arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Irene I. Bouw.
We study the Weil representation $ρ$ of a curve over a $p$-adic field with potential reduction of compact type. We show that $ρ$ can be reconstructed from its stable reduction. For superelliptic curves of the form $y^n=f(x)$ at primes $p$ whose residue characteristic is prime to the exponent $n$ we make this explicit.
We consider a large class of so-called dynamical Belyi maps and study the Galois groups of iterates of such maps. From the combinatorial invariants of the maps, we construct a useful presentation of their Galois groups as subgroups of automorphism groups of regular trees, in terms of iterated wreath products. This allows us to study the behavior of the monodromy groups under specialization of the maps, and to derive applications to dynamical sequences.
We describe normal forms and minimal models of Picard curves, discussing various arithmetic aspects of these. We determine all so-called special Picard curves over $\mathbb{Q}$ with good reduction outside 2 and 3, and use this to determine the smallest possible conductor a special Picard curve may have. We also collect a database of Picard curves over $\mathbb{Q}$ of small conductor.
We study the conductor of Picard curves over $\mathbb{Q}$, which is a product of local factors. Our results are based on previous results on stable reduction of superelliptic curves that allow to compute the conductor exponent $f_p$ at the primes $p$ of bad reduction. A careful analysis of the possibilities of the stable reduction at $p$ yields restrictions on the conductor exponent $f_p$. We prove that Picard curves over $\mathbb{Q}$ always have bad reduction at $p=3$, with $f_3\geq 4$. As an application we discuss the question of finding Picard curves with small conductor.
We compute the $L$-functions of a large class of algebraic curves, and verify the expected functional equation numerically. Our computations are based on our previous results on stable reduction to calculate the local $L$-factor and the conductor exponent at the primes of bad reduction. Most of our examples are hyperelliptic curves of genus $g\geq 2$ defined over $\mathbb{Q}$ which have semistable reduction at every prime $p$. We also treat a few more general examples of superelliptic curves.
We give an explicit description of the stable reduction of superelliptic curves of the form $y^n=f(x)$ at primes $\p$ whose residue characteristic is prime to the exponent $n$. We then use this description to compute the local $L$-factor of the curve and the exponent of conductor at $\p$.
We discuss two elementary constructions for covers with fixed ramification in positive characteristic. As an application, we compute the number of certain classes of covers between projective lines branched at 4 points and obtain information on the structure of the Hurwitz curve parametrizing these covers.
In this paper, we compute the number of covers of curves with given branch behavior in characteristic p for one class of examples with four branch points and degree p. Our techniques involve related computations in the case of three branch points, and allow us to conclude in many cases that for a particular choice of degeneration, all the covers we consider degenerate to separable (admissible) covers. Starting from a good understanding of the complex case, the proof is centered on the theory of stable reduction of Galois covers.
We prove existence and nonexistence results for certain differential forms in positive characteristic, called {\em good deformation data}. Some of these results are obtained by reduction modulo $p$ of Belyi maps. As an application, we solve the local lifting problem for groups with Sylow $p$-subgroup of order $p$.
In this note we construct examples of covers of the projective line in positive characteristic such that every specialization is inseparable. The result illustrates that it is not possible to construct all covers of the generic r-pointed curve of genus zero inductively from covers with a smaller number of branch points.
We study the existence of Fuchsian differential equations in positive characteristic with nilpotent p-curvature, and given local invariants. In the case of differential equations with logarithmic local mononodromy, we determine the minimal possible degree of a polynomial solution.
We construct a Teichmueller curve uniformized by the Fuchsian triangle group (m,n,\infty) for every m<n. Our construction includes the Teichmueller curves constructed by Veech and Ward as special cases. The construction essentially relies on properties of hypergeometric differential operators. For small m, we find Billiard tables that generate these Teichmueller curves. We interprete some of the so-called Lyapunov exponents of the Kontsevich--Zorich cocycle as normalized degrees of some natural line bundles on a Teichmueller curves. We determine the Lyapunov exponents for the Teichmueller curves we construct.
We study indigenous bundles in characteristic p>0 with nilpotent p-curvature, and show that they correspond to so-called deformation data. Using this equivalence, we translate the existence problem for deformation data into the existence of polynomial solutions of certain differential equations with additional properties. As in application, we show that P^1 minus four points is hyperbolically ordinary (in the sense of Mochizuki. We also give a concrete application to existence of deformation data with fixed local invariants.
Let $G=D_p$ be the dihedral group of order $2p$, where $p$ is an odd prime. Let $k$ an algebraically closed field of characteristic $p$. We show that any action of $G$ on the ring $k[[y]]$ can be lifted to an action on $R[[y]]$, where $R$ is some complete discrete valuation ring with residue field $k$ and fraction field of characteristic 0.
Let $X$ be a generic curve of genus $g$ defined over an algebraically closed field $k$ of characteristic $p\geq 0$. We show that for $n$ sufficiently large there exists a tame rational map $f:X\to \PP^1_k$ with monodromy group $A_n$. This generalizes a result of Magaard--Völklein to positive characteristic.
This paper concerns towers of curves over a finite field with many rational points, following Garcia--Stichtenoth and Elkies. We present a new method to produce such towers. A key ingredient is the study of algebraic solutions to Fuchsian differential equations modulo $p$. We apply our results to towers of modular curves, and find new asymptotically good towers.
We show that under the assumption of Artin's Primitive Root Conjecture, for all primes p there exist ordinary elliptic curves over $\bar F_p(x)$ with arbitrary high rank and constant j-invariant. For odd primes p, this result follows from a theorem which states that whenever p is a generator of (Z/ell Z)^*/<-1> (ell an odd prime) there exists a hyperelliptic curve over $\bar F_p$ whose Jacobian is isogenous to a power of one ordinary elliptic curve.
We compute the stable reduction of some Galois covers of the projective line branched at three points. These covers are constructed using Hurwitz spaces parameterizing metacyclic covers. The reduction is determined by a hypergeometric differential equation. This generalizes the result of Deligne- Rapoport on the reduction of the modular curve X(p).