Kernel of Arithmetic Jet Spaces

Abstract: Since the results here have been superseded by another paper cowritten by the author, this article is available for reference purposes only. Fix a Dedekind domain $\mathcal{O}$ and a non-zero prime $\mathfrak{p}$ in it along with a uniformizer $\pi$. In the first part of the paper, we construct $m$-shifted $\pi$-typical Witt vectors $W_{mn}(B)$ for any $\mathcal{O}$ algebra $B$ of length $m+n+1$. They are a generalization of the usual $\pi$-typical Witt vectors. Along with it we construct a lift of Frobenius, called the lateral Frobenius $\tilde{F}: W_{mn}(B) \rightarrow W_{m(n-1)}(B)$ and show that it satisfies a natural identity with the usual Frobenius map. Now given a group scheme $G$ defined over $\mathrm{Spec}~ R$, where $R$ is an $\mathcal{O}$-algebra with a fixed $\pi$-derivation $\delta$ on it, one naturally considers the $n$-th arithmetic jet space $J^nG$ whose points are the Witt ring valued points of $G$. This leads to a natural projection map of group schemes $u: J^{m+n}G \rightarrow J^mG$. Let $N^{mn}G$ denote the kernel of $u$. One of our main results imply that for any $\pi$-formal group scheme $\hat{G}$ over $\mathrm{Spf}~ R$, $N^{mn}\hat{G}$ is isomorphic to $J^{n-1}(N^{m1}G)$. As an application, if $\hat{G}$ is a smooth commutative $\pi$-formal group scheme of dimension $d$ and $R$ is of characteristic 0 whose ramification is bounded above by $p-2$, then our result implies that $J^nG$ is a canonical extension of $\hat{G}$ by $(\mathbb{W}{n-1})^d$ where $\mathbb{W}{n-1}$ is the $\pi$-formal group scheme $\hat{\mathbb{A}}^n$ endowed with the group law of addition of Witt vectors. Our results also give a geometric characterization of $G(\pi^{n+1}R)$ which is the subgroup of points of $G(R)$ that reduces to identity under the modulo $\pi^{n+1}$ map.