On the equivariant algebraic Jacobian for curves of genus two

We present a treatment of the algebraic description of the Jacobian of a generic genus two plane curve which exploits an SL2(k) equivariance and clarifes the structure of E.V.Flynn's 72 defining quadratic relations. The treatment is also applied to the Kummer variety

Algebraic and hamiltonian approaches to isostokes deformations

We study a generalization of the isomonodromic deformation to the case of connections with irregular singularities. We call this generalization Isostokes Deformation. A new deformation parameter arises: one can deform the formal normal forms of connections at irregular points. We study this part of the deformation, giving an algebraic description. Then we show how to use loop groups and hypercohomology to write explicit hamiltonians. We work on an arbitrary complete algebraic curve, the structure group is an arbitrary semisimiple group.Comment: 23 pages, minor corrections in the introduction, references expande

Fibrations of low genus, I

In the present paper we consider fibrations f: S \ra B of an algebraic surface onto a curve $B$, with general fibre a curve of genus $g$. Our main results are: 1) A structure theorem for such fibrations in the case $g=2$ 2) A structure theorem for such fibrations in the case $g=3$ and general fibre nonhyperelliptic 3) A theorem giving a complete description of the moduli space of minimal surfaces of general type with $K^2_S = 3, p_g = q=1$, showing in particular that it has four unirational connected components 4) some other applications of the two structure theorems.Comment: 50 pages, to appear on Annales Scientifiques de l'Ecole Normale Superieur

Spectral Curves, Opers and Integrable Systems

We establish a general link between integrable systems in algebraic geometry (expressed as Jacobian flows on spectral curves) and soliton equations (expressed as evolution equations on flat connections). Our main result is a natural isomorphism between a moduli space of spectral data and a moduli space of differential data, each equipped with an infinite collection of commuting flows. The spectral data are principal G-bundles on an algebraic curve, equipped with an abelian reduction near one point. The flows on the spectral side come from the action of a Heisenberg subgroup of the loop group. The differential data are flat connections known as opers. The flows on the differential side come from a generalized Drinfeld-Sokolov hierarchy. Our isomorphism between the two sides provides a geometric description of the entire phase space of the Drinfeld-Sokolov hierarchy. It extends the Krichever construction of special algebro-geometric solutions of the n-th KdV hierarchy, corresponding to G=SL(n). An interesting feature is the appearance of formal spectral curves, replacing the projective spectral curves of the classical approach. The geometry of these (usually singular) curves reflects the fine structure of loop groups, in particular the detailed classification of their Cartan subgroups. To each such curve corresponds a homogeneous space of the loop group and a soliton system. Moreover the flows of the system have interpretations in terms of Jacobians of formal curves.Comment: 64 pages, Latex, final version to appear in Publications IHE

Higgs bundles, abelian gerbes and cameral data

We study the Hitchin map for $G_{\mathbb{R}}$-Higgs bundles on a smooth curve, where $G_{\mathbb{R}}$ is a quasi-split real form of a complex reductive algebraic group $G$. By looking at the moduli stack of regular $G_{\mathbb{R}}$-Higgs bundles, we prove it induces a banded gerbe structure on a slightly larger stack, whose band is given by sheaves of tori. This characterization yields a cocyclic description of the fibres of the corresponding Hitchin map by means of cameral data. According to this, fibres of the Hitchin map are categories of principal torus bundles on the cameral cover. The corresponding points inside the stack of $G$-Higgs bundles are contained in the substack of points fixed by an involution induced by the Cartan involution of $G_{\mathbb{R}}$. We determine this substack of fixed points and prove that stable points are in correspondence with stable $G_{\mathbb{R}}$-Higgs bundles.Comment: 34 page

Dual generators of the fundamental group and the moduli space of flat connections

We define the dual of a set of generators of the fundamental group of an oriented two-surface $S_{g,n}$ of genus $g$ with $n$ punctures and the associated surface $S_{g,n}\setminus D$ with a disc $D$ removed. This dual is another set of generators related to the original generators via an involution and has the properties of a dual graph. In particular, it provides an algebraic prescription for determining the intersection points of a curve representing a general element of the fundamental group $\pi_1(S_{g,n}\setminus D)$ with the representatives of the generators and the order in which these intersection points occur on the generators.We apply this dual to the moduli space of flat connections on $S_{g,n}$ and show that when expressed in terms both, the holonomies along a set of generators and their duals, the Poisson structure on the moduli space takes a particularly simple form. Using this description of the Poisson structure, we derive explicit expressions for the Poisson brackets of general Wilson loop observables associated to closed, embedded curves on the surface and determine the associated flows on phase space. We demonstrate that the observables constructed from the pairing in the Chern-Simons action generate of infinitesimal Dehn twists and show that the mapping class group acts by Poisson isomorphisms.Comment: 54 pages, 13 .eps figure