On the fattening of lines in \(\mathbb P^3\) (Q479303)

Let \(Z\) be a set of points in \(\mathbb P^2\), with homogeneous ideal \(I_Z\). The second symbolic power \(I_Z^{(2)}\) is the ideal of the \textit{double scheme} \(2Z\), i.e. it contains forms that vanish with multiplicity at least \(2\) at the points of \(Z\). The difference between the ideals \(I_Z\) and \(I_Z^{(2)}\) is well studied in relation with problems of interpolation. In particular, writing \(\alpha(J)\) for the minimal degree of forms in a homogeneous ideal \(J\), sets of points for which the difference \(t=\alpha(I_Z^{(2)})-\alpha(I_Z)\) is small are classified. It turns out that the minimal case \(t=1\) only occurs when \(Z\) is collinear or \(Z\) is the set of pairwise intersections of a configuration of lines (i.e. a \textit{star configuration} in \(\mathbb P^2\)). The author extends the result to sets \(Z\) which are union of lines in \(\mathbb P^3\). Such a set is a \textit{pseudo-star configuration} if it is given by the pairwise intersections of a set of planes, such that no three planes meet in a line. Every pseudo-star configuration is arithmetically Cohen-Macaulay. The author proves that, conversely, a set \(Z\) of lines in \(\mathbb P^3\), which is arithmetically Cohen-Macaulay and satisfies \(\alpha(I_Z^{(2)})-\alpha(I_Z)=1\), is necessarily a pseudo-star configuration, unless it is a set of coplanar lines.