Slope stability of Fano fourfolds with respect to smooth surfaces (Q468766)

The paper under review deals with the following problem: characterise the Fano fourfolds \((X,-K_X)\) and the surfaces \(S\) in \(X\) such that \((X,-K_X)\) is not slope stable with respect to \(S\). Slope stability is a stability condition, introduced by \textit{J. Ross} and \textit{R. Thomas} [J. Algebr. Geom. 16, No. 2, 201--255 (2007; Zbl 1200.14095)], weaker than \(K\)-stability and easier to verify. The relevance of this work is well illustrated by a result proved independently by Chen-Donaldson-Sun and Tian stating the equivalence between the existence of Kähler-Einstein metrics and \(K\)-polystability. The work under review extends a previous characterisation ([\textit{J.-M. Hwang} et al., Bull. Lond. Math. Soc. 43, No. 5, 827--839 (2011; Zbl 1244.14028); \textit{K. Fujita}, Proc. Japan Acad., Ser. A 87, No. 10, 199--202 (2011; Zbl 1236.14040)]) of Fano manifolds \((X,-K_X)\) and curves \(C\) in \(X\) such that \((X,-K_X)\) is not slope stable with respect to \(C\). The proof is based on the observation that if \((X,-K_X)\) is not slope stable with respect to \(S\), then \(S\) is Fano and on the classification of Fano surfaces. Finally, slope semistability is expressed in terms of invariants of the surface \(S\) in \(X\), such as the intersection numbers of the Chern classes of its canonical bundle and its normal bundle \(N_{S/X}\).