Hilbert curves of scrolls over threefolds (Q6161067)

The Hilbert curve of a polarized manifold \((X,L)\) of dimension \(n\) was introduced by \textit{M. C. Beltrametti} et al. [J. Pure Appl. Algebra 214, No. 4, 461--479 (2010; Zbl 1206.14018)]. It is a plane affine curve \(\Gamma=\Gamma_{(X,L)}\) defined as follows. Let \(D=xK_X+yL\) be a line bundle on \(X\), where \(K_X\) is the canonical bundle; then \(\chi(D)\), the Euler-Poincaré characteristic of \(D\), can be expressed in terms of \(D\) and of the Chern classes of \(X\). The complexified polynomial \(p(x,y):=\chi(xK_X+yL)\) has degree \(n\) and its set of zeroes in the complex affine plane is the Hilbert curve \(\Gamma\). This curve has been studied for some classes of manifolds, in particular scrolls over curves or surfaces, and conic fibrations. Admitting some fibration relevant for adjunction theory forces the Hilbert curve to contain some parallel lines as components.\par Here the Authors study the case of scrolls over threefolds, i.e. there is a fibration \(\phi: X\to Y\) where \(Y\) is a normal variety of dimension \(3\) and \(K_X+aL=\phi^*A\), for some positive integer \(a\) and some \(\mathbb Q\)-line bundle \(A\) on \(Y\). In this case the Hilbert curve is the union of \(a-1\) parallel lines and a residual cubic curve \(C\). In this article the Authors compute the explicit equation of \(C\) in terms of the invariants of \((X,L)\) and characterize when \(C\) is non-reduced. Particular attention is paid to the scrolls \((X,L)\) that fail to be adjunction theoretic scrolls, there is an explicit finite list of such cases all having \(n<7\). The last part of the article is devoted to the study of the following question in the case \(n=4\): under what conditions the cubic \(C\) is the Hilbert curve of \(Y\) polarized by the ample \(\mathbb Q\)-line bundle \(\frac{1}{2}\det \mathcal E\) (where \(\mathcal E=\phi_* L\))? A complete answer is provided under the condition \(K_Y+c_1\equiv 0\). If this condition is not satisfied, partial answers and a series of interesting examples are given.