Maximal linear spaces contained in the base loci of pencils of quadrics

Abstract

The geometry of the Fano scheme of maximal linear spaces contained in the base locus of a pencil of quadrics has been studied by algebraic geometers when the base field is algebraically closed. In this paper, we work over an arbitrary base field of characteristic not equal to 2 and show how these Fano schemes are related to the Jacobians of hyperelliptic curves. In particular, if $B$ is the base locus of a generic pencil of quadrics in $\bbp^{2n+1}$, and $F$ is the Fano variety of $n-1$ planes contained in $B$, then $F$ is a component of a disconnected commutative algebraic group $G = \picz(C) \dcup F \dcup \pico(C) \dcup F'$, where $C$ is the hyperelliptic curve defined by the discriminant form of the pencil. In the second half of this paper, we study regular pencils of quadrics, where the hyperelliptic curve defined by the discriminant is singular.

References in corpus (1)

• The average size of the 2-Selmer group of Jacobians of hyperelliptic curves having a rational Weierstrass point

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• On the cohomology of Fano varieties and the Springer correspondence
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• Sheaf theoretic classifications of pairs of square matrices over arbitrary fields