Invariants of plane curve singularities and Plücker formulas in positive characteristic (Q507096)

The author studies classical and new invariants of plane curve singularities in characteristic \(p>0\). Let \(K[[x,y]]\) be the ring of formal power series in two variables, \(K\) an algebraically closed field and \(f\in K[[x,y]]\). Recall that the \textit{Milnor number}, (resp. the \textit{Kappa invariant}), of \(f\) is \(\mu(f)=i(f_x,f_y)\) (resp. \(\kappa(f)=i(f, \alpha f_x+\beta f_y)\)), where \(f_x, f_y\) are the partial derivatives of \(f\), \((\alpha:\beta)\in \mathbb{P}^1\) is generic and \(i\) denotes the usual intersection multiplicity. If \(f\) is reduced, the \textit{delta invariant} of \(f\) is \(\delta(f)=\dim \bar{R}/R\), where \(R:=K[[x,y]]/\langle f \rangle\) and \(\bar{R}\) a normalization of \(R\). If \(\mathrm{char}(K)=0\), by Milnor formula we know that \(\mu(f)=2 \delta(f)-r(f)+1\), where \(r\) is the number of branches of \(f\). In positive characteristic this fact does not hold , because of the existence of wild vanishing cycles and by \textit{P. Deligne}, [Séminaire de géométrie algébrique du Bois-Marie 1967--1969. Groupes de monodromie en géométrie algébrique (SGA 7 II) par P. Deligne et N. Katz. Exposés X à XXII. Berlin-Heidelberg-New York: Springer-Verlag (1973; Zbl 0258.00005)], we know that \(\mu(f)=2 \delta(f)-r(f)+1+Sw(f)\), where \(Sw(f)\) (the Swan conductor of \(f\)) denotes the number of wild vanishing cycles of the Milnor fiber of \(f\). Analogously, in characteristic zero, delta invariant and kappa invariant are related by the formula \(\kappa(f)=2\delta(f)-r(f)+\mathrm{mt}(f)\), where \(\mathrm{mt}(f)\) denotes the multiplicity of \(f\), [\textit{G.-M. Greuel} et al., Introduction to singularities and deformations. Berlin: Springer (2007; Zbl 1125.32013)]. To see how is this relation in positive characteristic, the author introduces and studies two new invariants \(\gamma\) and \(\tilde{\gamma}\), which in characteristic zero coincide and are equal to the Milnor number; then he proves that \(\kappa(f)\geq \gamma(f)+\mathrm{mt}(f)-1\). The main result of the paper is that \(\kappa(f)\geq 2\delta(f)-r(f)+\mathrm{mt}(f)\), with equalities if and only if the characteristic \(p\) does not divide the multiplicity of any branch of \(f\). As a corollary it is shown that if \(p > \kappa(f )\), (resp. for an irreducible plane projective curve \(C\), if \(p > \deg C(\deg C -1)\)), then \(f\) (resp. \(C\)) has no wild vanishing cycle. Further, as an application of the main result, Plücker formulas are obtained for irreducible projective plane curves in positive characteristic, giving a relation between the degree of the curve, its dual curve and the local invariants (delta invariant, Milnor number, etc.) at the singular points of the curve. The author's method is based on resolution and parametrization of plane curves singularities.