Finiteness of Free Algebras of Modular Forms on Unitary Groups

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Maeda, Yota, Ohara, Kazuma
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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_version_ 1866909616916398080
author Maeda, Yota
Ohara, Kazuma
author_facet Maeda, Yota
Ohara, Kazuma
contents Classical results on the classification of reflections in an arithmetic subgroup $Γ$ imply that if the graded algebra of modular forms $M_*(Γ)$ is freely generated, then $Γ$ must be an arithmetic subgroup of either the orthogonal group $\operatorname{O}^+(2,n)$ or the unitary group $\operatorname{U}(1,n)$. Vinberg and Schwarzman showed that in the orthogonal case, if $n>10$, then it is never free. In this paper, we investigate the remaining unitary case and prove that, up to scaling, there are only finitely many isometry classes of Hermitian lattices of signature $(1, n)$ with $n > 2$ over imaginary quadratic fields with odd discriminant that admit a free algebra of modular forms. In particular, when $n>99$ (except over $\mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{-3})$, where we require $n > 154$), the graded algebra $M_*(Γ)$ is never free for any arithmetic subgroup $Γ<\operatorname{U}(1,n)$, thereby partially confirming a conjecture by Wang and Williams. As a byproduct, we also establish a finiteness result for reflective modular forms. In the course of this proof, we derive a formula for the covolume of an arithmetic subgroup of a special unitary group, presented as the stabiliser of a Hermitian lattice, which generalises Prasad's volume formula for principal arithmetic subgroups in the case of special unitary groups.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2505_13698
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Finiteness of Free Algebras of Modular Forms on Unitary Groups
Maeda, Yota
Ohara, Kazuma
Number Theory
Algebraic Geometry
11F55, 22E40, 20G25, 11E39, 11G18
Classical results on the classification of reflections in an arithmetic subgroup $Γ$ imply that if the graded algebra of modular forms $M_*(Γ)$ is freely generated, then $Γ$ must be an arithmetic subgroup of either the orthogonal group $\operatorname{O}^+(2,n)$ or the unitary group $\operatorname{U}(1,n)$. Vinberg and Schwarzman showed that in the orthogonal case, if $n>10$, then it is never free. In this paper, we investigate the remaining unitary case and prove that, up to scaling, there are only finitely many isometry classes of Hermitian lattices of signature $(1, n)$ with $n > 2$ over imaginary quadratic fields with odd discriminant that admit a free algebra of modular forms. In particular, when $n>99$ (except over $\mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{-3})$, where we require $n > 154$), the graded algebra $M_*(Γ)$ is never free for any arithmetic subgroup $Γ<\operatorname{U}(1,n)$, thereby partially confirming a conjecture by Wang and Williams. As a byproduct, we also establish a finiteness result for reflective modular forms. In the course of this proof, we derive a formula for the covolume of an arithmetic subgroup of a special unitary group, presented as the stabiliser of a Hermitian lattice, which generalises Prasad's volume formula for principal arithmetic subgroups in the case of special unitary groups.
title Finiteness of Free Algebras of Modular Forms on Unitary Groups
topic Number Theory
Algebraic Geometry
11F55, 22E40, 20G25, 11E39, 11G18
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.13698