Equisingular Families of Projective Curves

We report on the problem of the existence of complex and real algebraic curves in the plane with prescribed singularities up to analytic and topological equivalence. The question is whether, for a given positive integer $d$ and a finite number of given analytic or topological singularity types, there exist a plane (irreducible) curve of degree $d$ having singular points of the given type as its only singularities. The set of all such curves is a quasi-projective variety, whic...

In math.AG/0108089 we gave sufficient conditions for the irreducibility of the family V of irreducible curves in the linear system |D| with precisely r singular points of topological respectively analytical types S1,...,Sr on several classes of smooth projective surfaces S. The conditions where of the form (tau'(S1)+2)^2 +...+ (tau'(Sr)+2)^2 < c*(D-K)^2, where tau' is some invariant of singularity types, K is the canonical divisor of S and c is some constant. In the present p...

In 1985 Joe Harris proved the long standing claim of Severi that equisingular families of nodal plane curves are irreducible whenever they are non-empty. For families with more complicated singularities this is no longer true. Given a divisor D on a smooth projective surface S it thus makes sense to look for conditions which ensure that the family V_D(S_1,...,S_r) of irreducible curves in the linear system |D| with precisely r singular points of types S_1,...,S_r is irreducib...

We consider flat families of reduced curves on a smooth surface S such that each member C has the same number of singularities of fixed singularity types and the corresponding (locally closed) subscheme H of the Hilbert scheme of S. We are mainly concerned with analytic resp. topological singularity types and give a sufficient condition for the smoothness of H (at C). Our results for S=P^2 seem to be quite sharp for families of cuves of small degree d.

Very few examples of obstructed equsingular families of curves on surfaces other than the projective plane are known. Combining results from Westenberger and Hirano with an idea from math.AG/9802009 we give in the present paper series of examples of families of irreducible curves with simple singularities on surfaces in projective three-space which are not T--smooth, i.e. do not have the expected dimension, and we compare this with conditions (showing the same asymptotics) wh...

This is a survey on Zariski equisingularity. We recall its definition, main properties, and a variety of applications in Algebraic Geometry and Singularity Theory. In the first part of this survey, we consider Zariski equisingular families of complex analytic or algebraic hypersurfaces. We also discuss how to construct Zariski equisingular deformations. In the second part, we present Zariski equisingularity of hypersurfaces along a nonsingular subvariety and its relation to...

In math.AG/0108089, math.AG/0212090 and math.AG/0308247 we gave numerical conditions which ensure that an equisingular family is irreducible respectively T-smooth. Combining results by Greuel, Lossen and Shustin and an idea from math.AG/9802009 we give in the present paper series of examples of families of irreducible curves on surfaces in projective three-space with only ordinary multiple points which are reducible and where at least one component does not have the expected ...

Francesco Severi showed that equisingular families of plane nodal curves are T-smooth, i.e. smooth of the expected dimension, whenever they are non-empty. For families with more complicated singularities this is no longer true. Given a divisor D on a smooth projective surface it thus makes sense to look for conditions which ensure that the family V of irreducible curves in the linear system |D| with precisely r singular points of types S1,...,Sr is T-smooth. Considering diffe...

In the 1970s O. Zariski introduced a general theory of equisingularity for algebroid and algebraic hypersurfaces over an algebraically closed field of characteristic zero. His theory builds up on understanding the dimensionality type of hypersurface singularities, notion defined recursively by considering the discriminants loci of successive "generic" corank 1 projections. The theory of singularities of dimensionality type 1, that is the ones appearing generically in codimens...

Let X be a projective variety which is covered by a family of rational curves of minimal degree. The classic bend-and-break argument of Mori asserts that if x and y are two general points, then there are at most finitely many curves in that family which contain both x and y. In this work we shed some light on the question as to whether two sufficiently general points actually define a unique curve. As an immediate corollary to the results of this paper, we give a characteri...