right) ^{12}} \) over the Eisenstein integers \( {\mathbb Z} \left[ e ^{\frac{2 \pi i}{3}} \right]. \) Briefly, Deligne-Mostow's isomorphisms with Baily-Borel compactifications provide birational morphisms, which are shown to be isomorphisms on complements of closed subsets of codimension \( \geq 2. \) A detailed account of the geometry of Hassett's moduli spaces and the toroidal compactifications allows to derive that these isomorphisms are global. For any non ancestral Deligne-Mostow's weight \( w, \) the associated configuration of points is obtained from an ancestral one by some collisions. That allows to embed the considered compactifications of \( \Gamma _w \setminus {\mathbb B} _{h-3} \) in the ones of an ancestral case and to establish the result for all Deligne-Mostow's ball quotients. The isomorphisms \( \overline{\Phi} _w : \overline{M} _{0, w + \varepsilon} / S_m \rightarrow \overline{\Gamma _w \setminus {\mathbb B} _{n-3}} ^{\mathrm{tor}} \) can be interpreted as extensions of period maps \( \Phi _w : M _{0,n} / S_m \rightarrow \Gamma _w \setminus {\mathbb B} _{n-3} \) of weight \( 1 \) Hodge structures. This is done explicitly for the ancestral case \( w = \left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8, \) in which \( m = 1. \) For any \(\mathrm{PGL} _2 ( {\mathbb C}) \)-orbit \( \underline{x} \) of a point \( x = ( x_1, \ldots , x_8) \in ( {\mathbb P} ^1({\mathbb C}) ) ^8 \setminus \cup \{ x_i = x_j \}, \) let \( C_{\underline{x}} \) be the Zariski closure of the curve with equation \( Y^4 = \prod _{j=1} ^8 (X - x_j) \) in the weighted projective space \( {\mathbb W} {\mathbb P} [ 1: 1:2]. \) Then \( C_{\underline{x}} \) is of genus \( 9. \) The multiplication \( Y \mapsto \sqrt{-1} Y \) by the imaginary unit \( \sqrt{-1} \in {\mathbb C}^* \) induces a \( {\mathbb C} \)-linear map \( \rho : H ^1 ( C_{\underline{x}}, {\mathbb C}) \rightarrow H ^1 ( C_{\underline{x}}, {\mathbb C}). \) The period map \( \Phi _{\left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8 } \) associates to \( \underline{x} \in M _{0,8} \) the weight \( 1 \) Hodge structure on the \( (-1) \)-eigenspace of the involution \( \rho ^2 : H ^1 ( C_{\underline{x}}, {\mathbb C}) \rightarrow H^1 ( C_{\underline{x}}, {\mathbb C}). \) Let \( \mathcal{S} \) be a connected component of the boundary of \( \overline{M} _{0, \left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8 + \varepsilon}, \) over which the curve \( C_{\underline{x}} \) degenerates to a pair of genus \( 3 \) curves. The article shows that the restriction of \( \overline{\Phi} _{\left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8 } \) to \( \mathcal{S} \) computes the corresponding limiting mixed Hodge structure. As an application of the isomorphism \( \overline{\Phi} _{\left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8} : \overline{M} _{0, \left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8 + \varepsilon} \rightarrow \overline{ \Gamma _{\left( \frac{1}{4} \right) ^8 } \setminus {\mathbb B}_5} ^{\mathrm{tor}}, \) the authors observe that Kollár-Shepherd-Barron-Alexeev's compactification \( \overline{K} \) of the moduli space of \( K3 \) surfaces with a purely non-symplectic automorphism of order \( 4 \) and \( U(2) \oplus D_4 ^{\oplus 2} \) lattice polarization is isomorphic to the quotient of the toroidal compactification \( \overline{\Gamma _{\left( \frac{1}{4} \right)^8 } \setminus {\mathbb B}_5 } ^{\mathrm{tor}} \) by \( (S_4 \times S_4) \rtimes S_2. \) An arbitrary smooth cubic surface \( S \subset {\mathbb P} ^3 ( {\mathbb C}) \) is a blow up of \( {\mathbb P}^2 ( {\mathbb C}) \) at \( 6 \) points in a general linear position, which do not belong to a conic. Any labelling of these \( 6 \) points induces a labelling of the \( 27 \) lines on \( S \) and is called a marking of \( S. \) Let \( Y \) be the moduli space of the marked smooth cubic surfaces. In 1982 Naruki constructs a smooth compactification \( \overline{N} \) of \( Y \) by a divisor with normal crossings. In 2005 Dolgachev, van Geemen and Kondo show that the field \( {\mathbb C} (Y) \) of the rational functions of \( Y \) is an extension of the field of the rational functions of \( {\mathbb P} ( H^0 ( {\mathbb P} ^3, \mathcal{O} (3))) /\!/ _{\mathcal{O}(1)}\mathrm{SL} _4({\mathbb C}), \) whose Galois group is the Weyl group \( W(E_6). \) The normalization \( \overline{Y} _{\mathrm{GIT}} \) of \( {\mathbb P} ( H^0 ( {\mathbb P} ^3, \mathcal{O}(3))) /\!/ _{\mathcal{O}(1)}\mathrm{SL}_4({\mathbb C}) \) in \( {\mathbb C} (Y) \) admits a morphism \( \overline{N} \rightarrow \overline{Y} _{\mathrm{GIT}}, \) which blows down \( 40 \) of the \( 76 \) components of the boundary of \( \overline{N}. \) An article of Allcock, Carlson and Toledo from 2002 establishes that \( \overline{Y} _{\mathrm{GIT}}\) is isomorphic to Baily-Borel compactification \( \overline{\Gamma _c \setminus {\mathbb B} _4} ^{\mathrm{bb}} \) of an appropriate quotient \( \Gamma _c \setminus {\mathbb B} _4 \) of the complex \( 4 \)-ball. They conjecture that Naruki's compactification \( \overline{N} \) of \( Y \) is isomorphic to the toroidal compactification \( \overline{\Gamma _c \setminus {\mathbb B}_4} ^{\mathrm{tor}}. \) The article under review proves the aforementioned conjecture. For any smooth cubic surface \( S \subset {\mathbb P} ^3 ( {\mathbb C}), \) for the divisor \( B \) of the \( 27 \) lines on \( S \) and for any \( c \in {\mathbb Q} \cap \left( \frac{1}{9}, 1 \right), \) the pair \( (S, cB) \) is stable, i.e., log canonical with ample \( K_S + cB. \) In 2009 Hacking, Keel and Tevelev have studied the Kollár-Shepherd-Barron-Alexeev's compactification of \( Y \) by stable pairs and showed that Naruki's compactification \( \overline{N} \) is isomorphic to the log canonical model of \( Y. \) They conjectured that \( \overline{N} \) parameterizes the stable pairs \( \left( S, \left( \frac{1}{9} + \varepsilon \right) B \right) \) and their degenerations. The article under review proves this conjecture and describes exlicitly the stable pairs \( \left( S_o, \left( \frac{1}{9} + \varepsilon \right) B_o \right), \) parameterized by the boundary of \( \overline{N}. \) It turns out that either \( S_o \) has \( 1 \leq k \leq 4 \) singularities of type \( A_1 \) or \( S_o \) is a normal crossing union of three planes in \( {\mathbb P} ^3 ( {\mathbb C}). \) In each case, the authors compute the multiplicities of the components of \( B_o \) and describe their mutual position with respect to the singularities of \( S_o. \)