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# The Digitized Second Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (DPOSS) II: Photometric Calibration

## 1 Introduction

The answers to many important cosmological questions require large sky surveys, encompassing hundreds or thousands of square degrees. Large scale structure in the universe, the power spectrum at large angular scales, and the distribution of stars in our own galaxy all rely on homogeneous, moderately deep imaging with small (and well understood) systematic errors, as well as enormous sky coverage. Until very recently, such data was available only from photographic plates, which, with their large physical size, fill the focal plane of Schmidt telescopes. Unfortunately, these plates are notoriously difficult to calibrate, with large sensitivity variations among plates and even within a given plate. Nevertheless, they provide the only current source of all-sky imaging data. Various projects, such as the Automated Plate Scanner (APS, Odewahn & Aldering 1995, hereafter OA95), have used digitized scans of the first Palomar Sky Survey, to generate large area catalogs. The more recent efforts by the Automatic Plate Measuring team (APM, Maddox, Efstathiou & Sutherland 1990, hereafter MES ) and other groups have utilized the Southern Sky Survey plates or scans of the more recent Second Palomar Sky Survey for this purpose. Some of these projects have used only a fraction of the available data, with limited CCD calibration, which makes assessing large-scale photometric errors difficult, if not impossible. For instance, MES used a scheme to transform all of their plates onto a common photometric system, but only had CCD calibration data for about one third of their plates. In the Northern sky, the GSC-II (McLean, Lasker, & Lattanzi, 1998) and the USNO (Monet, 1998) both provide catalogs (based on some of the same plate material), but they lack accurate photometric calibration and are not targeting faint objects. Only the recently begun Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS, York et al. 2000), will provide improved data in the Northern sky, and only at galactic latitudes $`|b|>40^{}`$.

To address these issues, and provide the community with a large catalog of sources with accurate photometry, we have produced the Digitized Second Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (Djorgovski et al., 1999, 2002a). Prior papers have discussed the object detection and classification techniques, using the SKICAT software package (Weir, Fayyad & Djorgovski, 1995; Weir, Fayyad, Djorgovski & Roden, 1995), and a companion paper (Odewahn et al., 2002) presents more recent Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and Decision Tree (DT) classifiers employed in this survey. Gal et al. (2000) has presented the vast CCD imaging sample obtained at the Palomar 60-inch for the purpose of calibrating DPOSS. Here we discuss the techniques used to derive the plate photometric calibration, and generate a seamless catalog of objects over the high-galactic-latitude ($`|b|>30^{}`$) Northern sky. We briefly review the salient details of the DPOSS and CCD object detection and photometry schemes in §2. The use of plate overlap regions to transform sets of plates on a uniform instrumental magnitude system is described in §3. The derivation of the photometric calibration using CCD data is discussed in §4, including our final photometric errors. We conclude with a brief discussion of potential applications and future developments in §5. We note that this paper supersedes the earlier discussion of DPOSS calibration presented in Weir, Djorgovski & Fayyad (1995).

## 2 DPOSS and CCD Data

### 2.1 DPOSS

The POSS-II photographic survey (Reid et al., 1991) covers the entire Northern sky ($`\delta >3^{}`$) with 897 overlapping fields (each $`6.5^{}`$, with $`5^{}`$ spacings), and, unlike the old POSS-I, has no gaps in the coverage. Approximately half of the survey area is covered at least twice in each band, due to plate overlaps. Plates were taken at the Palomar 48-inch Oschin Schmidt telescope in three bands: blue-green, IIIa-J + GG395, $`\lambda _{\mathrm{eff}}480`$ nm; red, IIIa-F + RG610, $`\lambda _{\mathrm{eff}}650`$ nm; and very near-IR, IV-N + RG9, $`\lambda _{\mathrm{eff}}850`$ nm. The bandpasses are illustrated in Figure 1. Typical limiting magnitudes reached are $`g_J21.5`$, $`r_F21.0`$, and $`i_N20.3`$, i.e., $`1^m1.5^m`$ deeper than the POSS-I. The image quality is improved relative to the POSS-I, and is comparable to the southern photographic sky surveys.

The original survey plates are digitized at STScI, using modified PDS scanners (Lasker et al., 1996). The plates are scanned with 15-micron (1.0 arcsec) pixels, in rasters of 23,040 square, giving $`1`$ GB/plate, or $`3`$ TB of pixel data total for the entire digital survey (DPOSS). The preliminary astrometric solutions provided by GSC-II (McLean, Lasker, & Lattanzi, 1998) are good to r.m.s. $`0.5^{\prime \prime }`$, and are in the process of being improved substantially.

An extensive effort, centered at Caltech, and with sites in Italy (Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte and Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma) and Brazil (Observatório Nacional), has resulted in the processing, calibration, and cataloging of nearly all scans at $`|b|>10^{}`$, with the detection of all objects down to the survey limit, and star/galaxy classifications accurate to 90% or better down to $`1^m`$ above the detection limit. Object detection and photometry is performed by SKICAT, a novel software system developed for this purpose (Weir, Djorgovski & Fayyad, 1995). It incorporates some standard astronomical image processing packages, commercial Sybase database, as well as a number of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) modules. We measure $`60`$ attributes per object on each plate in each filter. A subset of these are used for classification, as described in Odewahn et al. (2002).

#### 2.1.1 Vignetting Correction

Large area detectors have always faced the problem of nonuniform illumination across the detector. The resulting effect, primarily due to placing a square detector in a telescope with a round aperture, is called vignetting. The vignetting pattern must be removed if one is to use the data at larger radii from the plate center. A simple (but incorrect) approach is to assume a circularly symmetric function and apply it to the data. However, though largely radially symmetric, the pattern has finer structure, due to the bending of the plates, the filters used, etc. Here we describe the procedure we have used to remove the vignetting pattern from the DPOSS data. This procedure is performed separately for the three filters used.

Basically, we stack and combine multiple DPOSS plate images to obtain a “master vignetting correction” field, in a manner analogous to generating a flat field for CCD data. Because this procedure was developed after most plates were processed into catalogs, the vignetting correction image is used to derive corrections to the object magnitudes post-processing, as well as correct the actual pixel data. The following procedure was followed, using one hundred plates for each band:

* Bin each plate image $`8\times 8`$, resulting in a $`2880\times 2880`$ pixel image.
* Normalize each image by the median of its central $`720\times 720`$ region.
* Stack the resulting images. This results in a $`2800\times 2800\times 100`$ array.
* For each pixel in the array, discard the ten brightest and ten faintest members, and obtain the median of the remaining eighty. This produces a single $`2880\times 2880`$ image, where each pixel is now a clipped median of the one hundred contributing images.
* Normalize the resulting image such that the maximum in the central $`720\times 720`$ pixel region is 1.0.

Thus, all corrections are relative to the plate center, which is the best exposed part of the plate. Contours of the master vignetting correction image in the $`F`$ and $`J`$ bands are shown in Figure 2; the $`N`$ map is similar. Further details of this procedure can be found in Mahabal et al. (2002).

Nearly all plates at $`|b|>10^{}`$ have been processed into catalogs. The final result of this processing is the Palomar-Norris Sky Catalog (PNSC), expected to contain $`50\times 10^6`$ galaxies and $`>2\times 10^6`$ stars.

### 2.2 CCD Data

Details of the acquisition, processing, and calibration of the CCD data used to calibrate DPOSS are provided in Gal et al. (2000). Here we provide a brief overview of these data.

We have imaged nearly 900 independent CCD fields for DPOSS calibration. The imaging targets are selected from the list of northern Abell Clusters (Abell, Corwin & Olowin, 1989), with priority given to the richest clusters closest to the field centers. This strategy increase the number of objects for both star/galaxy separation and photometric calibration. For those plates with no Abell clusters, we image the plate center and two other pointings within the plate. All data are obtained at the Palomar Observatory 60-inch telescope with the CCD imaging cameras placed at Cassegrain focus. The Gunn $`gri`$ filters (Thuan & Gunn, 1976; Wade, Hoessel, Elias & Huchra, 1979; Schneider, Gunn, & Hoessel, 1983) are used, which are well matched to the DPOSS bandpasses (see Figure 1). Data are taken only on photometric nights with seeing better than $`2^{\prime \prime }`$. The mean seeing for our data is $`1.5^{\prime \prime }`$, with limiting magnitudes of approximately $`m_{lim}=21.5^m,21.5^m,21.2^m`$ in $`g`$, $`r`$, and $`i`$, respectively ( $`0.5^m1^m`$ deeper than the plate detection limits). For every night that is deemed photometric, we observe a set of Gunn standards (Kent, 1985).

Data are processed in the usual way using the IRAF data reduction package (Tody, 1986). All frames are bias subtracted and flat fielded, using a combination of dome and twilight flats. Additionally, a dark sky flat field correction is generated by median filtering all of the unregistered target frames in each filter on a given night. Finally, we apply a fringe correction to the $`i`$ images. The photometric standard stars observed on each night are photometered using the apphot package in IRAF, and the resulting collection of between five and twelve measured instrumental magnitudes used to determine the zero-point offset, airmass term, and color term in each filter.

Object detection on the target frames is performed using the FOCAS package (Jarvis & Tyson, 1981; Valdes, 1982). The $`g`$, $`r`$, and $`i`$ frames are processed independently, using detection parameters of $`2.5\sigma `$ per pixel, a 25 pixel minimum area, and a sky value estimated individually for each image. Object classification is also performed by FOCAS, and the classifications visually inspected. Bright objects with incorrect classifications (usually due to saturated pixels) are corrected by hand. The photometric coefficients (zero point, color term, and airmass term) derived from the standard star observations are used to determine object magnitudes.

## 3 Plate Overlap Analysis

A great advantage of POSS-II over earlier surveys is the extensive overlap between neighboring plates. Adjacent plates overlap each other by $`1.5^{}`$ along edges covering $`6.5^{}`$, providing $`9\mathrm{}^{}`$ of duplicated area for each plate pair. This compares favorably to the APM survey, whose scans typically had $`1^{}`$ overlaps (Maddox, Efstathiou & Sutherland, 1990); with the strong effect of vignetting at plate edges, the extra $`0.5^{}`$ of overlap in DPOSS is significant. These areas each contain thousands of objects which can be used to derive the transformation of one plate’s instrumental magnitude system to that of its neighbor. These transformations can be propagated across multiple boundaries to tie a contiguous set of plates onto a common photometric system.

In practice, this instrumental magnitude transformation must be mapped independently for stars and galaxies, especially for brighter magnitudes ($`m_{\mathrm{inst}}<19`$). Although the density-to-intensity (D-I) transformation has been linearized using the densitometry spots on each plate, stars and galaxies nevertheless display distinct photometric behaviors. This is because the brighter pixels in stellar images populate the highly nonlinear part of the D-I relation, where small errors in the polynomial fit (mostly due to the small number of points characterizing the “shoulder” of the curve) result in larger variations in the derived intensity. Pixels within galaxies occupy the more linear part of the D-I transformation, resulting in more stable and linear photometry.

Additionally, propagating the photometric transformations across a large number of plates (as would be necessary to knit the whole sky) can result in the unacceptable accumulation of (possibly systematic) errors. This issue was addressed by Groth & Peebles (1986), and their technique utilized by MES to estimate the extent of such errors in the APM. A similar approach was also taken by OA95 in an analysis of galaxy counts at the North Galactic Pole, but that study was limited by the small overlap regions and poorer quality of POSS-I. An early attempt to address the problem of plate inhomogeneities in POSS-II is discussed in Picard (1991).

To avoid this issue entirely, we have elected to calibrate each plate using a sliding boxcar technique, described below. We transform each plate’s eight surrounding neighbors onto the instrumental system of the center plate, match all the CCD data available for the resulting nine-plate area, and derive the photometric calibration for the center plate. The individually calibrated plates can then be quilted with no additional offsets because they are already on a calibrated, rather than instrumental, magnitude system. Unlike MES and OA95, we are allowed this luxury by the large quantity of available CCD calibration data. Figure 3 illustrates the processed DPOSS plates (squares), and the available CCD data (dots).

