Galois sections for abelianized fundamental groups

Abstract: Given a smooth projective curve

X

of genus at least 2 over a number field

k

, Grothendieck's Section Conjecture predicts that the canonical projection from the 'etale fundamental group of

X

onto the absolute Galois group of

k

has a section if and only if the curve has a rational point. We show that there exist curves where the above map has a section over each completion of

k

but not over

k

. In the appendix Victor Flynn gives explicit examples in genus 2. Our result is a consequence of a more general investigation of the existence of sections for the projection of the 'etale fundamental group `with abelianized geometric part' onto the Galois group. We give a criterion for the existence of sections in arbitrary dimension and over arbitrary perfect fields, and then study the case of curves over local and global fields more closely. We also point out the relation to the elementary obstruction of Colliot-Th'el`ene and Sansuc.

Review text

Let \(X\) be a smooth projective geometrically integral scheme over a perfect field \(k\) with geometric point \(\bar x\in X(\bar k)\). Then there arises a canonical quotient \(\Pi\) of \(\pi_1(X,\bar x)\) which fits in the exact sequence \[ 1\to T(\mathrm{Alb}_X(\bar k))\to \Pi\to \mathrm{Gal}(\bar k/k)\to 1, \] where \(T(\mathrm{Alb}_X(\bar k))\) is the full Tate module of the Albanese variety of \(X\). In this paper, the authors show that the above sequence splits if and only if the maximal divisible subgroup of \(H^1(k,\mathrm{Alb}_X)\) contains the class \(\mathrm{Alb}^1_X\) which is characterized by the universal morphism \(X\to \mathrm{Alb}^1_X\) among morphisms from \(X\) to the \(k\)-torsors under abelian varieties. Among several important consequences of this result, one remarkable is derived in the case where \(X\) is a curve over a number field having points everywhere locally. In this special case, the torsionfreeness of \(\mathrm{NS}(X_{\bar k})\) implies \(T(\mathrm{Alb}_X(\bar k))\cong \pi_1(X_{\bar k})^{ab}\), and the triviality of the class \(\mathrm{Alb}^1_X\) is equivalent to the existence of a zero cycle on \(X\) of degree one [\textit{D. Eriksson} and \textit{V. Scharaschkin}, Acta Arith. 135, No. 2, 99--110 (2008; Zbl 1169.14021)] Theorem 4.1, Prop. 3.2). Based on [\textit{M.I. Bashmakov}, Izv. Akad. Nauk SSSR, Ser. Mat. 28, 661--664 (1964; Zbl 0148.41501)] providing examples of curves \(X\) with trivial maximal divisible subgroup of \(H^1(k,\mathrm{Alb}_X)\), they deduce: Suppose that a smooth projective curve \(X/\mathbb{Q}\) has Jacobian \(\mathbb{Q}\)-isogenous to a product of elliptic curves each of which has finite Tate-Shafarevich group and positive Mordell-Weil rank. Assume moreover that \(X\) has points everywhere locally but no \(\mathbb{Q}\)-rational divisor class of degree one. Then, the exact sequence \( 1\to \pi_1(X_{\bar k})^{ab}\to \Pi\to G_{\mathbb{Q}}\to 1 \) has sections everywhere locally but not globally. In Appendix by Victor Flynn, curves of genus 2 satisfying the above assumptions are constructed.

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