On the topology of a resolution of isolated singularities

Let $Y$ be a complex projective variety of dimension $n$ with isolated singularities, $\pi:X\to Y$ a resolution of singularities, $G:=\pi^{-1}{\rm{Sing}}(Y)$ the exceptional locus. From Decomposition Theorem one knows that the map $H^{k-1}(G)\to H^k(Y,Y\backslash {\rm{Sing}}(Y))$ vanishes for $k>n$. Assuming this vanishing, we give a short proof of Decomposition Theorem for $\pi$. A consequence is a short proof of the Decomposition Theorem for $\pi$ in all cases where one can prove the vanishing directly. This happens when either $Y$ is a normal surface, or when $\pi$ is the blowing-up of $Y$ along ${\rm{Sing}}(Y)$ with smooth and connected fibres, or when $\pi$ admits a natural Gysin morphism. We prove that this last condition is equivalent to say that the map $H^{k-1}(G)\to H^k(Y,Y\backslash {\rm{Sing}}(Y))$ vanishes for any $k$, and that the pull-back $\pi^*_k:H^k(Y)\to H^k(X)$ is injective. This provides a relationship between Decomposition Theorem and Bivariant Theory.Comment: 18 page

N\'eron-Severi group of a general hypersurface

In this paper we extend the well known theorem of Angelo Lopez concerning the Picard group of the general space projective surface containing a given smooth projective curve, to the intermediate N\'eron-Severi group of a general hypersurface in any smooth projective variety.Comment: 14 pages, to appear on Communications in Contemporary Mathematic

Two-walker discrete-time quantum walks on the line with percolation

One goal in the quantum-walk research is the exploitation of the intrinsic quantum nature of multiple walkers, in order to achieve the full computational power of the model. Here we study the behaviour of two non-interacting particles performing a quantum walk on the line when the possibility of lattice imperfections, in the form of missing links, is considered. We investigate two regimes, statical and dynamical percolation, that correspond to different time scales for the imperfections evolution with respect to the quantum-walk one. By studying the qualitative behaviour of three two-particle quantities for different probabilities of having missing bonds, we argue that the chosen symmetry under particle-exchange of the input state strongly affects the output of the walk, even in noisy and highly non-ideal regimes. We provide evidence against the possibility of gathering information about the walkers indistinguishability from the observation of bunching phenomena in the output distribution, in all those situations that require a comparison between averaged quantities. Although the spread of the walk is not substantially changed by the addition of a second particle, we show that the presence of multiple walkers can be beneficial for a procedure to estimate the probability of having a broken link.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figure