First, we determine which plate pairs have overlap regions larger than $`5\mathrm{}^{}`$, which removes pairs where only the heavily vignetted corners overlap. The overlap regions are matched, and the outermost 10% of the matched area is clipped on all four sides, to avoid the most heavily vignetted regions. A spline is fit to the magnitude difference of the matched objects from the two plates, as a function of instrumental magnitude, $`\mathrm{\Delta }m=m_{\mathrm{plate1}}m_{\mathrm{plate2}}=f(m_{\mathrm{plate1}})`$. This fit is performed independently for stars and galaxies in each filter ($`JFN`$). At faint magnitudes ($`m_{\mathrm{inst}}>19.0`$) we use both stars and galaxies in the independent fits, to avoid biases due to possible differences in classification between plates. At these faint magnitudes, there are no bright pixels (which populate the highly nonlinear part of the D-I relation) in the stellar images.

There are typically between 5,000 and 30,000 objects used to determine the transformation between a given plate pair. Although significant scatter is present, especially at faint magnitudes, the mean is nevertheless well determined. At the bright end ($`m<16`$), where the number of objects is small and classification problems exist, points for the spline fit are placed by hand. At intermediate magnitudes (typically $`16<m<20`$), a robust locus mapping algorithm is used. Finally, at the faint end ($`m>20`$), where incompleteness is a factor, the fit is fixed at a constant $`\mathrm{\Delta }m`$. These objects are in any case too faint to be photometered and classified properly, and are therefore of limited scientific use from the current survey. Figure 4 shows a typical pair of plate overlaps, for galaxies (top) and stars (bottom) matched between plates 392 and 333. The resulting spline fits are also shown.

In contrast, MES defined a single coefficient, $`T_{ij}`$, to match the magnitudes between adjacent plates. While they state that the $`rms`$ of a linear fit to the magnitude differences (in their case, $`(m_im_j)`$ vs. $`(m_i+m_j)/2`$) is nearly as good as a higher order polynomial, we find that this is not always the case, and is certainly not true for stars (which they do not treat). We therefore have elected to utilize our procedure as described above, which is more general, but requires a great deal more interaction and inspection. This process also permits us to find individual plates which behave abnormally, either due to their intrinsic properties or processing failures.

To actually transform a given plate’s instrumental system to that of the reference plate for a given area, we propagate magnitude transformations through sets of up to five plate overlaps connecting the plate being transformed to the fiducial plate. This is illustrated in Figure 5, where arrows represent the transformation paths used to tie plates 392 and 452 to the center (fiducial) plate 391. A plate directly adjacent to the center plate can be tied to it by up to four paths (the green/solid arrows), while a plate diagonally away from the center can be tied by up to five paths (the red/dashed arrows). The five plate limit is imposed to avoid propagating errors across a large number of plate overlaps. Figure 6 shows the five photometric transformations derived between plates 331 and 391. The ordinate shows the fiducial plate magnitude $`m_f`$, while the abscissa shows the difference between the magnitude on the plate to be transformed, $`m_p`$, and $`m_f`$. Rather satisfyingly, all possible convolution paths provide similar transformations for a given plate, especially for galaxies; the $`rms`$ of the differences of each path from the mean reflect the scale of photometric errors due to plate pistoning. These transformations are averaged for each plate to generate a spline $`\mathrm{\Delta }m_{pf}=m_pm_f`$ as a function of $`m_f`$, shown as the solid line in Figure 6. These plots are visually inspected for each plate pair, and instances of abnormal behavior, such as highly variable transformations, are flagged and treated by hand. This technique allows us to detect plate overlaps with unusual behaviors, and provides more stable magnitude matching than possible using a single overlap. The transformations for stars are highly nonlinear, and show much more variance than those for galaxies. This contributes to the large photometric errors in stellar photometric calibration discussed in §4.2. Figure 7 demonstrates the removal of plate-to-plate pistoning using this technique. The left panel shows galaxies in an uncorrected instrumental magnitude range of $`0.5^m`$, from an area covering 15 plates. Individual plates are evident as square patches of varying galaxy density. The right panel shows galaxies from the same area, after the instrumental magnitudes have been homogenized; individual plates are no longer discernible.

## 4 Calibration to the Gunn $`gri`$ System

Once a set of nine plates has been transformed to a common instrumental system (that of the center plate), we match our CCD catalogs to the plate catalogs for that area. Typically, we have between 15 and 50 CCD pointings, in the three filters ($`gri`$), for a given nine plate area. This provides between 8,000 and 30,000 matched galaxies and a similar number of stars from which to derive photometric calibration.

The CCD and plate data are matched, allowing for an overall offset, scale change, and rotation between the CCD-derived celestial coordinates and the plate celestial coordinates. After the mean CCD-plate coordinate offset is derived, a search radius of $`3^{\prime \prime }`$ is used, and the search process iterated until the RA,Dec offsets converge. Typical coordinate residuals are $`0.4^{\prime \prime }`$, which both confirms the stated astrometric accuracy of DPOSS, and implies that false matches are not a significant source of added noise. A spline is fit to the difference between the CCD calibrated magnitude $`m_{\mathrm{CCD}}`$ and the plate instrumental magnitude $`m_{\mathrm{inst}}`$, in a manner identical to the plate overlap analysis. Once again, this is done independently for stars and galaxies, relying on the plate-based classification (as this classification ultimately determines which calibration will be applied). Figure 8 shows a typical set of points and the resulting transformations between plate $`F`$ and CCD $`r`$ magnitudes, for both stars and galaxies, in a nine plate area. A linear fit is also shown; the nonlinear spline fits are clearly necessary. The derived transformations from $`Jg,Fr,Ni`$ are then applied solely to the center field (391 in the example here).

This method differs sharply from that employed by MES, who obtained only magnitude zero points from their CCD data. Their frames, at $`2^{}\times 3^{}`$ in size, cover only 6% of the area of our CCD images, providing a factor of 17 fewer calibrating objects from detector area alone; considering our deeper exposures and more numerous CCD fields (nearly $`900`$ vs. $`69`$), we have a factor of approximately one-thousand more calibration objects. The nonlinearities in the transformations to calibrated magnitudes, if not treated, can lead to incorrect number count slopes and correlation functions.

### 4.1 Color Terms

An examination of the filter curves in Figure 1 shows that the $`Fr`$ and $`Ni`$ transformations are likely to be free of color terms, as the plate and CCD filter systems are well matched. However, the $`J`$ filter is significantly broader and bluer than the corresponding CCD $`g`$ filter, and we may expect a color correction to be necessary. In the left panels of Figure 9, we show the difference between calibrated plate magnitude and CCD magnitude, $`g_0(J)g_{\mathrm{CCD}}`$ as a function of $`gr`$ color, for both galaxies and stars. A strong color term is evident, especially for the stars. The galaxies do not span a significant range in $`gr`$, making the color term impossible to discern in the noise. Nevertheless, this color correction is extremely important for astrophysical purposes, such as photometric redshift estimation, galaxy typing, and cluster detection.

To estimate the color correction, we calculated the median $`g_0(J)g_{\mathrm{CCD}}`$ in bins of $`\mathrm{\Delta }(gr)=0.1`$, shown as the filled squares in Figure 9. We fit a linear relation to these points, resulting in a corrected magnitude

$$g_{\mathrm{corr}}(J)=g_0(J)0.373\times [g_0(J)r_0(F)]+0.177$$
(1)
We apply this correction to both stars and galaxies, with the results shown in the right panels of Figure 9. The correction both removes the slope and reduces the scatter in the relations, as expected.

Inspection of the corresponding data for $`r(F)`$ and $`i(N)`$ shows that no color terms are needed for those filters, as expected from the well-matched filters for the plates and CCDs.

## 5 Photometric Accuracy

Photometric errors in a plate-based survey consist of random errors within plates, zero-point variations within a plate, and plate-to-plate zero point offsets, also called pistoning. Random errors are due simply to Poisson noise. Zero-point variations within individual plates are due both to telescope vignetting and inhomogeneous emulsion sensitivity; these are discussed in detail in Mahabal et al. (2002). Plate pistoning is due to both varying emulsions between plate batches, and differences in observing conditions, such as moonlight and seeing. Using both our extensive CCD calibration set, and the large plate overlap regions, we can measure the magnitude of these effects.

### 5.1 Comparison with CCD Data

First, we compare the calibrated plate magnitudes from a large number of plates with the corresponding CCD data. The errors measured in this procedure will include random plate photometric errors, plate-to-plate pistoning, as well as random errors from the CCD photometry. Using the internal tests of the CCD data presented in Gal et al. (2000), the tests in this section, and the plate overlap tests from the next section, we can decompose our measured errors into the constituent sources.

We plot the plate vs. CCD magnitudes in Figure 10. The $`1\sigma `$ errors for galaxies are $`0.21^m,0.19^m,0.32^m`$ at $`m=19.0`$ in the $`g,r`$ and $`i`$ filters, respectively. Table 1 provides the average photometric errors for galaxies and stars as a function of magnitude for the three bandpasses; these are plotted in Figure 11.

This scatter is an accurate reflection of our accumulated errors. Because the CCD data cover hundreds of plates, and come from hundreds of nights, all sources of error are present in this calibration. This includes errors in the zero points of the CCD sequences, star/galaxy separation errors, inhomogeneities within individual plates, and errors in transforming all the plates to the fiducial instrumental system. Although the scatter is larger than those typically reported in the literature, it is the true combination of all possible errors. There are no additional effects to model or theoretical considerations to account for. These errors can therefore be used in any future work with no modification.

### 5.2 Plate Overlap Tests

The second test of photometric accuracy is a comparison of calibrated magnitudes from the overlap regions of two or more plates. This test is especially useful for examining photometric pistoning between the individually calibrated plates. A typical comparison in the $`r`$ band is shown in Figure 12. The results of this test show that for well-calibrated plates (those with over one thousand calibration galaxies), the mean plate-to-plate zero point offset is zero, with a $`1\sigma `$ scatter of $`0.07^m`$ in both the $`g`$ and $`r`$ bands, with only a slight magnitude dependence, as shown in Table 2. A few plate overlaps show much larger offsets (up to $`0.2^m`$); these indicate photometric errors due to sensitivity gradients across some individual plates. Such plates constitute $`5\%`$ of the overall sample. Calibration in the $`i`$ band is significantly worse, with much larger sensitivity variations both within and between plates, and many fewer calibrating objects.

The distributions of plate-to-plate zero point offsets are well approximated by Gaussians with mean of 0 and standard deviations from Table 2, as shown in Figure 13. Therefore, users of DPOSS data may generate simulations including plate pistoning using the values provided in Table 2.

Additionally, we performed the same test as with the CCD data, using the plate overlap regions. We examined magnitude differences for all pairs of matched objects for plate pairs, in the same magnitude bins as with the plate vs. CCD test. We then assumed that the measured photometric uncertainties are due to equal contributions from both plates, and therefore divided the results by $`\sqrt{2}`$. The photometric uncertainties associated with individual objects, estimated in this way, are in complete agreement (to better than $`10\%`$, or $`0.01^m`$) with the tests comparing the plate and CCD data. This is expected, as the errors in the plate-to-CCD comparison are dominated by the poorer plate photometry. We again conclude that the photometric uncertainties stated in Table 1 are robust.

## 6 Conclusions

We have presented the photometric calibration technique employed in DPOSS. Due to the large plate overlaps in the POSS-II, and vast quantities of CCD calibration, we are able to perform accurate calibration over the entire high galactic latitude Northern sky. Our technique avoids significant systematic plate-to-plate zero-point offsets, resulting in stable photometry over extremely large angles. We provide the reader with robust photometric error measurements which can be used during scientific analysis of the data. Our results are consistent with the plate-to-plate zero point errors found by Weir, Djorgovski & Fayyad (1995), although their sample was much smaller.

The resulting photometric catalogs, along with star/galaxy classifications (Odewahn et al. 2002) can be used for a large variety of astronomical projects which require large sky coverage. These include the search for $`z>4`$ quasars (Kennefick, Djorgovski & de Carvalho, 1995), the Northern Sky Optical Cluster Survey (Gal et al., 2000, 2002), searches for small groups (Iovino et al., 2002), galaxy number counts, correlation functions, studies of galactic structure, and many more.

