Related papers: The moduli space of curves, double Hurwitz numbers…
In this paper, we prove Hurwitz-Eichler type formulas for Hurwitz class numbers with each level $ M $ when the modular curve $ X_0(M) $ has genus zero. A key idea is to calculate intersection numbers of modular correspondences with the…
We study genus $g$ coverings of full moduli dimension of degree $d=[\frac {g+3} 2]$. There is a homomorphism between the corresponding Hurwitz space $\H$ of such covers to the moduli space $\M_g$ of genus $g$ curves. In the case $g=3$,…
We describe the moduli space G^r_d of triples consisting of a curve C, a line bundle L on C of degree d, and a linear system V on L of dimension r. This moduli space extends over a partial compactification {\tilde M_g} of M_g inside {\bar…
Double Hurwitz numbers enumerate branched covers of $\mathbb{CP}^1$ with prescribed ramification over two points and simple ramification elsewhere. In contrast to the single case, their underlying geometry is not well understood. In…
Each finite $p$-perfect group $G$ ($p$ a prime) has a universal central $p$-extension. For a perfect group these central extensions come from its {\sl Schur multiplier}. Serre gave a Stiefel-Whitney class approach to analyzing spin covers…
We bound from below the complexity of the top Chern class of the Hodge bundle in the Chow ring of the moduli space of curves: no formulas in terms of classes of degrees 1 and 2 can exist. As a consequence of the Torelli map, the 0-section…
Given two vector bundles E and F on a variety X and a morphism from Sym^2(E) to F, we compute the cohomology class of the locus in X where the kernel of this morphism contains a quadric of prescribed rank. Our formulas have many…
We prove the genus zero part of the generalized Witten conjecture relating moduli spaces of spin curves to Gelfand-Dickey hierarchies. That is, we show that intersection numbers on the moduli space of stable r-spin curves assemble into a…
Let $g$ and $g'$ be two integers and $p$ a prime number. Denote by $\mathscr H_{g, g', p}^c$ the moduli space of morphisms of degree $p$ between smooth curves of genus $g$ and $g'$ and with constant ramification. The purpose of this article…
We prove that the moduli space of curves with level structures has an enormous amount of rational cohomology in its cohomological dimension. As an application, we prove that the coherent cohomological dimension of the moduli space of curves…
Simple Hurwitz numbers enumerate branched morphisms between Riemann surfaces with fixed ramification data. In recent years, several variants of this notion for genus $0$ base curves have appeared in the literature. Among them are so-called…
We present certain new properties about the intersection numbers on moduli spaces of curves $\bar{\sM}_{g,n}$, including a simple explicit formula of $n$-point functions and several new identities of intersection numbers. In particular we…
The main goal of the paper is to present a new approach via Hurwitz numbers to Kontsevich's combinatorial/matrix model for the intersection theory of the moduli space of curves. A secondary goal is to present an exposition of the circle of…
We give two proofs that appropriately defined congruence subgroups of the mapping class group of a surface with punctures/boundary have enormous amounts of rational cohomology in their virtual cohomological dimension. In particular we give…
Due to the orbifold singularities, the intersection numbers on the moduli space of curves $\bar{\sM}_{g,n}$ are in general rational numbers rather than integers. We study the properties of the denominators of these intersection numbers and…
We propose a new, conjectural recursion solution for Hurwitz numbers at all genera. This conjecture is based on recent progress in solving type B topological string theory on the mirrors of toric Calabi-Yau manifolds, which we briefly…
We extend results by Mirzakhani in [Mir07] to moduli spaces of Hurwitz covers. In particular we obtain equations relating Weil-Petersson volumes of moduli spaces of Hurwitz covers, Hurwitz numbers and certain Hurwitz cycles on…
By considering the intersections of Shimura curves and Humbert surfaces on the Siegel modular threefold, we obtain new class number relations. The result is a higher-dimensional analogue of the classical Hurwitz-Kronecker class number…
We define a collection $\Theta_{g,n}\in H^{4g-4+2n}(\overline{\cal M}_{g,n},\mathbb{Q})$ for $2g-2+n>0$ of cohomology classes that restrict naturally to boundary divisors. We prove that the intersection numbers $\int_{\overline{\cal…
Based on the combinatorial description of the moduli spaces of curves provided by Strebel differentials, Witten and Kontsevich have introduced combinatorial cohomology classes $W_{(m_0,m_1,m_2,\dots),n}$, and conjectured that these can be…