Combinatorial invariants for nets of conics in $$\mathrm {PG}(2,q)$$

The problem of classifying linear systems of conics in projective planes dates back at least to Jordan, who classified pencils (one-dimensional systems) of conics over $${\mathbb {C}}$$ C and $$\mathbb {R}$$ R in 1906–1907. The analogous problem for finite fields $$\mathbb {F}_q$$ F q with q odd was solved by Dickson in 1908. In 1914, Wilson attempted to classify nets (two-dimensional systems) of conics over finite fields of odd characteristic, but his classification was incomplete and contained some inaccuracies. In a recent article, we completed Wilson’s classification (for q odd) of nets of rank one, namely those containing a repeated line. The aim of the present paper is to introduce and calculate certain combinatorial invariants of these nets, which we expect will be of use in various applications. Our approach is geometric in the sense that we view a net of rank one as a plane in $$\mathrm {PG}(5,q)$$ PG ( 5 , q ) , q odd, that meets the quadric Veronesean in at least one point; two such nets are then equivalent if and only if the corresponding planes belong to the same orbit under the induced action of $$\mathrm {PGL}(3,q)$$ PGL ( 3 , q ) viewed as a subgroup of $$\mathrm {PGL}(6,q)$$ PGL ( 6 , q ) . Since q is odd, the orbits of lines in $$\mathrm {PG}(5,q)$$ PG ( 5 , q ) under this action correspond to the aforementioned pencils of conics in $$\mathrm {PG}(2,q)$$ PG ( 2 , q ) . The main contribution of this paper is to determine the line-orbit distribution of a plane $$\pi $$ π corresponding to a net of rank one, namely, the number of lines in $$\pi $$ π belonging to each line orbit. It turns out that this list of invariants completely determines the orbit of $$\pi $$ π , and we will use this fact in forthcoming work to develop an efficient algorithm for calculating the orbit of a given net of rank one. As a more immediate application, we also determine the stabilisers of nets of rank one in $$\mathrm {PGL}(3,q)$$ PGL ( 3 , q ) , and hence the orbit sizes.

The Hardy–Littlewood conjecture and rational points

Schinzel’s Hypothesis (H) was used by Colliot-Thélène and Sansuc, and later by Serre, Swinnerton-Dyer and others, to prove that the Brauer–Manin obstruction controls the Hasse principle and weak approximation on pencils of conics and similar varieties. We show that when the ground field is $\mathbb{Q}$ and the degenerate geometric fibres of the pencil are all defined over $\mathbb{Q}$, one can use this method to obtain unconditional results by replacing Hypothesis (H) with the finite complexity case of the generalised Hardy–Littlewood conjecture recently established by Green, Tao and Ziegler.

Algebro-geometric approach to the Yang-Baxter equation and related topics

We review the results of algebro-geometric approach to 4 ? 4 solutions of the Yang-Baxter equation. We emphasis some further geometric properties, connected with the double-reflection theorem, the Poncelet porism and the Euler-Chasles correspondence. We present a list of classifications in Mathematical Physics with a similar geometric background, related to pencils of conics. In the conclusion, we introduce a notion of discriminantly factorizable polynomials as a result of a computational experiment with elementary n-valued groups.