The catalog data from DPOSS is now publicly available via the web at http://dposs.caltech.edu. Additionally, the processed CCD imaging data used for calibration is available via the San Diego Supercomputing Center’s Storage Resource Broker (SRB); directions for downloading this data are also at the aforementioned URL.

We thank the Norris Foundation for their generous support of the DPOSS project. RRG was supported in part by an NSF Fellowship, NASA GSRP NGT5-50215, and a Kingsley Fellowship. This work would have been impossible without the POSS-II photographic team and the STScI digitization team. We also thank the Palomar TAC and Directors for generous time allocations for the DPOSS calibration effort. Numerous past and present Caltech undergraduates (V. Desai, V. Hradecky, J. Meltzer, B. Stalder, J. Hagan, R. Stob, J. Kollmeier, B. Granett) assisted in the taking of the data utilized in this paper. This work was made possible in part through the NPACI sponsored Digital Sky project and a generous equipment grant from SUN Microsystems. Access to the POSS-II image data stored on the HPSS, located at the California Institute of Technology, was provided by the Center for Advanced Computing Research. The SDSC has generously allowed placement of our CCD data into their SRB as part of the National Virtual Observatory (NVO) initiative.


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# Irregular elliptic surfaces of degree 12 in the projective fourspace

## 1 Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to give two different constructions of irregular surfaces of degree $`12`$ in $`^4`$. These surfaces are new and of interest in the classification of smooth non-general type surfaces in $`^4`$. This classification problem is motivated by the theorem of Ellingsrud and Peskine  which says that the degree of smooth non-general type surfaces in $`^4`$ is bounded. Moreover the new family is one of a few known families of irregular surfaces in $`^4`$. The other known irregular smooth surfaces in $`^4`$ are the elliptic quintic scrolls, the elliptic conic bundles , the bielliptic surfaces of degree $`10`$  and degree $`15`$ , the minimal abelian surfaces of degree $`10`$  and the non-minimal abelian surfaces of degree $`15`$ (cf. ) up to pull-backs of these families by suitable finite maps from $`^4`$ to $`^4`$ itself.

The first author came across the irregular elliptic surfaces when studying a stable rank three vector bundle $``$ on $`^4`$ with Chern classes $`(c_1,c_2,c_3)=(5,12,12)`$ (see  for the explicit construction of this bundle). The dependency locus of two sections of $``$ is a smooth surface of the desired type.

Our first construction uses monads. The basic idea of monads is to represent a given coherent sheaf as a cohomology sheaf of a complex of simpler vector bundles. A useful way to construct monads is Horrocks’ technique of killing cohomology. As we will see in $`\mathrm{\S }`$ 2.2, for the ideal sheaf of a smooth surface $`X`$ in $`^4`$ this technique is closely related to the graded finite length modules $`\mathrm{H}_{}^i_X=_m\mathrm{H}^i(^4,_X(m))`$, $`i=1,2`$, over the polynomial ring $`[x_0,\mathrm{},x_4]`$ called the Hartshorne-Rao modules of $`X`$. To construct an irregular elliptic surface, we construct the ideal sheaf via its Hartshorne-Rao modules.

The second construction uses liaison, and reduces the construction of an irregular surface as above to the construction of a simpler locally complete intersection surface. More precisely we show that the elliptic irregular surface of the first construction is linked $`(5,5)`$ to a reducible surface of degree $`13`$. This reducible surface consists of a singular rational cubic scroll surface in a hyperplane of $`^4`$ and a smooth general type surface of degree $`10`$ and sectional genus $`10`$ such that they intersect in three disjoint (singular) conics on the cubic surface. We then show that these reducible surfaces can be constructed directly, in a slightly more general form. In fact we construct a cubic Del Pezzo surface $`X_0`$ and a smooth general type surface $`T`$ of degree $`10`$ and sectional genus $`10`$ such that $`TX_0`$ is the disjoint union of three smooth conics and show that the general surface linked $`(5,5)`$ to $`TX_0`$ is a smooth irregular elliptic surface. The family of irregular elliptic surfaces constructed via liaison includes the family of irregular elliptic surfaces constructed via monad as a special case.

Acknowledgment. We thank David Eisenbud, Lucian Badescu, Sorin Popescu and Alfio Ragusa for organizing the Nato advanced workshop in Erice, September 2001. Our collaboration started in the stimulating atmosphere of that meeting. The first author would like to thank Wolfram Decker for many stimulating conversations. The first author is also grateful to the DAAD for its financial support.

## 2 Preliminaries

In this part we recall basic results on smooth surfaces in $`^4`$ needed for the two methods of construction that we shall use.

### 2.1 Notation and the basic results

If not otherwise mentioned, $`X`$ denotes a smooth surface in $`^4`$ and

* $`H=H_X`$ its hyperplane class;
* $`K=K_X`$ its canonical divisor;
* $`d=d(X)=H^2`$ its degree,
* $`\pi =\pi (X)`$ its sectional genus (the genus of a general hyperplane section);
* $`\chi =\chi (𝒪_X)=p_gq+1`$ the Euler-Poincaré characteristic of its structure sheaf.

The numerical invariants of $`X`$ satisfy the double point formula

$$d^210d5HK2K^2+12\chi =0$$

(see, for example ). For a curve on $`X`$ the arithmetic genus can be computed by the adjunction formula

$$2p_a(C)2=C^2+CK.$$

The double point formula and the adjunction formula express the self-intersection number $`K^2`$ in terms of $`d`$, $`\pi `$ and $`\chi `$:

$`K^2={\displaystyle \frac{d^25d10\pi +12\chi +10}{2}}.`$ (2.1)
For curves $`C`$ and $`D`$ on $`X`$ the adjunction formula yields the following addition rule for the arithmetic genus:

$`p_a(CD)=p_a(C)+p_a(D)+CD1.`$ (2.2)
### 2.2 Monads

To construct a smooth surface $`X`$ in $`^4`$, we construct its ideal sheaf $`_X`$. Our construction of $`_X`$ (more generally coherent sheaves on $`^n`$) uses monads. Indeed, monads represent a given coherent sheaf in terms of simpler vector bundles, such as direct sum of line bundles, and homomorphisms between these simpler bundles:

###### Definition 2.1.

A monad for a coherent sheaf $`𝒢`$ on $`^n`$ is a complex

$`𝒜\stackrel{\alpha }{}\stackrel{\beta }{}𝒞`$ (2.3)
of vector bundles on $`^n`$ with $`\alpha `$ an injective map and $`\beta `$ a surjective map such that the cohomology $`Ker(\beta )/Im(\alpha )`$ is the coherent sheaf $`𝒢`$. The display of the monad (2.3) is the following commutative diagram:

$`\begin{array}{ccccccc}& & & & 0& & 0\\ & & & & & & & & \\ 0& & 𝒜& & 𝒦& & 𝒢& & 0\\ & & & & & & & & \\ 0& & 𝒜& \stackrel{\alpha }{}& & & 𝒬& & 0,\\ & & & & \beta & & & & \\ & & & & 𝒞& =& 𝒞\\ & & & & & & & & \\ & & & & 0& & 0\end{array}`$ (2.4)
where $`𝒦=Ker(\beta )`$ and $`𝒬=Coker(\alpha )`$.

To find a monad for our ideal sheaf we use Horrocks’ technique of killing cohomology. First we recall the definition of Horrocks monad:

###### Definition 2.2.

A monad

$$𝒜\stackrel{\alpha }{}\stackrel{\beta }{}𝒞$$

for a coherent sheaf $`𝒢`$ on $`^4`$ is a Horrocks monad if

1. $`𝒜`$ and $`𝒞`$ are direct sums of line bundles;
2. $``$ satisfies

$$\mathrm{H}_{}^i\{\begin{array}{cc}0\hfill & i=1,n1\hfill \\ \mathrm{H}_{}^i𝒢\hfill & 1<i<n1.\hfill \end{array}$$

We say that this monad is minimal if

1. $`𝒞`$ has no direct summand which is the image of a line subbundle of $``$;
2. there is no direct summand of $`𝒜`$ which is isomorphic to a direct summand of $``$.

For any vector bundle on $`^n`$, $`n2`$, there is a Horrocks minimal monad (see, for example ). We include a proof of the following special case for lack of a suitable reference.

###### Proposition 2.3.

There is a Horrocks minimal monad for the ideal sheaf $`_X`$ of any $`2`$-codimensional locally Cohen-Macaulay closed subscheme $`X`$ of $`^n`$.

###### Proof.

Every minimal set of generators for $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1_X`$ gives an epimorphism

$`L_0\mathrm{H}_{}^1_X0,`$ (2.5)
where $`L_0`$ is a free $`S=[x_0,\mathrm{},x_n]`$-module. This epimorphism defines an extension

$`0_X𝒬\stackrel{~}{L_0}0`$ (2.6)
of $`_X`$ by $`\stackrel{~}{L_0}`$, because the given epimorphism (2.5) can be regarded as an element of $`\mathrm{H}^1(_X\stackrel{~}{L_0})Ext^1(\stackrel{~}{L_0},_X)`$. Taking cohomology (2.6) gives $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1𝒬=0`$ because of (2.5). Given a minimal set of generators for the $`S`$-module $`\mathrm{H}_{}^0\omega _X(n+1)`$, we have an epimorphism

$$P_0\mathrm{H}_{}^0\omega _X(n+1)0,$$

where $`P_0`$ is a free $`S`$-module. Note that $`\omega _X(n+1)=xt^2(𝒪_X,𝒪)xt^1(_X,𝒪)`$. So $`\mathrm{H}^0(\omega _X(n+1)\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})\mathrm{H}^0(xt^1(_X,𝒪)\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})Ext^1(_X,\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})`$, and hence we obtain an extension

$`0\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}𝒦_X0.`$ (2.7)
By construction it is clear that $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1𝒦^{}=0`$, and hence $`\mathrm{H}_{}^{n1}𝒦Ext_S^{n+1}(\mathrm{H}_{}^1𝒦^{},S)=0`$. The exact sequence (2.6) induces

$$\mathrm{}Ext^1(\stackrel{~}{L_0},\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})Ext^1(𝒬,\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})Ext^1(_X,\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})Ext^2(\stackrel{~}{L_0},\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})\mathrm{}.$$

Since $`Ext^i(\stackrel{~}{L_0},\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})=0`$ for $`i1`$, we have an isomorphism

$$Ext^1(𝒬,\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}})Ext^1(_X,\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}).$$

Let us denote by

$$0\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}𝒬0$$

the extension corresponding to (2.7). This extension can be used to complete the exact sequences (2.6) and (2.7) to the display

$`\begin{array}{ccccccc}& & & & 0& & 0\\ & & & & & & & & \\ 0& & \stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}& & 𝒦& & _X& & 0\\ & & & & & & & & \\ 0& & \stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}& \stackrel{\alpha }{}& & & 𝒬& & 0\\ & & & & \beta & & & & \\ & & & & \stackrel{~}{L_0}& =& \stackrel{~}{L_0}\\ & & & & & & & & \\ & & & & 0& & 0\end{array}`$ (2.8)
of a monad

$`\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}\stackrel{\alpha }{}\stackrel{\beta }{}\stackrel{~}{L_0}`$ (2.9)
for $`_X`$. From the display (2.8) it follows that $``$ satisfies (b), because both the modules $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1𝒬`$ and $`\mathrm{H}_{}^{n1}𝒦`$ vanish. So the monad (2.9) is a Horrocks monad.

