A geometric characterization of arithmetic varieties

Abstract

A result of Belyi can be stated as follows. Every curve defined over a number field can be expressed as a cover of the projective line with branch locus contained in a rigid divisor. We define the notion of geometrically rigid divisors in surfaces and then show that every surface defined over a number field can be expressed as a cover of the projective plane with branch locus contained in a geometrically rigid divisor in the plane. The main result is the characterization of arithmetically defined divisors in the plane as geometrically rigid divisors in the plane.