Symplectic geometry and rationally connected 4-folds (Q486438)

The paper under review studies symplectic geometric aspects of rationally connected varieties. An important conjecture in this area due to \textit{J. Kollár} [Prog. Math. 168, 255--288 (1998; Zbl 0970.14001)] states that if \(X\) and \(Y\) are two smooth projective varieties which are symplectic deformation equivalent, then \(X\) is rationally connected if and only if \(Y\) is. The conjecture is verified up to dimension three by the previous works of \textit{C. Voisin} [in: Géométrie différentielle, physique mathématique, mathématiques et société (II). Volume en l'honneur de Jean Pierre Bourguignon. Paris: Société Mathématique de France. 1--21 (2008; Zbl 1178.14048)] and the author [Duke Math. J. 161, No. 5, 803--843 (2012; Zbl 1244.14041)]. In this paper, the author verifies two general cases of Kollár's conjecture in dimension four: either a Fano fourfold of pseudo-index at least \(2\); or a rationally connected fourfold whose second Betti number is \(2\). The Fano case is proved by finding a nonzero Gromov-Witten invariant with two point insertions, which is symplectic deformation invariant. The author uses a careful analysis of very free curves of small \(-K_X\) degree and the classification of extremal contraction of Fano fourfolds. The second case is proved differently by studying maximal rationally connected (MRC) quotient of \(Y\). Furthermore, the author show that the dimension of the MRC fibration and the class of a general fiber are symplectic deformation invariant for smooth projective uniruled fourfolds with Betti number \(2\).