arXiv subjects

Jeff Achter

Publications and source records attributed to Jeff Achter.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

On the pointwise convergence of the number of abelian varieties over $\mathbb{F}_p$ with fixed trace

Extending Katz-Sarnak heuristics, Ballini-Lombardo-Verzobio [BLV25] conjectures a limiting distribution as $p \to \infty$ for $\# A_g(\mathbb F_p,t)$, the number of $g$-dimensional PPAVs over $\mathbb F_p$ with trace $t$, as a product of natural local factors $v_\ell(t)$ for non-archimedean places $\ell$ and the Sato-Tate measure $\text{ST}_g$ corresponding to $\infty$. We prove that their conjecture is true for all $g$. As a consequence, we obtain analogous results on the distribution of curves of genus $2$ and $3$, answering questions of Bergstr\"om-Howe-Garc\'ia-Ritzenthaler [BHLR24] and [BLV25].

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arXiv2025

Regular homomorphisms, with a twist

Let $X/K$ be a variety over a field, and $A/K$ an abelian variety. A regular homomorphism to $A$ (in codimension $i$) induces, for every smooth geometrically connected pointed $K$-scheme $(T,t_0)$ and every cycle class $Z \in CH^i(T\times X)$, a morphism $T \to A$ of varieties over $K$. In this note we show that, even if $T$ admits no $K$-point, the data $(T,Z)$ determines a torsor $A^{(T,Z)}$ over $K$ under $A$ and a $K$-morphism $T \to A^{(T,Z)}$. This can be used to provide an obstruction to the existence of algebraic cycles defined over $K$. We then connect this obstruction to some recent results of Hassett--Tschinkel and Benoist--Wittenberg on rationality of threefolds.

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arXiv2023

Images of abelian schemes

We provide some conditions for the image of a morphism of abelian schemes to again be an abelian scheme. For context, in characteristic 0, the image is always an abelian scheme; in mixed and positive characteristic the image can fail to be an abelian scheme, and so it is in this setting that the conditions we provide are pertinent.

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arXiv2023

Putting the p back in Prym

After Jacobians of curves, Prym varieties are perhaps the next most studied abelian varieties. They turn out to be quite useful in a number of contexts. For technical reasons, there does not appear to be any systematic treatment of Prym varieties in characteristic 2, and due to our recent interest in this topic, the purpose of this paper is to fill in that gap. Our main result is a classification of branched covers of curves in characteristic 2 that give rise to Prym varieties. We are also interested in the case of Prym varieties in the relative setting, and so we develop that theory here as well, including an extension of Welters' Criterion.

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arXiv2023

On the essential torsion finiteness of abelian varieties over torsion fields

The classical Mordell-Weil theorem implies that an abelian variety $A$ over a number field $K$ has only finitely many $K$-rational torsion points. This finitude of torsion still holds even over the cyclotomic extension $K^{\rm cyc}=K\mathbb{Q}^{\mathrm{ab}}$ by a result of Ribet. In this article, we consider the finiteness of torsion points of an abelian variety $A$ over the infinite algebraic extension $K_B$ obtained by adjoining the coordinates of all torsion points of an abelian variety $B$. Assuming the Mumford-Tate conjecture, and up to a finite extension of the base field $K$, we give a necessary and sufficient condition for the finiteness of $A(K_B)_{\rm tors}$ in terms of Mumford--Tate groups. We give a complete answer when both abelian varieties have dimension both three, or when both have complex multiplication.

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arXiv2022

A functorial approach to regular homomorphisms

Classically, regular homomorphisms have been defined as a replacement for Abel--Jacobi maps for smooth varieties over an algebraically closed field. In this work, we interpret regular homomorphisms as morphisms from the functor of families of algebraically trivial cycles to abelian varieties and thereby define regular homomorphisms in the relative setting, e.g., families of schemes parameterized by a smooth variety over a given field. In that general setting, we establish the existence of an initial regular homomorphism, going by the name of algebraic representative, for codimension-2 cycles on a smooth proper scheme over the base. This extends a result of Murre for codimension-2 cycles on a smooth projective scheme over an algebraically closed field. In addition, we prove base change results for algebraic representatives as well as descent properties for algebraic representatives along separable field extensions. In the case where the base is a smooth variety over a subfield of the complex numbers we identify the algebraic representative for relative codimension-2 cycles with a subtorus of the intermediate Jacobian fibration which was constructed in previous work.