Finally we show the minimality of (2.9). It is obvious that $`\stackrel{~}{L_0}`$ (resp. $`\stackrel{~}{P_0}`$) has a direct summand which is the image of a line subbundle of $``$ (resp. $`^{}`$) if and only if $`𝒬`$ (resp. $`𝒦`$) has a direct summand which is the image of a line subbundle of $``$ (resp. $`^{}`$). By construction, however, $`𝒬`$ and $`𝒦`$ do not have such a direct summand, which completes the proof. ∎

###### Remark 2.4.

For the ideal sheaf $`_X`$ of a smooth surface $`X`$ in $`^4`$ the Horrocks monad is closely related to the minimal free resolutions of the Hartshorne-Rao modules. Suppose that $`\mathrm{H}_{}^2_X`$ does not vanish. Let us denote the minimal free resolution of $`\mathrm{H}_{}^2_X`$ by

$$0\mathrm{H}_{}^2_XF_0\stackrel{f_0}{}F_1\stackrel{f_1}{}F_2\stackrel{f_2}{}F_3\stackrel{f_3}{}F_4\stackrel{f_4}{}F_50.$$

Then $``$ has the same intermediate cohomology modules as the second sheafified syzygy module of $`\mathrm{H}_{}^2_X`$. Hence $`\mathrm{H}_{}^0`$ is a direct sum of $`B=Ker(f_1)`$ and a free $`S`$-module (see  for the proof). Frequently, $``$ is isomorphic to $`\stackrel{~}{B}`$, and the minimal free resolution of $`\mathrm{H}_{}^2_X`$ decomposes as

including the minimal free presentation of $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1_X`$:

$$0\mathrm{H}_{}^1_XL_0\stackrel{\alpha _0}{}L_1.$$

So to construct a smooth surface $`X`$ in $`^4`$, we construct the Hartshorne-Rao modules $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1_X`$ and $`\mathrm{H}_{}^2_X`$ first.

In this case the bundle $`𝒦`$ can be described explicitly. So to construct the ideal sheaf $`_X`$, we use the determinantal construction following , namely we establish that the determinantal locus of the general morphism $`\psi Hom(\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}},𝒦)`$ is indeed a smooth surface.

To construct $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1_X`$ and $`\mathrm{H}_{}^2_X`$, we need information on the dimensions $`\mathrm{h}^i_X(m)`$ in some range of twists. This information can be obtained from the Riemann-Roch theorem:

###### Theorem 2.5 (Riemann-Roch).

Let $`X`$ be a smooth surface in $`^4`$ of degree $`d`$, sectional genus $`\pi `$, geometric genus $`p_g`$ and irregularity $`q`$. Then

$$\chi (_X(m))=\chi (𝒪(m))\left(\begin{array}{c}m+1\\ 2\end{array}\right)d+m(\pi 1)1+qp_g.$$

Since surfaces on quadric and cubic hypersurfaces are completely classified (cf. ), we may assume that

$$\mathrm{h}^0_X(2)=\mathrm{h}^0_X(3)=0.$$

We observe that some of the cohomology groups vanish:

###### Proposition 2.6 ().

Let $`X`$ be a smooth non-general type surface in $`^4`$ which is not lying on any cubic hypersurface. Then we have the following table for the dimensions $`\mathrm{h}^i_X(j)`$:

where $`N=\pi q+p_g1`$ and $`s=\pi d+3+qp_g`$.

In the sequel we represent a zero in a cohomology table by an empty box.

### 2.3 Liaison

We recall the definition and some basic results from .

###### Definition 2.7.

Let $`X`$ and $`X^{}`$ be surfaces in $`^4`$ with no irreducible component in common. Two surfaces $`X`$ and $`X^{}`$ are said to be linked $`(m,n)`$ if there exist hypersurfaces $`V`$ and $`V^{}`$ of degree $`m`$ and $`n`$ respectively such that $`VV^{}=XX^{}`$.

There are two standard sequences of linkage, namely

$$0𝒪_X(K)𝒪_{XX^{}}(m+n5)𝒪_X^{}(m+n5)0$$

and

$$0𝒪_X(K)𝒪_X(m+n5)𝒪_{XX^{}}(m+n5)0.$$

For the construction we will use the following theorem:

###### Proposition 2.8 ().

Let $`X`$ be a locally complete intersection surface in $`^4`$. If $`X`$ is scheme-theoretically cut out by hypersurfaces of degree $`d`$, then $`X`$ is linked to a smooth surface $`X^{}`$ in the complete intersection of two hypersurfaces of degree $`d`$.

## 3 A monad construction

Let $`^4`$ be the $`4`$-dimensional projective space over $``$ with homogeneous coordinate ring $`S=[x_0,\mathrm{},x_4]`$. We construct an example of a smooth irregular proper elliptic surface in $`^4`$ using Horrocks’ technique of killing cohomology.

###### Theorem 3.1.

There exists a smooth, minimal, proper elliptic surface in $`^4`$ with $`d=12`$, $`\pi =13`$, $`p_g=3`$ and $`q=1`$.

###### Proof.

For a smooth surface $`X`$ in $`^4`$ with the given invariants, formula (2.1) leads to $`K^2=0`$. By the Riemann-Roch formula and Proposition 2.6, the table

reflects the relations between the dimensions $`\mathrm{h}^i_X(j)`$ in the range $`1j3`$ of twists. A simple example of a finite length graded $`S`$-module with Hilbert function $`(1,2,\mathrm{})`$ is the module $`M`$ with minimal free presentation:

$$0MS\stackrel{f_0}{}3S(1)2S(2),$$

where $`f_0=(x_0,x_1,x_2,x_3^2,x_4^2)`$. The minimal free resolution of $`M`$ is of the following form:

| $`0`$ | $``$ | $`M`$ | $``$ | $`S`$ |  | $`3S(1)`$ |  | $`3S(2)`$ |  | $`S(3)`$ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |  |  | $``$ | $``$ |  | $``$ |  | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  | $`2S(2)`$ | $``$ | $`6S(3)`$ | $``$ | $`6S(4)`$ |  | $`2S(5)`$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $``$ |  | $``$ | $``$ | $``$ |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $`S(4)`$ |  | $`3S(5)`$ |  | $`3S(6)`$ | $``$ | $`S(7)`$ | $``$ | $`0.`$ |

Suppose that $`\mathrm{H}_{}^2_X=M`$. Then $`a=1`$ and $`b=0`$. Let $`B`$ be the second syzygy module of $`M`$. We will suppose that $`\stackrel{~}{B}`$ is the middle term of the Horrocks minimal monad for $`_X`$:

$$\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}\stackrel{~}{B}\stackrel{~}{L_0}.$$

With suitably chosen bases, $`B`$ is generated by the column of the matrix

$$f_2=\left(\begin{array}{cccccccccc}x_2& x_3^2& 0& 0& x_4^2& 0& 0& 0& 0& 0\\ x_1& 0& x_3^2& 0& 0& x_4^2& 0& 0& 0& 0\\ x_0& 0& 0& x_3^2& 0& 0& x_4^2& 0& 0& 0\\ 0& x_1& x_2& 0& 0& 0& 0& x_4^2& 0& 0\\ 0& x_0& 0& x_2& 0& 0& 0& 0& x_4^2& 0\\ 0& 0& x_0& x_1& 0& 0& 0& 0& 0& x_4^2\\ 0& 0& 0& 0& x_1& x_2& 0& x_3^2& 0& 0\\ 0& 0& 0& 0& x_0& 0& x_2& 0& x_3^2& 0\\ 0& 0& 0& 0& 0& x_0& x_1& 0& 0& x_3^2\\ 0& 0& 0& 0& 0& 0& 0& x_0& x_1& x_2\end{array}\right).$$

For simplicity we denote by $`F_2`$ and $`F_3`$ the target and source of $`f_2`$ respectively. From the minimal free resolution of $`M`$ it follows that $`\stackrel{~}{B}`$ has the following Beilinson cohomology table:

Suppose that $`\mathrm{H}_{}^1_X`$ is generated in the first non-zero twist, that is, monogeneous. Then $`\stackrel{~}{L_0}=𝒪(2)`$. Since $`p_g=\mathrm{h}^3_X=3`$, the map $`3S\mathrm{H}_{}^0\omega _X`$ forms part of the minimal generating set of $`\mathrm{H}_{}^0\omega _X`$. From the cohomology table of $`\stackrel{~}{B}`$,

$$\mathrm{h}^4\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}(1)=\mathrm{h}^4_X(1)+h^4\stackrel{~}{B}(1)=15+1=16.$$

So $`\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}`$ must contain $`𝒪(4)`$ as a direct summand. Since $`rank(\stackrel{~}{B})=6`$, we can deduce that $`\stackrel{~}{P_0^{}}3𝒪(5)𝒪(4)`$. So the Horrocks monad for $`_X`$ is of type

$$3𝒪(5)𝒪(4)\stackrel{~}{B}𝒪(2)$$

and we have the display of the monad:

$`\begin{array}{ccccccc}& & & & 0& & 0\\ & & & & & & & & \\ 0& & 3𝒪(5)𝒪(4)& & 𝒦& & _X& & 0\\ & & & & & & & & \\ 0& & 3𝒪(5)𝒪(4)& & & & 𝒬& & 0.\\ & & & & & & & & \\ & & & & 𝒪(2)& =& 𝒪(2)\\ & & & & & & & & \\ & & & & 0& & 0\end{array}`$ (3.1)
Next we look for an appropriate finite length graded module $`N`$ with Hilbert function $`(1,4,\mathrm{})`$ which is monogeneous. Recall that $`P_0^{}`$ contains $`S(4)`$ as a direct summand. So to construct such a module, we have to find a map $`\varphi :F_2S(2)`$ such that the source of the syzygy matrix of $`f_2\varphi :F_3S(2)`$ includes $`S(4)`$ as a direct summand. For instance, the map given by the matrix

$$\varphi =(1,0,0,0,0,x_0,0,0,x_1,0):F_2S(2)$$

satisfies the desired condition. One shows by straightforward calculations that the cokernel of $`f_2\varphi `$ is of finite length and that $`N`$ has the minimal free resolution of type

| $`0`$ | $``$ | $`N`$ | $``$ | $`S(2)`$ |  | $`S(3)`$ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |  |  | $``$ | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  | $`5S(4)`$ | $``$ | $`7S(5)`$ |  | $`2S(6)`$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $``$ |  | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $`7S(6)`$ | $``$ | $`11S(7)`$ |  | $`4S(8)`$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $``$ | $``$ | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $`3S(8)`$ |  | $`5S(9)`$ | $``$ | $`2S(10)`$ | $``$ | $`0.`$ |

In this case $`𝒦`$ has syzygies of type

|  |  |  |  | $`𝒪(4)`$ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |  | $``$ |
| $`0`$ | $``$ | $`𝒦`$ | $``$ | $`8𝒪(5)`$ |  |  | $`2𝒪(6)`$ |
|  |  |  |  | $``$ |  |  | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  | $`4𝒪(6)`$ |  | $``$ | $`10𝒪(7)`$ |  | $`4𝒪(8)`$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $``$ | $``$ | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $`3𝒪(8)`$ |  | $`5𝒪(9)`$ | $``$ | $`2𝒪(10)`$ | $``$ | $`0.`$ |

The ideal sheaf $`_X`$ will be obtained via an exact sequence

$$03𝒪(5)𝒪(4)𝒦_X0.$$

However $`X`$ will be obtained as the determinantal locus of the general map between the vector bundles $`3𝒪(5)`$ and $``$, where $``$ is the cokernel of a non-zero map $`𝒪(4)𝒦`$. Indeed, the map

$$\psi ={}_{}{}^{t}(0,0,0,1,0,1,0,0,0,0):S(4)F_3$$

forms part of the minimal generating set of $`Syz(f_2\varphi )`$ and a straightforward calculation shows that the cokernel of $`(\psi f_2)^{}`$ is of finite length. This means that for a non-zero element of $`Hom(𝒪(4),𝒦)`$ the cokernel $``$ is a rank four vector bundle. Clearly the minimal free resolution of $``$ is of the form

|  |  |  |  | $`8𝒪(5)`$ |  |  | $`2𝒪(6)`$ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| $`0`$ | $``$ | $``$ | $``$ | $``$ |  |  | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  | $`4𝒪(6)`$ |  | $``$ | $`10𝒪(7)`$ |  | $`4𝒪(8)`$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $``$ | $``$ | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $`3𝒪(8)`$ |  | $`5𝒪(9)`$ | $``$ | $`2𝒪(10)`$ | $``$ | $`0.`$ |

