ℤ3-actions on Horikawa surfaces

Abstract

Minimal algebraic surfaces of general type [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text] are called Horikawa surfaces. In this note, [Formula: see text]-actions on Horikawa surfaces are studied. The main result states that given an admissible pair [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text], all the connected components of Gieseker’s moduli space [Formula: see text] contain surfaces admitting a [Formula: see text]-action. On the other hand, the examples considered allow us to produce normal stable surfaces that do not admit a [Formula: see text]-Gorenstein smoothing. This is illustrated by constructing non-smoothable normal surfaces in the KSBA-compactification [Formula: see text] of Gieseker’s moduli space [Formula: see text] for every admissible pair [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text]. Furthermore, the surfaces constructed belong to connected components of [Formula: see text] without canonical models.