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arXiv2022

A complete answer to Albanese base change for incomplete varieties

Albanese varieties provide a standard tool in algebraic geometry for converting questions about varieties in general, to questions about Abelian varieties. A result of Serre provides the existence of an Albanese variety for any geometrically connected and geometrically reduced scheme of finite type over a field, and a result of Grothendieck--Conrad establishes that Albanese varieties are stable under base change of field provided the scheme is, in addition, proper. A result of Raynaud shows that base change can fail for Albanese varieties without this properness hypothesis. In this paper we show that Albanese varieties of geometrically connected and geometrically reduced schemes of finite type over a field are stable under separable field extensions. We also show that the failure of base change in general is explained by the L/K-image for purely inseparable extensions L/K.

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arXiv2021

The Walker Abel-Jacobi map descends

For a complex projective manifold, Walker has defined a regular homomorphism lifting Griffiths' Abel-Jacobi map on algebraically trivial cycle classes to a complex abelian variety, which admits a finite homomorphism to the Griffiths intermediate Jacobian. Recently Suzuki gave an alternate, Hodge-theoretic, construction of this Walker Abel-Jacobi map. We provide a third construction based on a general lifting property for surjective regular homomorphisms, and prove that the Walker Abel-Jacobi map descends canonically to any field of definition of the complex projective manifold. In addition, we determine the image of the l-adic Bloch map restricted to algebraically trivial cycle classes in terms of the coniveau filtration.

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arXiv2021

On the image of the second l-adic Bloch map

For a smooth projective geometrically uniruled threefold defined over a perfect field we show that there exists a canonical abelian variety over the field, namely the second algebraic representative, whose rational Tate modules model canonically the third l-adic cohomology groups of the variety for all primes l. In addition, there exists a rational correspondence inducing these identifications. In the case of a geometrically rationally chain connected variety, one obtains canonical identifications between the integral Tate modules of the second algebraic representative and the third l-adic cohomology groups of the variety, and if the variety is a geometrically stably rational threefold, these identifications are induced by an integral correspondence. Our overall strategy consists in studying -- for arbitrary smooth projective varieties -- the image of the second ell-adic Bloch map restricted to the Tate module of algebraically trivial cycle classes in terms of the "correspondence (co)niveau filtration". This complements results with rational coefficients due to Suwa. In the appendix, we review the construction of the Bloch map and its basic properties.

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arXiv2020

Decomposition of the diagonal, intermediate Jacobians, and universal codimension-2 cycles in positive characteristic

We consider the connections among algebraic cycles, abelian varieties, and stable rationality of smooth projective varieties in positive characteristic. Recently Voisin constructed two new obstructions to stable rationality for rationally connected complex projective threefolds by giving necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a cohomological decomposition of the diagonal. In this paper, we show how to extend these obstructions to rationally chain connected threefolds in positive characteristic via ell-adic cohomological decomposition of the diagonal. This requires extending results in Hodge theory regarding intermediate Jacobians and Abel--Jacobi maps to the setting of algebraic representatives. For instance, we show that the algebraic representative for codimension-two cycle classes on a geometrically stably rational threefold admits a canonical auto-duality, which in characteristic zero agrees with the principal polarization on the intermediate Jacobian coming from Hodge theory. As an application, we extend a result of Voisin, and show that in characteristic greater than two, a desingularization of a very general quartic double solid with seven nodes fails one of these two new obstructions, while satisfying all of the classical obstructions. More precisely, it does not admit a universal codimension-two cycle class. In the process, we establish some results on the moduli space of nodal degree-four polarized K3 surfaces in positive characteristic.

