Canonical curves with low apolarity (Q645252)

Let \(k=\overline k\) be an algebraically closed field; any non-hyperelliptic smoooth projective curve \(C\) of genus \(g\geq 3\) can be embedded into \(\mathbb{P}_k^{g-1}\) via its canonical map \(\phi\) (defined by its canonical divisor \(K_C\)), and its image \(\phi (C)\) is called a canonical curve. Its homogeneous coordinate ring \(k[x_0,\dots,x_{g-1}]/I_{\phi(C)}\) is Gorenstein, hence for any two generic linear forms \(h_1,h_2 \in k[x_0,\dots,x_{g-1}]_1\), the quotient ring \(k[x_0,\dots,x_{g-1}]/(I_{\phi(C)}\) is an Artinian Gorenstein ring, wirh Hilbert function: \((1,g-2,g-2,1)\). Those rings have been widely studied, and in the case \(k\cong \mathbb{C}\), there is a bijective correspondence between such rings and forms of degree 3 in \(k[y_0,\dots,y_{g-2}]\), while if \(k\) has positive characteristics, the forms of degree 3 must be taken in the divided powers \(k\)-algebra on \(y_0,\dots,y_{g-2}\). Hence it is quite natural to try to relate geometric properties of \(\phi (C)\) and algebraic properties of the Artinian Gorenstein Algebra above. One first result, which was already known for \(k\cong \mathbb{C}\), but it is proved here for any \(k=\overline k\), is that s smooth non-hyperelliptic projective curve \(C\) is either trigonal or isomorphic to a plane quintic if anf only if the corresponding cubic polynomial in \(y_0,\dots,y_{g-2}\) is a Fermat cubic \(y_0^3+\dots+y_{g-2}^3\), up to the natural action of \(GL_{g-2}\). A new result here describes what happen when the cubic form corresponding to \(\phi (C)\) (in any characteristics) can be minimally written as a sum of \(g-1\) cubes of linear forms; in this case (here \(g\geq 5\)), \(C\) is either bielliptic, or isomorphic to a plane sextic with at most \(10-g\) double points as singularities, or to a complete intersection of a quadric and a quartic surface in \(\mathbb {P}^3\).