Cremona maps defined by monomials

Abstract

Cremona maps defined by monomials of degree 2 are thoroughly analyzed and classified via integer arithmetic and graph combinatorics. In particular, the structure of the inverse map to such a monomial Cremona map is made very explicit as is the degree of its monomial defining coordinates. As a special case, one proves that any monomial Cremona map of degree 2 has inverse of degree 2 if and only if it is an involution up to permutation in the source and in the target. This statement is subsumed in a recent result of L. Pirio and F. Russo, but the proof is entirely different and holds in all characteristics. One unveils a close relationship binding together the normality of a monomial ideal, monomial Cremona maps and Hilbert bases of polyhedral cones. The latter suggests that facets of monomial Cremona theory may be NP-hard.