On the classification of OADP varieties (Q763643)

OADP (= one apparent double point) varieties are varieties \(X\) embedded in a projective space \(\mathbb P^n\) (\(n=2\dim(X)+1\)), with the property that a general point \(P\in\mathbb P^n\) lies in exactly one secant line to \(X\). Equivalently, a general projection to \(\mathbb P^{n-1}\) maps \(X\) to a variety with exactly one singular point. OADP varieties are interesting for their connections with many important aspects of Birational Geometry. A classification of smooth OADP varieties is only known up to dimension \(3\). If one admits a finite number of singularities, then a classification of OADP surfaces was announced by Severi and completed by the second author. As a first result, the authors remove any restriction on singularities, and provide the final classification of all OADP irreducible surfaces. For higher dimension, several families of OADP varieties are known, and all of them are endowed with a rich internal geometry. The authors show how the geometry of OADP varieties is linked to some involutory Cremona transformations and the theory of Jordan Algebras. Furthermore, they point their attention to a wide class of OADP varieties, for which a general tangential projection determines a quadratic map on its exceptional divisor. The authors prove that OADP varieties of this type are precisely the varieties \(3\)-covered by normal cubic curves (OADP curves). The result suggests that, as in the case of defective varieties, OADP varieties (at least, of some class) are determined by the existence of special degenerate subvarieties inside.