Successive minima of toric height functions (Q5962667)

Let \(X\) be an algebraic variety of dimension \(n\) over a global field \(\mathbb K\), let \(\overline D\) be an (adelically) metrized \(\mathbb R\)-divisor on \(X\), and let \(h_{\overline D}: X(\overline{\mathbb K})\to\mathbb R\) be the associated height function. For \(\eta\in\mathbb R\) let \(X(\overline{\mathbb K})_{\leq\eta}=\{p\in X(\overline{\mathbb K}) : h_{\overline D}(p)\leq\eta\}\). For \(i=1,\dots,n+1\) one defines the \(i\)-th minimum of \(X\) with respect to \(\overline D\) by \[ \mu_{\overline D}^i(X) = \inf\{\eta\in\mathbb R : \dim(\overline{X(\overline{\mathbb K})_{\leq\eta}}) \geq n-i+1\}\;. \] Of these, the essential minimum \(\mu_{\overline D}^{\text{ess}}(X):=\mu_{\overline D}^1(X)\) plays a key role. It is the infimum of the set of real numbers \(\eta\) for which \(X(\overline{\mathbb D})_{\leq\eta}\) is dense. The paper under review studies these in the toric setting. Assume from now on that \(X\) is a proper toric variety over \(\mathbb K\), and that \(\overline D\) is a toric metrized \(\mathbb R\)-divisor on \(X\). Then \(D\) is a toric divisor on \(X\), which corresponds to a polytope \(\Delta_D\) in the dual space \(M_{\mathbb R}\). The authors [Arithmetic geometry of toric varieties. Metrics, measures and heights. Paris: Société Mathématique de France (SMF) (2014; Zbl 1311.14050)] showed that the adelic metric on \(\overline D\) at a given place \(v\) of \(\mathbb K\) corresponds naturally to a local roof function \(\vartheta_{\overline D,v}:\Delta_D\to\mathbb R\). These functions are concave, and are zero for all but finitely many \(v\). Their (weighted) sum \(\vartheta_{\overline D}:\Delta_D\to\mathbb R\) is called the global roof function of \(\overline D\). The main result of the paper shows that \(i\)-th minima can be expressed in terms of the roof function. Indeed, it is shown that \[ \mu_{\overline D}^{\text{ess}}(X) = \max_{x\in\Delta_D}\vartheta_{\overline D}(x)\;. \] Moreover, if \(\overline D\) is semipositive and \(D\) is ample, then \[ \mu_{\overline D}^i(X) = \min_{F\in\mathcal F(\Delta_D)^{n-i+1}}\max_{x\in F}\vartheta_{\overline D}(x) \;, \] where \(\mathcal F(\Delta_D)^{n-i+1}\) is the set of faces of dimension \(n-i+1\) of the polytope \(\Delta_D\). \textit{S. Zhang} [J. Am. Math. Soc. 8, 187--221 (1995; Zbl. 0861.14018)] showed that \[ \sum_{i=1}^{n+1}\mu_{\overline D}^i(X) \leq \frac{h_{\overline D}(X)}{\deg_D(X)} \leq (n+1)\mu_{\overline D}^{\text{ess}}(X) \] when \(D\) is ample and \(\overline D\) is relatively semiample with smooth metric (but \(X\) and \(\overline D\) are not assumed to be toric). The paper under review recovers this inequality when \(X\) and \(\overline D\) are toric, but with weaker positivity conditions on \(\overline D\). It is also shown that equality holds in the second inequality if and only if the global roof function \(\vartheta_{\overline D}\) is constant. This is relevant to many known equidistribution theorems. The formulae relating successive minima to roof functions are used to give explicit computations of the successive minima for several families of examples, including weighted projective spaces, toric bundles, and translates of subtori.