By using Macaulay $`2`$, we can check that the determinantal locus $`V(f)`$ of the general map $`fHom(3𝒪(5),)`$ is a smooth surface. The invariants are computed from the minimal free resolution of $`_X`$. Since $`_X`$ has the presentation

$`03𝒪(5)_X0,`$ (3.2)
the minimal free resolution of $`_X`$ can be computed from that of $``$ and has the shape

|  |  |  |  | $`5𝒪(5)`$ |  |  | $`2𝒪(6)`$ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| $`0`$ | $``$ | $`_X`$ | $``$ | $``$ |  |  | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  | $`4𝒪(6)`$ |  | $``$ | $`10𝒪(7)`$ |  | $`4𝒪(8)`$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $``$ | $``$ | $``$ |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | $`3𝒪(8)`$ |  | $`5𝒪(9)`$ | $``$ | $`2𝒪(10)`$ | $``$ | $`0.`$ |

Computing the Hilbert Polynomial of $`X`$ from this resolution, we conclude that $`X`$ has degree $`d=12`$, sectional genus $`\pi =13`$, and Euler characteristic $`\chi =3`$. From (2.1) we now get $`K^2=0`$. Dualizing (3.2), we obtain

$$0𝒪(5)^{}3𝒪\omega _X0.$$

So $`p_g=3`$ and $`X`$ is irregular with $`q=1`$. Furthermore $`\omega _X`$ is globally generated by its own three sections, and thus these sections define the canonical map

$$\mathrm{\Phi }=\mathrm{\Phi }_K:X^2.$$

Then we have the Stein factorization of $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$:

where $`p`$ has connected fibers. Let $`F`$ be a fiber of $`p`$. Then $`F(F+K)=2K^2=0`$. So it follows from the adjunction formula that $`p_a(F)=1`$, which implies that the smooth fibers of $`p`$ are elliptic curves. Therefore $`X`$ is an elliptic surface. Finally, since $`K^2=0`$, the surface is minimal, which completes the proof. ∎

###### Remark 3.2.

The surface constructed above may also be obtained as the dependency locus of two general sections of a rank three vector bundle on $`^4`$. In fact, in the notation of the above proof, define a homomorphism by

$$\psi ^{}={}_{}{}^{t}(0,x_1,0,0,x_0,0,0,0,0,1):S(5)F_3.$$

Then $`\psi ^{}`$ forms part of the minimal set of generators for $`Syz(f_2\varphi )`$. So $`\psi ^{}`$ induces a map $`g:𝒪(5)`$. One can show by a straightforward calculation that $`g`$ is an injective bundle map. The cokernel $``$ of $`g`$ is a rank three vector bundle on $`^4`$, and thus $`X`$ can be regarded as the dependency locus of two general sections of $``$.

## 4 A liaison construction

We first motivate this second construction. Let $`X`$ be the irregular elliptic surface in $`^4`$ constructed in the previous section. With Macaulay $`2`$ we can check that the quintics containing $`X`$ intersect in

$$V\left(\mathrm{H}^0(_X(5))\right)=XX_0,$$

where $`X_0`$ is a singular rational cubic scroll surface in a hyperplane $`H_0`$ of $`^4`$. The scroll $`X_0`$ may be obtained by projecting a smooth rational cubic scroll $`S`$ in $`^4`$ from a point off $`S`$. The scroll $`S`$ contains a unique directrix line. Let $`L`$ be the image of this line on $`X_0`$.

We can check a few more facts with Macaulay $`2`$. The surface $`X`$ does not intersect the line $`L`$. On the other hand the hyperplane section $`H_0X`$, denoted by $`C_0`$, is equal to $`X_0X`$, and hence $`\mathrm{deg}(C_0)=12`$ and $`\pi (C_0)=13`$. Let $`\stackrel{~}{C_0}`$ and $`\stackrel{~}{L}`$ be the inverse images of $`C_0`$ and $`L`$ respectively on $`S`$. Then $`\stackrel{~}{C_0}3(H_S+\stackrel{~}{L})`$, since $`\stackrel{~}{C_0}`$ does not intersect $`\stackrel{~}{L}`$. Now, $`C_0=XX_0=XH_0`$, so $`XX_0`$ is locally a complete intersection cut out by quintics. Therefore, by Proposition 2.8, $`XX_0`$ can be linked $`(5,5)`$ to a smooth general type surface $`T`$ of degree $`d=10`$, $`\pi =10`$ and $`\chi =4`$. This implies that $`X`$ is reobtained as the residual surface of $`X_0T`$ in the complete intersection of two quintics in $`\mathrm{H}^0(_{X_0T}(5))`$. Let $`C=X_0(XT)`$. Compare the second standard exact sequence

$$0𝒪_{X_0}(K_{X_0})𝒪_{X_0}(5)𝒪_C(5)0$$

with the exact sequence

$$0𝒪_{X_0}(C)𝒪_{X_0}𝒪_C0.$$

Then we can deduce that $`C5H_{X_0}K_{X_0}6H_{X_0}`$. On $`S`$ we get $`\stackrel{~}{C}6H_S`$. Let $`C_1:=X_0T`$ and let $`\stackrel{~}{C_1}`$ be its inverse image on $`S`$. Then $`\stackrel{~}{C_1}3(H_S\stackrel{~}{L})`$, and hence $`\stackrel{~}{C_1}`$, is the disjoint union of six members of the ruling on $`S`$. The singular locus of $`X_0`$ is a line, so $`C`$ has six double points along this line. Three of these appear already on $`C_0`$ since $`p(\stackrel{~}{C_0})=10=p(C_0)3`$ and are precisely the intersection of $`C_0`$ with the singular locus. The other three points are therefore intersections of pairs of rulings in $`C_1`$. Thus $`C_1`$ consists of three disjoint singular conic sections that each lie in a plane that contains the line $`L`$.

We recall some facts about smooth general type surfaces $`T`$ of degree $`d=10`$, $`\pi =10`$ and $`\chi =4`$ from , Proposition 4.18. First of all, any such surface $`T`$ can be linked $`(4,4)`$ to the union of a degenerate cubic scroll $`U_0`$ formed by three planes and a Del Pezzo surface $`U_1`$ of degree $`3`$ such that each plane in $`U_0`$ intersect the hyperplane of $`U_1`$ along the same line $`L`$ on $`U_1`$. The line $`L`$ is the unique $`6`$-secant line to $`T`$. Every hyperplane through $`L`$ intersect $`T`$ in a section which is contained in a cubic surface. Furthermore, the surface $`T`$ is embedded by the linear system

$`|2KA_1A_2A_3|`$ (4.1)
in $`^4`$, where $`A_1`$, $`A_2`$ and $`A_3`$ are pairwise disjoint $`(2)`$-curves embedded as conics that each intersect $`L`$ in two points.

We now want to choose an appropriate surface $`T`$ together with a cubic surface $`X_0`$ such that their union is linked $`(5,5)`$ to a smooth irregular minimal elliptic surface. On such a surface $`T`$ the three conics in $`C_1=X_0T`$ all have a common secant line which coincides with $`L`$, so we assume that $`C_1=A_1A_2A_3`$.

In particular we want $`C_1`$ to be contained in a hyperplane. Let $`D`$ be the residual curve $`H_TC_1`$. Then $`C_1D=C_1(H_TC_1)=6+6=12`$ and $`p_a(D)=1`$ by (2.2). This means that $`D`$ is an elliptic curve of degree $`4`$. So to construct an irregular elliptic surface $`X`$, we find a smooth general type surface $`T`$ in $`^4`$ with $`d=10`$, $`\pi =10`$ and $`\chi =4`$ and a hyperplane $`H_0`$ of $`^4`$ such that

* $`H_0`$ contains the $`6`$-secant $`L`$ to $`T`$;
* $`H_0T=C_1D`$, where $`C_1`$ is the disjoint union of three smooth $`(2)`$-conics and $`D`$ is an elliptic curve of degree $`4`$ such that $`DL=\mathrm{}`$ and $`C_1D`$ consists of $`12`$ points.

Since the hyperplane $`H_0`$ of $`C_1D`$ contains $`L`$, the hyperplane section lies in a unique cubic surface, which we denote by $`U_1`$. On the other hand the curve $`C_1`$ lies in the cubic surface defined by the three planes of the conics in $`C_1`$. The general element of $`\mathrm{H}^0_{C_1,H_0}(3)`$ therefore defines a smooth cubic surface $`X_0`$, which does not coincide with $`U_1`$. We will show that the surface linked $`(5,5)`$ to the reducible surface $`TX_0`$ is a smooth irregular minimal elliptic surface. But first we make the explicit construction.

Construction: Let $`H_0=V(h_0)`$ be a hyperplane of $`^4`$ and $`L=V(h_0,h_1,h_2)`$ a line in $`^4`$. Then three quadric minors $`Q_1,Q_2`$ and $`Q_3`$ of a $`2\times 3`$ matrix whose entries are $``$-linear combinations of $`h_0,h_1`$ and $`h_2`$, define a degenerate cubic scroll $`U_0`$. By construction, $`U_0`$ then consists of three planes through the line $`L`$. Next, we define a cubic Del Pezzo surface $`U_1`$ in $`H_0`$ given by a general cubic $`f`$ in $`\mathrm{H}^0_{L,H_0}(3)`$. An elliptic curve $`D`$ on $`U_1`$, which does not meet $`L`$ can be obtained as the general member of the linear system $`|H_{U_1}+L|`$. Explicitly, we consider a plane conic $`A|H_{U_1}L|`$ on $`U_1`$ and take a quadric $`q\mathrm{H}^0_{A,H_0}(2)`$. Then $`D=BA`$, where $`B=V(h_0,q)`$.

The homogeneous ideal $`I_D`$ of $`D`$ can be written as

$$I_D=(h_0,q_1,q_2),$$

where $`q_1,q_2\mathrm{H}^0𝒪_{H_0}(2)`$ such that $`f(q_1,q_2)`$. Consider the double structure $`D_2=V(h_0^2,q_1,q_2)^4`$. Then $`D_2`$ is not contained in $`U_1`$. Multiplication by $`h_0`$ defines the following exact sequence:

$$0_{U_0D}(3)\stackrel{h_0}{}_{U_1U_0D_2}(4)_{(U_1U_0D_2)H_0,H_0}(4)0.$$

Consider the exact sequence

$$0_{U_0}(2)\stackrel{h_0}{}_{U_0D}(3)_{(U_0D)H_0,H_0}(3)0.$$

The curve $`(U_0D)H_0`$ is the union of the first order neighborhood on $`L`$ and the elliptic curve $`D`$ of degree $`4`$ with $`DL=\mathrm{}`$, so we have $`\mathrm{H}^0_{(U_0D)H_0,H_0}(3)=0`$. We therefore conclude that $`\mathrm{h}^0_{U_0D}(3)=\mathrm{h}^0_{U_0}(2)=3`$. Furthermore, $`\mathrm{H}^0_{(U_1U_0D)H_0,H_0}(4)\mathrm{H}^0_{L,H_0}(1)`$, and hence $`\mathrm{h}^0_{U_1U_0D_2}(4)5`$.

