Nikulin involutions on \(K3\) surfaces (Q996017)

A symplectic involution on a \(K3\) surface, that is, an involution that leaves the holomorphic \(2\)-form invariant, is called a Nikulin involution. The Néron-Severi group of an algebraic \(K3\)-surface with a Nikulin involution contains \(E_{8}(-1)\) as a primitive lattice, and thus the Picard number \(\rho\) is at least \(9\). The authors classify all even, rank \(9\), lattices of signature \((1+,8-)\) which contain \(E_{8}(-1)\) as a primitive lattice, and they show by using the surjectivity of the period map that any of these lattices is the Néron-Severi group of a \(K3\) surface with a Nikulin involution. Furthermore, the coarse moduli space of \(K3\) surfaces that contain such a lattice in the Néron-Severi group has dimension \(11\). The latter half of the paper is devoted to give various examples of \(K3\) surface which is a general member of various components of the moduli space. A Nikulin involution on a \(K3\) surface \(X\) has eight fixed points, hence the quotient \(\bar Y=X/\iota\) has eight nodes. They also describe the quotient surface \(\bar Y\) for their examples. The authors also discuss possible applications of Nikulin involutions toward the Hodge conjecture for products of \(K3\) surfaces.