$p$-adic heights of Heegner points and Beilinson-Flach elements

Abstract

We give a new proof of Howard's $\Lambda$-adic Gross-Zagier formula, which we extend to the context of indefinite Shimura curves over $\mathbf{Q}$ attached to nonsplit quaternion algebras. This formula relates the cyclotomic derivative of a two-variable $p$-adic $L$-function restricted to the anticyclotomic line to the cyclotomic $p$-adic heights of Heegner points over the anticyclotomic tower, and our proof, rather than inspired by the original approaches of Gross-Zagier and Perrin-Riou, is via Iwasawa theory, based on the connection between Heegner points, Beilinson-Flach elements, and their explicit reciprocity laws.