On the other hand, the following example tells us that $`\mathrm{h}^0_{U_1U_0D_2}(4)5`$:

###### Example 4.1.

Let $`S=[x_0,\mathrm{},x_4]`$ be the homogeneous coordinate ring of $`^4`$. We define the homogeneous ideals $`I_{H_0},I_L,I_{U_0},I_{U_1}`$ and $`I_D`$ by

$`I_{H_0}`$ $`=(h_0)=(x_1);`$
$`I_L`$ $`=(h_0,h_1,h_2)=(x_0,x_1,x_4);`$
$`I_{U_0}`$ $`=(Q_1,Q_2,Q_3)=((x_1x_4)(x_4x_0),(x_4x_0)(x_1+x_0),(x_1+x_0)(x_1x_4));`$
$`I_{U_1}`$ $`=(h_0,f)=(x_1,(x_4x_0x_2x_3)x_0+(x_2^2+x_3^2+x_4^2)x_4);`$
$`I_D`$ $`=(h_0,q_1,q_2)=(x_1,x_4x_0x_2x_3,x^2+x_3^2+x_4^2).`$
Then the following quartics form part of the minimal generating set of $`I_{U_1U_0D_2}`$:

$`g_1`$ $`=(x_1^2x_4^2)h_0^2;`$
$`g_2`$ $`=(x_1^2+x_4^2+Q_3)h_0^2;`$
$`g_3`$ $`=h_0^2q_2(x_0x_4+x_1x_4)Q_1+(q_1+x_1x_4x_4^2)Q_2+q_2Q_3+x_4^2q_2;`$
$`g_4`$ $`=(x_1^2x_4^2Q_2Q_3)h_0^2;`$
$`g_5`$ $`=q_2h_0^2+(x_1x_4+x_4^2)Q_2+(x_2x_3+x_4^2)Q_3x_4^2q_2.`$
The sequence of global sections

$$0\mathrm{H}^0_{U_0D}(3)\stackrel{h_0}{}\mathrm{H}^0_{U_1U_0D_2}(4)\mathrm{H}^0_{(U_1U_0D_2)H_0,H_0}(4)0.$$

is therefore exact. Let $`f_1,f_2`$ be general elements in $`\mathrm{H}^0_{U_1U_0D_2}(4)`$. By Bertini, the complete intersection $`V(f_1)`$ and $`V(f_2)`$ is singular at most along the base locus of the quartics in $`\mathrm{H}^0_{U_1U_0D_2}(4)`$. Therefore $`U_0U_1`$ is linked $`(4,4)`$ to a smooth surface $`T`$ of $`d=10`$ and $`\pi =10`$ in the complete intersection $`V(f_1,f_2)`$. The surface $`T`$ contains $`D_2`$, and hence $`D`$. Notice that $`TH_0=TU_1`$. We denote $`TU_1`$ by $`C`$ and the residual curve $`CD`$ by $`C_1`$. Since $`\mathrm{deg}(C)=10`$ and $`p_a(C)=10`$, the divisor $`C`$ of $`U_1`$ can be written as

$$C=4H_{U_1}2L.$$

So $`C_1=3(H_{U_1}L)`$, which implies that $`C_1`$ is the disjoint union of three conics and the intersection $`DC_1`$ is $`12`$ points. Each conic of $`C_1`$ is contained in a unique plane, and these three planes form a cubic surface $`U_{\mathrm{}}`$ in $`H_0`$. So we have the pencil of cubics containing $`C_1`$ spanned by $`U_1`$ and $`U_{\mathrm{}}`$, and the general member of this pencil is smooth. Therefore we may choose a smooth cubic surface $`X_0`$ containing $`C_1`$ such that $`X_0U_1`$ and does not contain $`D`$. But $`D`$ is a quartic curve, so $`X_0D`$ is 12 points (distinct by a general choice of $`X_0`$). Therefore $`X_0D=C_1D`$, and $`C_1=X_0T`$. In particular $`X_0`$ and $`T`$ intersect transversally along $`C_1`$, and hence $`Y=TX_0`$ is locally complete intersection.

###### Theorem 4.2.

The reducible surface $`Y`$ is linked $`(5,5)`$ to a minimal smooth elliptic surface with $`d=12`$$`\pi =13`$$`p_g=3`$, and $`q=1`$.

###### Proof.

For smoothness it suffices, by Proposition 2.8, to show that $`_Y(5)`$ is globally generated. We first estimate $`\mathrm{h}^0(_Y(5))`$:

###### Lemma 4.3.

The residual exact sequence

$$0_T(4)\stackrel{h_0}{}_Y(5)_{YH_0,H_0}(5)0$$

remains exact on global sections.

###### Proof.

We have already shown that the residual curve $`D=CC_1`$ is an elliptic curve of degree $`4`$. So $`\mathrm{H}^0_{YH_0,H_0}(5)\mathrm{H}^0_{DX_0,H_0}(5)\mathrm{H}^0_{D,H_0}(2)`$, and thus $`\mathrm{h}^0_{YH_0,H_0}(5)=2`$. On the other hand $`\mathrm{h}^0_T(4)=3`$ and $`\mathrm{h}^1_T(4)=1`$ by . In order to prove the lemma, it is therefore enough to show that $`\mathrm{h}^0_Y(5)=5`$. Let $`H=V(h)`$ be a hyperplane containing the $`6`$-secant line $`L`$ to $`T`$, but not $`X_0`$. Then multiplication by $`h`$ defines the exact sequence

$$0_Y(4)\stackrel{h}{}_Y(5)_{YH,H}(5)0.$$

If $`\mathrm{h}^0_{YH,H}(5)=7`$, then $`\mathrm{h}^0_Y(5)=5`$, because $`\mathrm{h}^0_Y(4)=0,\mathrm{h}^1_Y(4)=2`$ and $`\mathrm{h}^2_Y(4)=0`$. So we shall show that $`\mathrm{h}^0_{YH,H}(5)=7`$.

Since $`H`$ contains $`L`$, the hyperplane section $`YH`$ consists of $`L`$, a conic $`W_0`$ in $`X_0`$ and the hyperplane section $`Z=TH`$. For simplicity, $`ZL`$ will be denoted by $`W_1`$. Then multiplication by $`h_0`$ defines the exact sequence

$`0_{W_1}(4)\stackrel{h_0}{}_{W_0W_1}(5)_{(W_0W_1)P,P}(5)0,`$ (4.2)
where $`P=HH_0`$. The vector space $`H^0_{(W_0W_1)P,P}(5)`$ is spanned by the conics in $`P`$ containing the $`4`$ points obtained as $`TPTL`$, so $`\mathrm{h}^0_{(W_0W_1)P,P}(5)=2`$.

On the other hand $`ZL=6`$, so

$`p_a(W_1)=p_a(Z)+p_a(L)+ZL1=100+61=15.`$
By the Riemann-Roch formula,

$`\chi (𝒪_{W_1}(4))=4\mathrm{deg}(W_1)+1p_a(W_1)=44+115=30,`$
and hence $`\chi (_{W_1}(4))=5`$, which implies that $`\mathrm{h}^0_{W_1}(4)5`$. But $`\mathrm{h}^0_{W_1}(4)\mathrm{h}^0_Z(4)5`$, so $`\mathrm{h}^0_{W_1}(4)=5`$ and $`\mathrm{h}^1_{W_1}(4)=0`$. Thus from (4.2) we have $`\mathrm{h}^0_{W_1W_2}(5)=7`$. ∎

###### Lemma 4.4.

The reducible surface $`Y=TX_0`$ is scheme-theoretic cut out by $`5`$ quintic hypersurfaces.

###### Proof.

By Lemma 4.3 the residual sequence

$$0_T(4)\stackrel{h_0}{}_Y(5)_{DX_0,H_0}(5)0$$

remains exact after taking global sections, so the intersection of the base locus in the middle with $`H_0`$ coincides with the base locus on the right. But $`_{DX_0,H_0}(5)`$ is globally generated by its own two global sections, because $`\mathrm{H}^0_{DX_0,H_0}(5)\mathrm{H}^0_{D,H_0}(2)`$, so the base locus of the quintics through $`Y`$ would be in $`U_0`$. As we can check in the example given in , p.107, there is a quintic hypersurface $`V`$ through $`Y`$ such that $`V`$ does not contain any plane of $`U_0`$. So this is the general property, and hence we may assume the existence of such a quintic hypersurface $`V`$. Note that $`V`$ intersects each plane of $`U_0`$ in a quartic plane curve in $`T`$ and the line $`L`$ in $`X_0`$. So $`Y`$ is scheme-theoretically cut out by $`5`$ quintics. ∎

Now we compute the sectional genus $`\pi `$, the geometric genus $`p_g`$ and the irregularity $`q`$ of $`X`$. From the standard liaison sequence

$$0𝒪_X(K_X)𝒪_{TX_0X}(5)𝒪_{TX_0}(5)0,$$

we have the exact sequence

$`0_{TX_0X}(5)_{TX_0}(5)𝒪_X(K_X)0.`$ (4.3)
Twisting by $`𝒪(1)`$ and taking cohomology, we can compute the speciality

$$s=\mathrm{h}^1𝒪_X(H_X)=\mathrm{h}^1𝒪_X(K_XH_X)=\mathrm{h}^1_{TX_0}(4)=\mathrm{h}^1_T(3)=2.$$

The exact sequence remains exact on global sections, because $`TX_0X`$ is a complete intersection of two quintics. Recall, from above, that $`\mathrm{h}^0_{TX_0}(5)=5`$, so we have

$$p_g=\mathrm{h}^0𝒪_X(K_X)=\mathrm{h}^0_{TX_0}(5)\mathrm{h}^0_{TX_0X}(5)=52=3.$$

Since $`\chi (𝒪_X)=\chi (𝒪_X(K_X))=\chi (_{TX_0}(5))\chi (_{TX_0X}(5))=3`$, we have $`q=1`$. Now the speciality $`s=\mathrm{h}^1𝒪_X(H_X)=2`$ and $`\mathrm{h}^2𝒪_X(H_X)=0`$, so by Riemann Roch

$$H_XK_X=H_X^2+2\chi (𝒪_X)2\chi (𝒪_X(H_X))=12+232(52)=12.$$

In particular, by the adjunction formula, $`\pi =13`$. Formula (2.1) yields $`K^2=0`$.

Finally we show that $`X`$ is an elliptic surface. To do this, we show that $`X`$ is minimal. Since $`K^2=0`$ and $`p_g=3`$, it is enough to prove that $`K`$ has no fixed components. Let $`C=(XT)X_0`$. By the standard liaison sequence

$$0𝒪_{X_0}(K_{X_0})𝒪_{X_0}(5)𝒪_C(5)0$$

and the exact sequence

$$0𝒪_{X_0}(C)𝒪_{X_0}𝒪_C0,$$

we can see that $`C5H_{X_0}K_{X_0}6H_{X_0}`$. Recall that $`C_1=TX_0`$ is the residual curve $`TH_0D`$. So $`C_13H_{X_0}3L`$ on $`X_0`$. Therefore $`C_0=XX_03H_{X_0}+3L`$. In particular $`C_0`$ has degree $`12`$, which implies that $`XX_0`$ is equal to the hyperplane section $`H_X=XH_0`$. Applying the analogous argument to $`X`$ shows that $`(TX_0)X=5H_XK_X`$. Thus $`XT4H_XK_X`$. This says that any quartic hypersurface containing $`T`$ intersects $`X`$ in $`XT`$ and $`K_X`$. Note that there is a net of such quartics. Consider the following commutative diagram

The global sections of $`_T(4)`$ are mapped to $`\mathrm{H}^0𝒪_X(K_X)`$ injectively, because we have chosen two general quintics of $`\mathrm{H}^0_{TX_0}(5)`$. Since $`p_g=3`$, we have an isomorphism

$$\mathrm{H}^0_T(4)\mathrm{H}^0𝒪_X(K_X).$$

This implies that every canonical divisor of $`X`$ appears in the way described above. Notice that the base locus of the quartics through $`T`$ is the union of $`T`$ and the three planes $`U_0`$. Therefore any base component of $`|K_X|`$ would lie in $`U_0`$. As claimed in the proof of Lemma 4.4, any quintic through $`T`$ which does not contain any plane of $`U_0`$ intersects each plane of $`U_0`$ in a quartic plane curve in $`T`$ and the line in $`X_0`$. So if there would be a curve in $`XU_0`$, then this curve would meet $`L`$. On the other hand, $`C_0L=(3H_{X_0}+3L)L=0`$ on $`X_0`$. This is a contradiction, and hence $`|K_X|`$ has no fixed component. ∎

###### Remark 4.5.

Let $`X`$ be an irregular elliptic surface given as above. We have shown that the canonical system $`|K_X|`$ is base point free. In other words, the canonical bundle $`\omega _X`$ is generated by its own three global sections, because $`p_g=3`$. This leads to the following:

(i) The canonical system $`|K_X|`$ defines a morphism $`\mathrm{\Phi }:X^2`$, and $`dim\mathrm{\Phi }(X)=1`$, because $`K_X^2=0`$. Let $`\mathrm{\Phi }=sr`$ be the Stein factorization of $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$. Then, as we saw in the proof of Theorem 3.1, the smooth fibers of $`r`$ are elliptic curves.

