We introduce the notion of a simple fibration in $(1,2)$ -surfaces – that is, a hypersurface inside a certain weighted projective space bundle over a curve such that the general fibre is a minimal surface of general type with $p_g=2$ and $K^2=1$ . We prove that almost all Gorenstein simple fibrations over the projective line with at worst canonical singularities are canonical threefolds ‘on the Noether line’ with $K^3=\frac 43 p_g-\frac {10}3$ , and we classify them. Among them, we find all the canonical threefolds on the Noether line that have previously appeared in the literature.

The Gorenstein simple fibrations over ${\mathbb {P}}^1$ are Cartier divisors in a toric $4$ -fold. This allows to us to show, among other things, that the previously known canonical threefolds on the Noether line form an open subset of the moduli space of canonical threefolds, that the general element of this component is a Mori Dream Space and that there is a second component when the geometric genus is congruent to $6$ modulo $8$ ; the threefolds in this component are new.

We study triple covers of K3 surfaces, following Miranda (1985, American Journal of Mathematics 107, 1123–1158). We relate the geometry of the covering surfaces with the properties of both the branch locus and the Tschirnhausen vector bundle. In particular, we classify Galois triple covers computing numerical invariants of the covering surface and of its minimal model. We provide examples of non-Galois triple covers, both in the case in which the Tschirnhausen bundle splits into the sum of two line bundles and in the case in which it is an indecomposable rank 2 vector bundle. We provide a criterion to construct rank 2 vector bundles on a K3 surface S which determine a non-Galois triple cover of S. The examples presented are in any admissible Kodaira dimension, and in particular, we provide the constructions of irregular covers of K3 surfaces and of surfaces with geometrical genus equal to 2 whose transcendental Hodge structure splits in the sum of two Hodge structures of K3 type.

The main goal of this paper is to construct a compactification of the moduli space of degree $d \geqslant 5$ surfaces in $\mathbb {P}^{3}_{{{\mathbb {C}}}}$, i.e. a parameter space whose interior points correspond to (equivalence classes of) smooth surfaces in $\mathbb {P}^{3}$ and whose boundary points correspond to degenerations of such surfaces. We consider a divisor $D$ on a Fano variety $Z$ as a pair $(Z, D)$ satisfying certain properties. We find a modular compactification of such pairs and, in the case of $Z = {{\mathbb {P}}}^{3}$ and $D$ a surface, use their properties to classify the pairs on the boundary of the moduli space.

We prove some numerical inequality for the Horikawa indices for Eisenbud–Harris special nonhyperelliptic fibrations of genus 4 on algebraic surfaces under the assumption that the multiplication map of the fibration is not surjective. Furthermore, we prove that the inequality is best possible by constructing the examples satisfying the equality.

Let $X$ be a normal complex projective variety, $T\subseteq X$ a subvariety of dimension $m$ (possibly $T=X$) and $a:X\rightarrow A$ a morphism to an abelian variety such that $\text{Pic}^{0}(A)$ injects into $\text{Pic}^{0}(T)$; let $L$ be a line bundle on $X$ and $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}\in \text{Pic}^{0}(A)$ a general element.

We introduce two new ingredients for the study of linear systems on $X$. First of all, we show the existence of a factorization of the map $a$, called the eventual map of $L$ on $T$, which controls the behavior of the linear systems $|L\otimes \unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}|_{|T}$, asymptotically with respect to the pullbacks to the connected étale covers $X^{(d)}\rightarrow X$ induced by the $d$-th multiplication map of $A$.

Second, we define the so-called continuous rank function$x\mapsto h_{a}^{0}(X_{|T},L+xM)$, where $M$ is the pullback of an ample divisor of $A$. This function extends to a continuous function of $x\in \mathbb{R}$, which is differentiable except possibly at countably many points; when $X=T$ we compute the left derivative explicitly.

As an application, we give quick short proofs of a wide range of new Clifford–Severi inequalities, i.e., geographical bounds of the form

$$\begin{eqnarray}\displaystyle \text{vol}_{X|T}(L)\geqslant C(m)h_{a}^{0}(X_{|T},L), & & \displaystyle \nonumber\end{eqnarray}$$

$C(m)={\mathcal{O}}(m!)$

$X$

$L$

$a$

For a line arrangement ${\mathcal{A}}$ in the complex projective plane $\mathbb{P}^{2}$, we investigate the compactification $\overline{F}$ in $\mathbb{P}^{3}$ of the affine Milnor fiber $F$ and its minimal resolution $\tilde{F}$. We compute the Chern numbers of $\tilde{F}$ in terms of the combinatorics of the line arrangement ${\mathcal{A}}$. As applications of the computation of the Chern numbers, we show that the minimal resolution is never a quotient of a ball; in addition, we also prove that $\tilde{F}$ is of general type when the arrangement has only nodes or triple points as singularities. Finally, we compute all the Hodge numbers of some $\tilde{F}$ by using some knowledge about the Milnor fiber monodromy of the arrangement.

