Hilbert-Kunz Multiplicity of Fibers and Bertini Theorems

Let $k$ be an algebraically closed field of characteristic $p > 0$. We show that if $X\subseteq\mathbb{P}^n_k$ is an equidimensional subscheme with Hilbert--Kunz multiplicity less than $\lambda$ at all points $x\in X$, then for a general hyperplane $H\subseteq\mathbb{P}^n_k$, the Hilbert--Kunz multiplicity of $X\cap H$ is less than $\lambda$ at all points $x\in X\cap H$. This answers a conjecture and generalizes a result of Carvajal-Rojas, Schwede and Tucker, whose conclusion is the same as ours when $X\subseteq\mathbb{P}^n_k$ is normal. In the process, we substantially generalize certain uniform estimates on Hilbert--Kunz multiplicities of fibers of maps obtained by the aforementioned authors that should be of independent interest.