(ii) From the generalized Serre correspondence  it follows that there is a rank four vector bundle $``$ with Chern classes $`(c_1,c_2,c_3,c_4)=(5,12,12,0)`$ and three sections of $``$ whose dependency locus is $`X`$. However we have not been able to prove that every irregular elliptic surface we have constructed above arises from a rank three vector bundle on $`^4`$ with Chern classes $`(c_1,c_2,c_3)=(5,12,12)`$ (compare Remark 3.2).

###### Remark 4.6.

Let $`X`$ be a smooth surface in $`^4`$ with $`d=12`$, $`\pi =13`$, $`p_g=3`$ and $`q=1`$. Is it clear that the $`X`$ is as above? In this last remark we sketch an argument why this is true as soon as $`\mathrm{h}^1_X(2)=1`$. We conjecture, but cannot prove that this is always the case. If $`\mathrm{h}^1_X(2)=1`$, then $`\mathrm{h}^2_X(2)=1`$ by the Riemann-Roch theorem. Using Beilinson’s theorem  and a remark in , we can deduce that $`\mathrm{h}^2_X(3)=0`$, and thus $`\mathrm{h}^1_X(3)=4`$. This implies that there exists the unique hyperplane $`H_0`$ such that $`\mathrm{h}^0_{XH_0}(3)=1`$. Let $`X_0`$ be the unique cubic surface in $`H_0`$ containing $`XH_0`$. Then the residual surface $`XX_0`$ is locally complete intersection, because $`XH_0`$ and $`XX_0`$ coincide. Suppose that $`XX_0`$ is scheme-theoretically cut out by quintics. Then the linked surface $`T`$ is a smooth general type surface of $`d=10`$, $`\pi =10`$ and $`\chi =4`$. So $`X`$ is reobtained as the surface linked $`(5,5)`$ to $`TX_0`$, and hence $`X`$ is an elliptic surface as above.


text:
# Frustrated spin model as a hard-sphere liquid

## Abstract

We show that one-dimensional topological objects (kinks) are natural degrees of freedom for an antiferromagnetic Ising model on a triangular lattice. Its ground states and the coexistence of spin ordering with an extensive zero-temperature entropy can be easily understood in terms of kinks forming a hard-sphere liquid. Using this picture we explain effects of quantum spin dynamics on that frustrated model, which we also study numerically.

Geometrically frustrated materials recently emerged as a new broad class of solids with interesting and rather unusual properties SchifferRamirez . While some of these systems stay disordered at all temperatures, others order often in an unexpected way, showing no universality typical for critical behavior of conventional systems. One may wonder, however, to which extent the complexity of ground states and excitations of frustrated models is their genuine property and to which it is, essentially, a conventional behavior obscured by an unfortunate choice of variables, in which these models are formulated. In this Letter we consider a frustrated Ising model showing a spin-density-wave (SDW) ordering, more common for systems with continuous symmetries. We explain the origin of this strange behavior and give a simple description of ground states of that model (the number of which grows exponentially with the system size) by mapping it on a hard-sphere liquid. We use this approach to study the role of quantum spin fluctuations, which for frustrated systems is a challenging theoretical problem Waldtmann ; CanalsLacroix . We also show that the low-energy states of our model form a large number of valleys separated by energy barriers, which prevents the system from reaching thermal equilibrium at low temperatures, but does not result in a spin-glass behavior in the absence of quenched disorder AeppliChandra ; Gardner .

One of the simplest classical frustrated models describes the Ising spins $`\sigma _i=\pm 1`$ on sites of a triangular lattice with nearest-neighbor antiferromagnetic interactions:

$$E=J\underset{i,j}{}\sigma _i\sigma _j,J>0.$$
(1)
This system stays disordered at all nonzero temperatures Wannier ; Houtappel , while at $`T=0`$ the spins order periodically

$$\sigma _i\sigma _j\frac{1}{r_{ij}^\eta }\mathrm{cos}\frac{2\pi r_{ij}}{3},$$
(2)
where $`r_{ij}`$ is the distance between the spins and $`\eta =1/2`$ Stephenson . This algebraic order coexists with an extensive zero temperature entropy $`S_00.323k_B`$ per spin Wannier ; Houtappel .

This entropically induced ordering resembles the crystallization in hard-sphere liquids at high volume fractions Alder ; Weber . We show below that the model Eq.(1) can indeed be mapped on a two-dimensional liquid of topological domain walls (kinks), the motion of which is confined to one spatial dimension. This mapping also provides useful insights into the physics of the quantum version of Eq.(1)

$$H=J\underset{i,j}{}\sigma _i^z\sigma _j^zh\underset{i}{}\sigma _i^x,$$
(3)
where $`\sigma _i^{x,z}`$ are the Pauli matrices and $`h`$ is the transverse field (the classical and quantum frustrated models Eq.(1) and Eq.(3) are referred to below as, respectively, CFM and QFM). The critical behavior in the QFM was recently discussed by Moessner et al., who argued that the ordering of quantum spins is long-ranged at low temperatures and that the ordered and disordered phases are separated by a phase with algebraically decaying spin correlations MoessnerSondhiChandra ; MoessnerSondhi . Here we show that the difference in the critical behavior of the CFM and QFM originates from a higher rigidity of the quantum kink crystal. We also perform numerical simulations of the QFM and find an unexpected specific heat anomaly at strong transverse fields.

Kinks in frustrated Ising model: We shall consider the triangular lattice as an array of coupled chains, running in the $`x`$-direction. As neighboring chains are shifted with respect to each other, we will distinguish even and odd chains. In each chain we perform the transformation from spins to kinks, which are domain walls separating two different Neel states and carrying the topological charge $`q=\pm 1`$ (kinks and antikinks). The chain energy equals $`2JN`$, where $`N`$ is the number of kinks, independent of kink positions. The interchain spin coupling gives rise to interactions between pairs of kinks in neighboring chains with the potential

$$V(x_ox_e)=2Jq_oq_e\text{sign}(x_ox_e),$$
(4)
where $`q_o`$($`q_e`$) and $`x_o`$($`x_e`$) are, respectively, the topological charges and $`x`$-coordinates of the kinks in the odd(even) chain. This potential only depends on the sign of the relative coordinate $`x_ox_e`$. Therefore, the energy of the CFM is completely determined by the number of kinks and their relative ordering in neighboring chains. These loose interactions between kinks are much different from those in unfrustrated models (e.g., the Ising model on a square lattice) which grow linearly with the distance between kinks, confining them into pairs.

While in unfrustrated models the density of kinks vanishes at low temperatures, in the CFM kinks are present in ground states. In the energetically most favorable relative ordering the $`q=+1`$ kink in an odd chain has the nearest-neighbor $`q=+1(1)`$ kinks in two neighboring even chains from the right/left and vice versa (see Fig. 1a), in which case the kink creation energy $`2J`$ is exactly compensated by the energy of its interactions with kinks in neighboring chains, i.e. in the ground states kinks cost no energy. For the favorable relative ordering the number of kinks $`N`$ in each chain has to be the same. Therefore, the ground states form distinct classes labeled by $`N`$. Since shifts of kinks that preserve the ordering do not change energy, each class still contains a large number of states, resulting in an extensive ground state entropy.

To describe the statistics of kinks in the ground state class $`N`$, we introduce the ‘wave function’ $`\mathrm{\Psi }_N\{z\}`$, which equals the number of the minimal-energy kink configurations in the lower half-plane for fixed positions of the $`N`$ kinks in the uppermost chain represented by $`\{z\}=(z_1,z_2,\mathrm{},z_N)`$, where $`z_j=e^{2\pi i\frac{x_j}{L_x}}`$ and $`L_x`$ is the chain length. One can then add one more chain from above and obtain an eigenvalue equation for the wave function

$$\lambda _N\mathrm{\Psi }_N\{z\}=\underset{\{z^{}\}}{}^{}\mathrm{\Psi }_N\{z^{}\},$$
(5)
where the $`^{}`$ denotes the summation that preserves the energetically favorable relative ordering of kinks with the coordinates $`\{z\}`$ and $`\{z^{}\}`$ in two neighboring chains. The solution of Eq.(5) is the absolute value of the van der Monde determinant

$$\mathrm{\Psi }_N(z_1,z_2,\mathrm{},z_N)\underset{i<j}{}|z_iz_j|,$$
(6)
It can also be written in the form of the Slater determinant of $`N`$ plane waves $`e^{ik_nx_j}`$ ($`n,j=1,2,\mathrm{},N`$) with the wave vectors $`k_n`$ taking values in the Fermi sea $`k_F<k<+k_F`$, where the Fermi wave vector $`k_F`$ is related to the density of kinks $`n=\frac{N}{L_x}`$ by $`k_F=\pi n`$. Thus, Eq.(6) is the ground-state wave function of $`N`$ fermions in the chain with $`L_x`$ sites and the kinks can be identified with the fermions appearing in the transfer-matrix solution of the CFM PeschelEmery .

The eigenvalue $`\lambda _N`$ in Eq.(5) is related to the number of the ground states in this class, $`W_N`$, by $`W_N=\lambda _N^{L_y}`$ ($`L_y`$ is the number of chains). In the limit $`L_x,L_y\mathrm{}`$ and for a fixed kink density $`n`$, $`\lambda _Ne^{L_xS(n)}\frac{2\pi }{\sqrt{L_x\mathrm{tan}\frac{\pi n}{2}}}`$, where $`S(n)`$ is the ground-state entropy per site

$$S(n)=\frac{1}{\pi }_0^{\pi n}𝑑\varphi \mathrm{ln}\left(2\mathrm{cos}\frac{\varphi }{2}\right).$$
(7)
For $`n=\frac{1}{3}`$, at which $`S(n)`$ has its maximum, Eq.(7) gives the value $`0.323k_B`$ cited above.

The joint distribution function $`P_N(\{z\})`$ of $`N`$ kinks in a chain is obtained by summing over all minimal-energy configurations of kinks in the chains both below and above this chain, which gives

$$P_N\{z\}=\mathrm{\Psi }_N^2\{z\}\underset{i<j}{}|z_iz_j|^2.$$
(8)
The spin correlation function along chains $`\sigma _x\sigma _0`$ = $`()^x()^{K(x)}`$, where $`K(x)`$ is the number of the kinks in the interval $`[0,x]`$. Using Eq.(8), the spin correlator can be written in the form of the Toeplitz determinant: $`\sigma _x\sigma _0=()^xdetf_{nm}`$, where $`f_{nm}=\delta _{nm}\frac{2}{L_x}\frac{\mathrm{sin}\frac{\pi (nm)x}{L_x}}{\mathrm{sin}\frac{\pi (nm)}{L_x}}`$. For $`1xL_x`$, the determinant $`\frac{1}{\sqrt{x}}\mathrm{cos}k_Fx`$, so that for $`k_F=\frac{\pi }{3}`$ we recover Eq.(2). In general, the ground state class with $`N`$ kinks/chain has an algebraic SDW order with the wave vector $`q=\pi (1n)`$, which we interpret as the $`2k_F`$-instability of the kink Fermi sea. For Ising-type models with the discrete $`Z_2`$ symmetry such SDW states are very unusual.

The number of ground states $`W_N`$ has a sharp peak at $`N_{}=L_x/3`$: $`W_N\mathrm{exp}\left[\text{const}\frac{L_y}{L_x}\left(NN_{}\right)^2\right]`$. Though the number of classes significantly contributing to the CFM partition function stays finite in the thermodynamic limit, all of them are essentially identical copies of the class with $`n=1/3`$, since the corresponding SDW vectors deviate from $`q=2\pi /3`$ by an amount $`1/L_x`$. Furthermore, the deviation of the total ground state entropy per spin $`S=\frac{1}{L}\mathrm{ln}_NW_N`$, where $`L=L_xL_y`$ is the number of spins, from the entropy of a single class Eq.(7) at $`n=\frac{1}{3}`$ is $`O(1/L)`$. Thus, in the thermodynamic limit it suffices to consider only one class with 1 kink per 3 sites.