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arXiv2019

Arithmetic occult period maps

Several natural complex configuration spaces admit surprising uniformizations as arithmetic ball quotients, by identifying each parametrized object with the periods of some auxiliary object. In each case, the theory of canonical models of Shimura varieties gives the ball quotient the structure of a variety over the ring of integers of a cyclotomic field. We show that the (transcendentally-defined) period map actually respects these algebraic structures, and thus that occult period maps are arithmetic. As an intermediate tool, we develop an arithmetic theory of lattice-polarized K3 surfaces.

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arXiv2019

Normal functions for algebraically trivial cycles are algebraic for arithmetic reasons

For families of smooth complex projective varieties we show that normal functions arising from algebraically trivial cycle classes are algebraic, and defined over the field of definition of the family. In particular, the zero loci of those functions are algebraic and defined over such a field of definition. This proves a conjecture of Charles.

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arXiv2019

Parameter spaces for algebraic equivalence

A cycle is algebraically trivial if it can be exhibited as the difference of two fibers in a family of cycles parameterized by a smooth scheme. Over an algebraically closed field, it is a result of Weil that it suffices to consider families of cycles parameterized by curves, or by abelian varieties. In this paper, we extend these results to arbitrary base fields. The strengthening of these results turns out to be a key step in our work elsewhere extending Murre's results on algebraic representatives for varieties over algebraically closed fields to arbitrary perfect fields.

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arXiv2019

Counting abelian varieties over finite fields via Frobenius densities

Let $[X,\lambda]$ be a principally polarized abelian variety over a finite field with commutative endomorphism ring; further suppose that either $X$ is ordinary or the field is prime. Motivated by an equidistribution heuristic, we introduce a factor $\nu_v([X,\lambda])$ for each place $v$ of $\mathbb Q$, and show that the product of these factors essentially computes the size of the isogeny class of $[X,\lambda]$. The derivation of this mass formula depends on a formula of Kottwitz and on analysis of measures on the group of symplectic similitudes, and in particular does not rely on a calculation of class numbers.

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arXiv2018

Derived equivalent threefolds, algebraic representatives, and the coniveau filtration

A conjecture of Orlov predicts that derived equivalent smooth projective varieties over a field have isomorphic Chow motives. The conjecture is known for curves, and was recently observed for surfaces by Huybrechts. In this paper we focus on threefolds over perfect fields, and unconditionally secure results, which are implied by Orlov's conjecture, concerning the geometric coniveau filtration, and abelian varieties attached to smooth projective varieties.

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arXiv2018

Distinguished models of intermediate Jacobians

We show that the image of the Abel-Jacobi map admits functorially a model over the field of definition, with the property that the Abel-Jacobi map is equivariant with respect to this model. The cohomology of this abelian variety over the base field is isomorphic as a Galois representation to the deepest part of the coniveau filtration of the cohomology of the projective variety. Moreover, we show that this model over the base field is dominated by the Albanese variety of a product of components of the Hilbert scheme of the projective variety, and thus we answer a question of Mazur. We also recover a result of Deligne on complete intersections of Hodge level one.

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arXiv2017

Derived equivalence, Albanese varieties, and the zeta functions of 3-dimensional varieties

We show that any derived equivalent smooth, projective varieties of dimension 3 over a finite field $\mathbb{F}_q$ have equal zeta functions. This result is an application of the extension to smooth, projective varieties over any field of Popa and Schnell's proof that derived equivalent smooth, projective varieties over $\mathbb{C}$ have isogenous Albanese torsors; this result is proven in an appendix by Achter, Casalaina-Martin, Honigs and Vial.

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arXiv2016

On descending cohomology geometrically

In this paper, motivated by a problem posed by Barry Mazur, we show that for smooth projective varieties over the rationals, the odd cohomology groups of degree less than or equal to the dimension can be modeled by the cohomology of an abelian variety, provided the geometric coniveau is maximal. This provides an affirmative answer to Mazur's question for all uni-ruled threefolds, for instance. Concerning cohomology in degree three, we show that the image of the Abel--Jacobi map admits a distinguished model over the rationals.

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