Abstract
Let C be an algebraic curve defined over a number field K, of positive genus and without K-rational points. We conjecture that there exists some extension field L over which C has points everywhere locally but not globally. We show that our conjecture holds for all but finitely many Shimura curves of the form X D0 (N)/ℚ or X D1 (N)/ℚ, where D > 1 and N are coprime squarefree positive integers. The proof uses a variation on a theorem of Frey, a gonality bound of Abramovich, and an analysis of local points of small degree.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
D. Abramovich, A linear lower bound on the gonality of modular curves, International Mathematical Research Notices 1996, 1005–1011.
D. Abramovich and J. Harris, Abelian varieties and curves in W d (C), Compositio Mathematica 78 (1991), 227–238.
K. Buzzard, Integral models of certain Shimura curves, Duke Mathematical Journal 87 (1997), 591–612.
P. L. Clark, Rational points on Atkin-Lehner quotients of Shimura curves, Harvard thesis, 2003.
P. L. Clark, On the indeces of curves over local fields, Manuscripta Mathematica 124 (2007), 411–426.
P. L. Clark and X. Xarles, Local bounds for torsion points on abelian varieties, The Canadian Journal of Mathematics 60 (2008), 532–555.
P. Deligne and M. Rapoport, Les schémas de modules de courbes elliptiques, in Modular Functions of One Variable II, (A. Dold and B. Eckmann eds.), Lecture Notes in Mathematics 349, Springer-Verlag, New York, 1973, pp. 143–316.
G. Frey, Curves with infinitely many points of fixed degree, Israel Journal of Mathematics 85 (1994), 79–83.
J. Harris and J. Silverman, Bielliptic curves and symmetric products, Proceedings of the American Mathematical Society 112 (1991), 347–356.
D. Helm, On maps between modular Jacobians and Jacobians of Shimura curves, Israel Journal of Mathematics 160 (2007), 61–117.
Q. Liu, Algebraic Geometry and Arithmetic Curves, Oxford Graduate Texts in Mathematics 6, 2002.
D. Long, C. Maclachlan and A. Reid, Arithmetic fuchsian groups of genus zero, Applied Mathematics Quaterly (Special Issue: In honor of John H. Coates, Part 2 of 2), 2 (2006), 569–599.
B. W. Jordan, Points on Shimura curves rational over number fields, Journal fur die Reine und Angewandte Mathematik 371 (1986), 92–114.
B. W. Jordan and R. Livné, Local Diophantine properties of Shimura curves, Mathematische Annalen 270 (1985), 235–248.
S. Ling, Shimura subgroups of Jacobians of Shimura curves, Proceedings of the American Mathematical Society 118 (1993), 385–390.
J. Milne, Points on Shimura varieties mod p, Proceedings of Symposia in Pure Mathematics XXXIII (1979), Part 2, 165–184.
A. Ogg, Real points on Shimura curves, Progress in Mathematics 35 (1983), Vol. I, 277–307.
A. Ogg, Hyperelliptic modular curves, Bulletin de la Société Mathématique de France 102 (1974), 449–462.
V. Rotger, On the group of automorphisms of Shimura curves and applications, Compositio Mathematica 132 (2002), 229–241.
V. Rotger, A. Skorobogatov and A. Yafaev, Failure of the Hasse principle for Atkin-Lehner quotients of Shimura curves over ℝ, Moscow Mathematical Journal 5 (2005).
A. Skorobogatov, Shimura coverings of Shimura curves and the Manin obstruction, Mathematical Research Letters 12 (2005), 779–788.
A. Skorobogatov and A. Yafaev, Descent on certain Shimura curves, Israel Journal of Mathematics 140 (2004), 319–332.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Clark, P.L. On the Hasse principle for Shimura curves. Isr. J. Math. 171, 349–365 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11856-009-0053-6
Received:
Revised:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11856-009-0053-6