Let $\pi :X\rightarrow Z$ be a Fano type fibration with $\dim X-\dim Z=d$ and let $(X,B)$ be an $\epsilon $-lc pair with $K_X+B\sim _{\mathbb {R}} 0/Z$. The canonical bundle formula gives $(Z,B_Z+M_Z)$ where $B_Z$ is the discriminant divisor and $M_Z$ is the moduli divisor which is determined up to $\mathbb {R}$-linear equivalence. Shokurov conjectured that one can choose $M_Z\geqslant 0$ such that $(Z,B_Z+M_Z)$ is $\delta $-lc where $\delta $ only depends on $d,\epsilon $. Very recently, this conjecture was proved by Birkar [8]. For $d=1$ and $\epsilon =1$, Han, Jiang, and Luo [13] gave the optimal value of $\delta =1/2$. In this paper, we give the optimal value of $\delta $ for $d=1$ and arbitrary $0<\epsilon \leqslant 1$.

We construct pathological examples of MMP singularities in every positive characteristic using quotients by $\alpha _p$-actions. In particular, we obtain non-$S_3$ terminal singularities, as well as locally stable (respectively stable) families whose general fibers are smooth (respectively klt, Cohen–Macaulay, and F-injective) and whose special fibers are non-$S_2$. The dimensions of these examples are bounded below by a linear function of the characteristic.

While the splinter property is a local property for Noetherian schemes in characteristic zero, Bhatt observed that it imposes strong conditions on the global geometry of proper schemes in positive characteristic. We show that if a proper scheme over a field of positive characteristic is a splinter, then its Nori fundamental group scheme is trivial and its Kodaira dimension is negative. In another direction, Bhatt also showed that any splinter in positive characteristic is a derived splinter. We ask whether the splinter property is a derived invariant for projective varieties in positive characteristic and give a positive answer for normal Gorenstein projective varieties with big anticanonical divisor. We also show that global F-regularity is a derived invariant for normal Gorenstein projective varieties in positive characteristic.

For a klt singularity, C. Xu and Z. Zhuang [33] proved the associated graded algebra of a minimizing valuation of the normalized volume function is finitely generated, finishing the proof of the stable degeneration conjecture proposed by C. Li and C. Xu. We prove a family version of the stable degeneration: for a locally stable family of klt singularities with constant local volume, the ideal sequences of the minimizing valuations for the normalized volume function form families of ideals with flat cosupport, which induce a degeneration to a locally stable family of K-semistable log Fano cone singularities. In the proof, we give a method to construct families of Kollár models, which are a crucial tool introduced by Xu–Zhuang to prove finite generation for valuations of higher rational rank.

It was conjectured by McKernan and Shokurov that for any Fano contraction $f:X \to Z$ of relative dimension r with X being $\epsilon $-lc, there is a positive $\delta $ depending only on $r,\epsilon $ such that Z is $\delta $-lc and the multiplicity of the fiber of f over a codimension one point of Z is bounded from above by $1/\delta $. Recently, this conjecture was confirmed by Birkar [9]. In this article, we give an explicit value for $\delta $ in terms of $\epsilon ,r$ in the toric case, which belongs to $O(\epsilon ^{2^r})$ as $\epsilon \rightarrow 0$. The order $O(\epsilon ^{2^r})$ is optimal in some sense.

If ${\mathcal {E}}, {\mathcal {F}}$ are vector bundles of ranks $r-1,r$ on a smooth fourfold X and $\mathop {\mathcal Hom}({\mathcal {E}},{\mathcal {F}})$ is globally generated, it is well known that the general map $\phi : {\mathcal {E}} \to {\mathcal {F}}$ is injective and drops rank along a smooth surface. Chang improved on this with a filtered Bertini theorem. We strengthen these results by proving variants in which (a) ${\mathcal {F}}$ is not a vector bundle and (b) $\mathop {\mathcal Hom}({\mathcal {E}},{\mathcal {F}})$ is not globally generated. As an application, we give examples of even linkage classes of surfaces on $\mathbb P^4$ in which all integral surfaces are smoothable, including the linkage classes associated with the Horrocks–Mumford surface.

Let X be a smooth threefold over an algebraically closed field of positive characteristic. We prove that an arbitrary flop of X is smooth. To this end, we study Gorenstein curves of genus one and two-dimensional elliptic singularities defined over imperfect fields.

We prove that the minimal exponent for local complete intersections satisfies an Inversion-of-Adjunction property. As a result, we also obtain the Inversion of Adjunction for higher Du Bois and higher rational singularities for local complete intersections.

Let $\mathcal {X}\to \mathbb {D}$ be a flat family of projective complex 3-folds over a disc $\mathbb {D}$ with smooth total space $\mathcal {X}$ and smooth general fibre $\mathcal {X}_t,$ and whose special fiber $\mathcal {X}_0$ has double normal crossing singularities, in particular, $\mathcal {X}_0=A\cup B$, with A, B smooth threefolds intersecting transversally along a smooth surface $R=A\cap B.$ In this paper, we first study the limit singularities of a $\delta $-nodal surface in the general fibre $S_t\subset \mathcal {X}_t$, when $S_t$ tends to the central fibre in such a way its $\delta $ nodes tend to distinct points in R. The result is that the limit surface $S_0$ is in general the union $S_0=S_A\cup S_B$, with $S_A\subset A$, $S_B\subset B$ smooth surfaces, intersecting on R along a $\delta $-nodal curve $C=S_A\cap R=S_B\cap B$. Then we prove that, under suitable conditions, a surface $S_0=S_A\cup S_B$ as above indeed deforms to a $\delta $-nodal surface in the general fibre of $\mathcal {X}\to \mathbb {D}$. As applications, we prove that there are regular irreducible components of the Severi variety of degree d surfaces with $\delta $ nodes in $\mathbb {P}^3$, for every $\delta \leqslant {d-1\choose 2}$ and of the Severi variety of complete intersection $\delta $-nodal surfaces of type $(d,h)$, with $d\geqslant h-1$ in $\mathbb {P}^4$, for every $\delta \leqslant {{d+3}\choose 3}-{{d-h+1}\choose 3}-1.$

