Automorphisms of affine surfaces with \(\mathbb A^1\)-fibrations (Q558695)

In the paper under review, the authors follow and enrich a recent trend in the study of algebraic surfaces, which is to classify surfaces relative to their Makar-Limanov invariant (i.e., the ring of common invariants for all \(G_a\)-actions on the surface). In this respect, the results in this paper are closely related to recent work of \textit{D. Daigle} and \textit{P. Russell} [Can. J. Math. 56, No.6, 1145--1189 (2004; Zbl 1073.14075)], and \textit{A. Dubouloz} [Mich. Math. J. 52, No.2, 289--308 (2004; Zbl 1072.14075)]. In particular, the authors consider a certain type of complex affine surface \(X\) which admits an \(\mathbb{A}^1\)-fibration, with particular attention to the case in which \(X\) admits a \(G_a\)-action. Such actions correspond to \(\mathbb{A}^1\)-fibrations on \(X\) with base a smooth affine curve. In case the base of the fibration is not affine, the fibration does not correspond to a \(G_a\)-action. The authors prove results on uniqueness of \(\mathbb{A}^1\)-fibrations (Thm. 4.1), and on the automorphism group of a smooth affine surface with an \(\mathbb{A}^1\)-fibration (Thm. 4.2), in addition to several results about the Makar-Limanov invariant of the surfaces they study (Lemma 2.7, Thm. 2.8, Thm. 2.9, Thm. 3.1).