ON THE RATIONAL POINTS ON CUBIC SURFACES (Q4493389)

Let \(N(P)\) denote the number of solutions in integers \(x_i\) with \(|x_i|\leq P\) of \(\sum_{1 \leq i \leq 4}a_ix_i^3 = 0\), in which \(a_i \neq 0\), and let \(N_1(P)\) denote the number of these solutions that do not lie on rational lines in the projective surface \(\mathcal S\) defined by this equation. \textit{D. R. Heath-Brown} [Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond., Ser. A 356, 673-699 (1998; Zbl 0899.11051)] showed, subject to the Riemann Hypothesis for the Hasse-Weil \(L\)-functions, that \(N_1(P) \ll P^{3/2+\varepsilon}\). The author formulates a ``thin'' sifting condition which he uses to show, unconditionally, that \(N_1(P) \ll P^2/(\log P)^{1/3}\). Since \(N(P) =KP^2 + N_1(P)\), where \(K\) is a constant depending on the number of lines in the surface, the result is better, by a power of a logarithm, than what might be regarded as trivial. The constant \(K\) is zero precisely when the surface contains no rational lines, which may be regarded as the hardest case. Indeed, by adapting ideas from earlier papers on the topic by \textit{D. R. Heath-Brown} [Acta Arith. 79, 17-30 (1997; Zbl 0863.11021)] and by himself [J. Reine Angew. Math. 314, 146-173 (1980; Zbl 0423.10026)] the author shows that \(N_1(P) \ll P^{\theta + \varepsilon}\) with \(\theta = {4\over 3}\) if \(\mathcal S\) contains three rational lines and \(\theta={5\over 3}\) if it contains one.