The Tamagawa number conjecture for CM elliptic curves (Q5929682)

The Bloch-Kato conjecture describes the special values of the \(L\)-function of a smooth proper variety \(X\) over a number field \(K\) in terms of the regulator maps of the \(K\)-theory of \(X\) into Deligne cohomology and \(p\)-adic étale cohomology, respectively. The most widely used formulation of this (Tamagawa number) conjecture in Iwasawa theory is due to \textit{K. Kato} [Iwasawa theory and \(p\)-adic Hodge theory, Kodai Math. J. 16, No. 1, 1--31 (1993; Zbl 0798.11050)] which is also thoroughly recalled in the paper under review. There are only two special cases for which this conjecture is proven so far in the non-critical situation, both being accomplished by S. Bloch and K. Kato in 1990. In this article, the author provides a proof of the (weak form of) the Bloch-Kato conjecture for elliptic curves with complex multiplication by the ring of integers in a quadratic number field. His powerful approach is based on a method combining several new ingredients in very subtle and effective a manner. First, there is an explicit description of the Deligne regulator map for elliptic CM curves due to \textit{C. Deninger} [Invent. Math. 96, No. 1, 1--69 (1989; Zbl 0721.14004)] using Eisenstein symbols à la Beilinson. This leads to a proof of the weak form of the Beilinson conjecture for CM elliptic curves. Secondly, \textit{A. Huber} and the author have established, in an earlier paper [cf. Invent. Math., 135, No. 3, 545--594 (1999; Zbl 0955.11027)] the relation of the \(p\)-adic regulator of the Eisenstein symbol with the specialization of the \(p\)-adic elliptic polylogarithm sheaf, which now leaves the problem of computing these specializations in \(p\)-adic cohomology in order to tackle the Bloch-Kato conjecture for CM elliptic curves. Whereas the absolute Hodge realization of the elliptic polylogarithm was well understood, due to the extensive work of A. Beilinson and M. Levin (1994), a theory of the \(p\)-adic realization giving manageable étale cohomology classes in the elliptic case had to be developed as a further new ingredient. This is done by exhibiting the elliptic polylogarithm as an inverse limit of \(p^n\)-torsion points of certain one-motives, which leads then to an explicit description of the cohomology classes of the elliptic polylogarithm sheaf by classes of certain line bundles. Finally, this is combined with K. Rubin's ``Main Conjecture'' in Iwasawa theory for imaginary quadratic number fields [cf. \textit{K. Rubin}, Invent. Math. 103, No. 1, 25--68 (1991; Zbl 0737.11030)] to obtain a bound on the kernel and the cokernel of the Soulé map [cf. \textit{C. Soulé}, Duke Math. J. 54, 249--269 (1987; Zbl 0627.14010)] from elliptic units to the étale cohomology. At the end of the paper, all the various new results a put together and yield a complete proof of the Bloch-Kato conjecture for CM elliptic curves (Main Theorem 1.1.5).