In this paper, we construct the first examples of complex surfaces of general type with arbitrarily large geometric genus whose canonical maps induce non-hyperelliptic fibrations of genus $g=4$, and on the other hand, we prove that there is no complex surface of general type whose canonical map induces a hyperelliptic fibrations of genus $g\geqslant 4$ if the geometric genus is large.

Let $S$ be a smooth minimal complex surface of general type with $p_{g}=0$ and $K^{2}=7$. We prove that any involution on $S$ is in the center of the automorphism group of $S$. As an application, we show that the automorphism group of an Inoue surface with $K^{2}=7$ is isomorphic to $\mathbb{Z}_{2}^{2}$ or $\mathbb{Z}_{2}\times \mathbb{Z}_{4}$. We construct a $2$-dimensional family of Inoue surfaces with automorphism groups isomorphic to $\mathbb{Z}_{2}\times \mathbb{Z}_{4}$.

Let $S$ be a surface of general type. In this article, when there exists a relatively minimal hyperelliptic fibration $f:\,S\,\to \,{{\mathbb{P}}^{1}}$ whose slope is less than or equal to four, we give a lower bound on the Euler–Poincaré characteristic of $S$. Furthermore, we prove that our bound is the best possible by giving required hyperelliptic fibrations.

A mixed quasi-étale quotient is the quotient of the product of a curve of genus at least 2 with itself by the action of a group which exchanges the two factors and acts freely outside a finite subset. A mixed quasi-étale surface is the minimal resolution of its singularities. We produce an algorithm computing all mixed quasi-étale surfaces with given geometric genus, irregularity and self-intersection of the canonical class. We prove that all irregular mixed quasi-étale surfaces of general type are minimal. As an application, we classify all irregular mixed quasi-étale surfaces of general type with genus equal to the irregularity, and all the regular ones with K2 > 0, thus constructing new examples of surfaces of general type with χ = 1. We mention the first example of a minimal surface of general type with pg = q = 1 and Albanese fibre of genus bigger than K2.

We show that the Kulikov surfaces form a connected component of the moduli space of surfaces of general type with pg = 0 and K2 = 6. We also give a new description for these surfaces, extending ideas of Inoue. Finally, we calculate the bicanonical degree of Kulikov surfaces and prove that they verify the Bloch conjecture.

We classify minimal surfaces of general type with ${{p}_{g}}=q=2$ and ${{K}^{2}}=6$ whose Albanese map is a generically finite double cover. We show that the corresponding moduli space is the disjoint union of three generically smooth irreducible components ${{\mathcal{M}}_{Ia}},\,{{\mathcal{M}}_{Ib}},\,{{\mathcal{M}}_{II}}$ of dimension 4, 4, 3, respectively.

We construct new examples of surfaces of general type with ${{P}_{g}}\,=\,0$ and ${{K}^{2}}\,=\,5$ as ${{\mathbb{Z}}_{2}}\,\times \,{{\mathbb{Z}}_{2}}$-covers and show that they are genus three hyperelliptic fibrations with bicanonical map of degree two.

We construct general type surfaces in mixed characteristic whose geometric genera can be made to jump by an arbitrarily prescribed positive amount under specialization. We then show that this phenomenon of jumping geometric genus presents itself in some compact Shimura surfaces. Finally, we find a set of conditions, met by the latter Shimura surfaces, that forces the higher plurigenera to remain constant in reduction modulo p.

We establish Noether’s inequality for surfaces of general type in positive characteristic. Then we extend Enriques’ and Horikawa’s classification of surfaces on the Noether line, the so-called Horikawa surfaces. We construct examples for all possible numerical invariants and in arbitrary characteristic, where we need foliations and deformation techniques to handle characteristic 2. Finally, we show that Horikawa surfaces lift to characteristic zero.

Smooth complete algebraic varieties defined over an algebraically closed field are divided into two classes according to the behaviour of the albanese map. Criteria are given for when a variety belongs to either class. The relationship with the Tate conjecture for abelian varieties is discussed.

In this article we prove some new results on projective normality, normal presentation and higher syzygies for surfaces of general type, not necessarily smooth, embedded by adjoint linear series. Some of the corollaries of more general results include: results on property ${{N}_{p}}$ associated to ${{K}_{S}}\,\otimes \,{{B}^{\otimes n}}$ where $B$ is base-point free and ample divisor with $B\,\otimes \,{{K}^{*}}\,nef,$ results for pluricanonical linear systems and results giving effective bounds for adjoint linear series associated to ample bundles. Examples in the last section show that the results are optimal.

We propose certain obstructions for the existence of hyperelliptic splitting families of degenerations of curves. Moreover we determine the complete system of hyperelliptic atomic fibers of genus 3.

We describe the irrational pencils on surfaces of general type with ${{p}_{g}}=q=2$.