A characterization of rational singularities (Q5918039)

In this short paper the following new characterization of rational singularities in characteristic zero is proved. Let \(\Phi : Y \rightarrow X\) be a morphism of varieties over \(\mathbb C\) and \(\rho : \mathcal O_X \rightarrow R\Phi_* \mathcal O_Y\) the associated morphism in the derived category of \(\mathcal O_X\)-modules. Assume that \(Y\) has only rational singularities. If there exists a morphism \(\rho' : R\Phi_* \mathcal O_Y \rightarrow \mathcal O_X\) such that \(\rho' \circ \rho\) is a quasi-isomorphism, then \(X\) has only rational singularities. When moreover \(\Phi\) is a surjective morphism of projective varieties, then the converse is also true. As the author mentions, some ideas of the proof already appeared in previous work of Kollár. Furthermore a nice application of this result is a short conceptual proof that log terminal singularities are rational; derived categories and Grothendieck duality are used, but in a quite simple way. The author baptizes his proof as the \` most natural\'\ one, and I think this is reasonable.