We study the problem of the irreducibility of the Hessian variety ${\mathcal {H}}_f$ associated with a smooth cubic hypersurface $V(f)\subset {\mathbb {P}}^n$. We prove that when $n\leq 5$, ${\mathcal {H}}_f$ is normal and irreducible if and only if f is not of Thom-Sebastiani type (i.e., if one cannot separate its variables by changing coordinates). This also generalizes a result of Beniamino Segre dealing with the case of cubic surfaces. The geometric approach is based on the study of the singular locus of the Hessian variety and on infinitesimal computations arising from a particular description of these singularities.

In this paper, we prove that if a three-dimensional quasi-projective variety X over an algebraically closed field of characteristic $p>3$ has only log canonical singularities, then so does a general hyperplane section H of X. We also show that the same is true for klt singularities, which is a slight extension of [15]. In the course of the proof, we provide a sufficient condition for log canonical (resp. klt) surface singularities to be geometrically log canonical (resp. geometrically klt) over a field.

The delta invariant interprets the criterion for the K-(poly)stability of log terminal Fano varieties. In this paper, we determine local delta invariants for all weak del Pezzo surfaces with the anti-canonical degree $\geq 5$.

A famous theorem of Shokurov states that a general anticanonical divisor of a smooth Fano threefold is a smooth K3 surface. This is quite surprising since there are several examples where the base locus of the anticanonical system has codimension two. In this paper, we show that for four-dimensional Fano manifolds the behaviour is completely opposite: if the base locus is a normal surface, and hence has codimension two, all the anticanonical divisors are singular.

We establish a McKay correspondence for finite and linearly reductive subgroup schemes of ${\mathbf {SL}}_2$ in positive characteristic. As an application, we obtain a McKay correspondence for all rational double point singularities in characteristic $p\geq 7$. We discuss linearly reductive quotient singularities and canonical lifts over the ring of Witt vectors. In dimension 2, we establish simultaneous resolutions of singularities of these canonical lifts via G-Hilbert schemes. In the appendix, we discuss several approaches towards the notion of conjugacy classes for finite group schemes: This is an ingredient in McKay correspondences, but also of independent interest.

We show the properness of the moduli stack of stable surfaces over $\mathbb{Z}\left[ {1/30} \right]$, assuming the locally-stable reduction conjecture for stable surfaces. This relies on a local Kawamata–Viehweg vanishing theorem for 3-dimensional log canonical singularities at closed point of characteristic $p \ne 2,3$ and $5$, which are not log canonical centres.

KSB stability holds at codimension $1$ points trivially, and it is quite well understood at codimension $2$ points because we have a complete classification of $2$-dimensional slc singularities. We show that it is automatic in codimension $3$.

Sextic double solids, double covers of $\mathbb P^3$ branched along a sextic surface, are the lowest degree Gorenstein terminal Fano 3-folds, hence are expected to behave very rigidly in terms of birational geometry. Smooth sextic double solids, and those which are $\mathbb Q$-factorial with ordinary double points, are known to be birationally rigid. In this paper, we study sextic double solids with an isolated compound $A_n$ singularity. We prove a sharp bound $n \leq 8$, describe models for each n explicitly, and prove that sextic double solids with $n> 3$ are birationally nonrigid.

We prove a criterion for the constancy of the Hilbert–Samuel function for locally Noetherian schemes such that the local rings are excellent at every point. More precisely, we show that the Hilbert–Samuel function is locally constant on such a scheme if and only if the scheme is normally flat along its reduction and the reduction itself is regular. Regularity of the underlying reduced scheme is a significant new property.

For a real number $0<\epsilon <1/3$, we show that the anti-canonical volume of an $\epsilon $-klt Fano $3$-fold is at most $3,200/\epsilon ^4$, and the order $O(1/\epsilon ^4)$ is sharp.

Let $f_0$ and $f_1$ be two homogeneous polynomials of degree d in three complex variables $z_1,z_2,z_3$. We show that the Lê–Yomdin surface singularities defined by $g_0:=f_0+z_i^{d+m}$ and $g_1:=f_1+z_i^{d+m}$ have the same abstract topology, the same monodromy zeta-function, the same $\mu ^*$-invariant, but lie in distinct path-connected components of the $\mu ^*$-constant stratum if their projective tangent cones (defined by $f_0$ and $f_1$, respectively) make a Zariski pair of curves in $\mathbb {P}^2$, the singularities of which are Newton non-degenerate. In this case, we say that $V(g_0):=g_0^{-1}(0)$ and $V(g_1):=g_1^{-1}(0)$ make a $\mu ^*$-Zariski pair of surface singularities. Being such a pair is a necessary condition for the germs $V(g_0)$ and $V(g_1)$ to have distinct embedded topologies.