Quantum model: The transverse field $`h`$ in Eq.(3) flips spins, resulting in hopping of kinks along the chains, as well as in creation/annihilation of kink-antikink pairs on neighboring chain sites. For $`hJ`$ the hopping plays the dominant role, as it mixes degenerate classical ground states within each class, whereas the kink-antikink pairs cost energy $`4J`$ and only appear virtually, renormalizing the kink dispersion: $`E(k)2h\mathrm{cos}k+\frac{h^2}{J}\left(\mathrm{sin}^2k+\frac{1}{6}\right)`$. Here $`k`$ is the kink wave vector, the first term is due to the hopping of kinks on neighboring sites, and the second term contains contributions from the dressing of kinks and the ground state by one virtual kink-antikink pair. For $`h,TJ`$ the positions of the dressed kinks satisfy the same restrictions as in the classical ground states and $`h`$ is the only relevant energy scale. In other words, kinks form a quantum hard sphere liquid. The restricted motion of kinks makes the quantum system more rigid than the classical one and gives rise to phonon-like excitations with velocity $`h`$.

In the CFM kinks only crystallize at $`T=0`$. At any nonzero temperature the algebraic order is destroyed by dislocations in the kink crystal with energy $`2J`$ (see Fig.1b), which in the classical model are unbound. The latter leads to the asymptotic behavior of the spin correlation function at $`TJ`$ Stephenson , given by the right-hand side of Eq.(2) multiplied by $`e^{r_{ij}/\xi }`$, where $`\xi =e^{2\beta J}`$ is the average distance between the dislocations. On the other hand, in the QFM phonons result in two-dimensional Coulomb interactions $`U(r)h\mathrm{ln}r`$ between the dislocations separated by a distance $`r`$, binding them into pairs at a finite temperature $`T_1h`$, below which the spin correlations decay algebraically Kosterlitz . Upon lowering temperature, the exponent $`\eta `$ (see Eq.(2)) decreases, as the kink crystal becomes more rigid, which ultimately leads to the pinning of the kink crystal by the lattice at some temperature $`T_2<T_1`$, below which the phonons become gapped and the spin ordering becomes long-ranged PokrovskyUmin ; Jose ; HalperinNelson . A cartoon of the quantum kink crystal with 1 kink per 3 sites is shown in Fig.1c. To gain kinetic energy each kink is delocalized over one bond (such bonds are shown as dimers) and the bonds are arranged in a way that ensures the energetically favorable ordering of kinks. This state corresponds to the SDW state with the wave vector $`q=\frac{2\pi }{3}`$ (see Fig. 1d), in which the spins antiferromagnetically ordered along the $`z`$ axis form a bipartite hexagonal lattice, while the spins located in the centers of the hexagons are oriented along the transverse field, since the fields from their neighbors add to zero.

Thus for weak transverse fields $`hJ`$, the QFM describes a kink crystal that melts like a crystal of adsorption atoms on a substrate lattice, i.e. the melting is preceded by a depinning transition and the solid phase is separated from the liquid phase by a ‘floating crystal phase’ with algebraic crystal order PokrovskyUmin ; Jose ; HalperinNelson . In the context of the QFM this phase diagram was recently suggested by Moessner et al. MoessnerSondhiChandra ; MoessnerSondhi , who studied the critical behavior of the QFM in the vicinity the quantum critical point, i.e. in the opposite limit of strong transverse fields $`hJ`$. Two-dimensional crystals are also known to melt via a single first-order transition due to proliferation of the boundaries between degenerate crystal phases HalperinNelson ; Chui ; Weber . We compare these two scenarios to our numerical results.

Numerical results: We performed Monte Carlo simulations of the QFM using the continuous time algorithm Prokof'ev , calculating the temperature dependence of the specific heat $`c`$ and the susceptibilities $`\chi _q=M_q^2/L`$, where $`M_q=_j\sigma _j^z\mathrm{cos}qx_j`$ and $`q`$ is a multiple of $`\frac{2\pi }{L_x}`$. A large value of $`\chi _q`$ is a signature of the SDW state with the wave vector $`q`$. We also calculate the finite system ‘order parameter’ $`m=\sqrt{M_{2\pi /3}^2}/L`$.

The behavior of the model is most spectacular for weak transverse fields, $`hJ=1`$, when one can see a clear difference between the classical and quantum regimes. In Fig.2 we plot the specific heat and ‘order parameter’ as a function of the ratio $`T/h`$, varying over four decades and covering both the classical region $`hT,J`$ and the quantum region $`h,TJ`$. The ‘classical points’ are calculated at $`h=0.01`$, while the ‘quantum data’ is a collection for many $`(h,T)`$ points, which fall on smooth curves when plotted versus $`T/h`$, showing that in the quantum regime $`h`$ is indeed the only relevant energy scale. The specific heat has two maxima: one at $`TJ`$, which also exists in the classical model, and another at $`Th`$, due to quantum superpositions of classical ground states. To show that the huge degeneracy of the classical model is lifted by a transverse field, we calculate the entropy release related to the low-$`T`$ maximum, $`\mathrm{\Delta }S=_0^T_{}\frac{dT}{T}c`$, where $`hT_{}J`$. The numerical integration that uses the smooth-curve fit of the MC data (see Fig.2) gives $`\mathrm{\Delta }S=0.32k_B`$, in perfect agreement with the zero temperature entropy of the classical model. The ‘classical maximum’ corresponds to the disappearance of defects in the kink crystal with the energy $`J`$, which in finite systems induces an algebraic spin ordering with $`\eta =\frac{1}{2}`$, just as in the CFM at $`T=0`$. The latter is clear from the temperature dependence of the ‘order parameter’, which grows fast at $`TJ`$ and stays constant at $`hTJ`$. At $`Th`$, the ‘order parameter’ grows again, reflecting the increasing stiffness of the kink crystal due to the quantum motion of kinks, which results in a decrease of the exponent $`\eta `$ and, perhaps, in the appearance of the long-range order. The smooth temperature dependence of $`c`$ and $`m`$ is evidence against a first-order transition and is compatible with the two phase-transitions scenario, since both transitions are expected to be of the Kosterlitz-Thouless type Jose . Furthermore, in a finite system the transition at the upper critical temperature $`T_1hJ`$, describing the dislocation binding does not occur, as all dislocations disappear at much higher temperature $`J`$. The lower critical transition is also rather difficult to identify, since the algebraic order with $`\eta =1/9`$ at $`T=T_2+0`$ Jose  is practically indistinguishable from the long-range order at $`T<T_2`$.

In Figs. 3(a) and (b) we plot $`\chi \chi _{2\pi /3}`$ and $`m`$ vs temperature, for the strong transverse field $`h=J=1`$, $`L_x=96`$, and $`L_y=20,40`$, and $`80`$. For $`\beta <1.5`$, the susceptibility/spin $`\chi `$ is independent of $`L_y`$, corresponding to a disordered phase, while for $`\beta >2`$, the ‘order parameter’ $`m`$ shows little size-dependence for large $`L_y`$, indicating a long-range ordering. On the basis of our data it is difficult to conclude whether the intermediate region $`1.5<\beta <2`$ is the ‘algebraic’ phase with temperature-dependent $`\eta `$ or it is a vicinity of a single transition. Note, that the specific heat has a rather sharp kink at $`\beta 1.8`$, at which its behavior changes from approximately temperature-independent to $`T^2`$-dependence, corresponding to the specific heat of phonons in the two-dimensional kink crystal (see Fig. 3(d)). Also the susceptibility $`\overline{\chi }=_{q2\pi /3}\chi _q`$, describing SDWs with subdominant harmonics has a peak at $`\beta =1.75`$ (see Fig. 3(c)), suggesting a single transition, which may be attributed to a sudden loss of rigidity of the kink crystal.

Topological spin glass?: We found that for $`\beta J>2`$ it is effectively impossible to bring a large system into thermal equilibrium, as it ‘freezes’ in one of the SDW states with $`q2\pi /3`$. This ‘glassy’ behavior is related to the existence of different ground state classes, which in the quantum case transform into an array of energy valleys separated by barriers. At low $`T`$ the barriers become impenetrable, as the tunneling between neighboring classes requires creating/annihilating a kink-antikink pair in all chains. Does such an energy landscape lead to a spin-glass behavior in the absence of quenched disorder and should the ‘kink’ in $`c(T)`$ at $`T0.6`$ (see Fig. 3c) be interpreted as a spin-glass transition? We believe that the answer is negative, because (as in the CFM) the number of important energy minima in the thermodynamics limit stays finite, all of them describing essentially the same state. In our low-$`T`$ simulations we select the state with $`q=2\pi /3`$ by an appropriate initial spin configuration.

In conclusion, we explained unusual properties of the classical and quantum frustrated Ising models by mapping them on a system of kinks, which behave like hard spheres. We showed that the quantum spin dynamics makes the kink crystal more rigid, resulting in a long range ordering at low temperatures. We studied numerically the temperature dependence of specific heat and spin susceptibility in weak and strong transverse fields.

This work is supported by the MSC$`^{\text{plus}}`$ program and the NSF grant DMR 0071767. We thank R. Moessner and A. Tsvelik for useful discussions.


text:
# EXO: the Enriched Xenon Observatory for Double Beta Decay

## 1 Introduction

The EXO experiment is a search for $`0\nu \beta \beta `$ in 136Xe, using several unique strategies to achieve high sensitivity to small neutrino masses. It consists of a liquid Xe TPC in which we read out both the ionization and the scintillation signals produced by double beta decays, thereby obtaining the requisite energy resolution. It also incorporates a technique for laser tagging the daughter nucleus, 136Ba. We refer the reader to an earlier publication by our collaboration that describes in detail the theory of our detection scheme . Here, we give a status report on the R&D program currently underway that is leading to a 10 ton liquid 136Xe detector that incorporates this novel approach.

## 2 Xenon purification and Ba ion extraction R&D

In our system optimum Xe purity is achieved by means of a SAES hot Zr getter through which the Xe gas is passed, leaving behind any substances that react with the hot Zr. Figure 1 shows a simplified diagram of our setup.

Using an adaptation of a technique first demonstrated by Carugno, et al. , we measure the resulting purity by condensing the Xe into a test cell and drifting electrons through it. Our test cell holds about 100cc of liquid Xe and contains an anode, field shaping electrodes and a cathode with a 207Bi source attached to it. Using an adaptation of a technique first demonstrated by Carugno, et al. , we measure the resulting purity by condensing the Xe into a test cell and drifting electrons through it. Our test cell holds about 100cc of liquid Xe and contains an anode, field shaping electrodes and a cathode with a 207Bi source attached to it. The ionization charge liberated by the radioactivity from the source is drifted across the 6cm length of the cell. The electron lifetime is determined by comparing the charge signal amplitude when it leaves the cathode to when it arrives at the anode. Figure 2 shows a diagram of our purity cell and a sample oscilloscope trace of the shaped output from our charge sensitive amplifier. In the scope trace, the positive pulse corresponds to the signal induced by electrons leaving the cathode; the negative pulse, electrons arriving at the anode. Note that only a very slight decrease in pulse amplitude is apparent.

We are also investigating the possibility of extracting the Ba ion from the liquid and releasing it into an analysis chamber for identification. We have developed a special cell in which a small amount of liquid Xe is condensed. A 230U source emits 222Ra ions into the liquid. We then attempt to extract these ions from liquid solution by means of an electrostatic probe, thereby proving the overall principle of individual ion extraction. Our initial tests are currently being performed with a bare tungsten tip that is held at a negative high voltage in order to collect ions from solution. We have just begun initial testing of this system.

## 3 Conclusion

The remainder of our R&D program includes a setup for the optimization and study of the energy and position resolution achievable in liquid Xe and an experiment to determine the viability of trapping and spectroscopic study of the Ba+ and the Ba++ ion. We expect to publish initial results from these activities in the near future. Once all of the various techniques are brought together in an ultimate 10-ton experiment, we expect to be sensitive to half lives as long as 5.0x1028yr, or an effective neutrino mass in the range 10-50meV. This is about a factor of 10 below the world’s current best value, as reported in .