The Hodge ring of varieties in positive characteristic

Abstract

Let $k$ be a field of positive characteristic. We prove that the only linear relations between the Hodge numbers $h^{i,j}(X) = \dim H^j(X,\Omega_X^i)$ that hold for every smooth proper variety $X$ over $k$ are the ones given by Serre duality. We also show that the only linear combinations of Hodge numbers that are birational invariants of $X$ are given by the span of the $h^{i,0}(X)$ and the $h^{0,j}(X)$ (and their duals $h^{i,n}(X)$ and $h^{n,j}(X)$). The corresponding statements for compact K\"ahler manifolds were proven by Kotschick and Schreieder.