Galois theory and torsion points on curves

In this paper, we survey some Galois-theoretic techniques for studying torsion points on curves. In particular, we give new proofs of some results of A. Tamagawa and the present authors for studying torsion points on curves with "ordinary good" or "ordinary semistable" reduction at a given prime. We also give new proofs of: (1) The Manin-Mumford conjecture: There are only finitely many torsion points lying on a curve of genus at least 2 embedded in its Jacobian by an Albanese map; and (2) The Coleman-Kaskel-Ribet conjecture: If p is a prime number which is at least 23, then the only torsion points lying on the curve X_0(p), embedded in its Jacobian by a cuspidal embedding, are the cusps (together with the hyperelliptic branch points when X_0(p) is hyperelliptic and p is not 37). In an effort to make the exposition as useful as possible, we provide references for all of the facts about modular curves which are needed for our discussion.Comment: 18 page

The canonical subgroup: a "subgroup-free" approach

Beyond the crucial role they play in the foundations of the theory of overconvergent modular forms, canonical subgroups have found new applications to analytic continuation of overconvergent modular forms. For such applications, it is essential to understand various ``numerical'' aspects of the canonical subgroup, and in particular, the precise extent of its overconvergence. We develop a theory of canonical subgroups for a general class of curves (including the unitary and quaternionic Shimura curves), using formal and rigid geometry. In our approach, we use the common geometric features of these curves rather than their (possible) specific moduli-theoretic description.Comment: 16 pages, 1 figur