$\mathfrak{sl}(2)$-type singular fibres of the symplectic and odd orthogonal Hitchin system

Abstract

We define and parametrise so-called $\mathfrak{sl}(2)$-type fibres of the $\mathsf{Sp}(2n,\mathbb{C})$- and $\mathsf{SO}(2n+1,\mathbb{C})$-Hitchin system. These are (singular) Hitchin fibres, where the spectral curve induces a two-sheeted covering of a second Riemann surface $Y$. This identifies the $\mathfrak{sl}(2)$-type Hitchin fibres with fibres of an $\mathsf{SL}(2,\mathbb{C})$- respectively $\mathsf{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})$-Hitchin map on $Y$. We give a stratification of these singular spaces by semi-abelian spectral data, study their irreducible components and obtain a global description of the first degenerations. Comparing the semi-abelian spectral data of $\mathfrak{sl}(2)$-type Hitchin fibres for the two Langlands dual groups, we extend the well-known Langlands duality of regular Hitchin fibres to $\mathfrak{sl}(2)$-type Hitchin fibres. Finally, we construct solutions to the decoupled Hitchin equation for Higgs bundles of $\mathfrak{sl}(2)$-type. We conjecture these to be limiting metrics along rays to the ends of the moduli space.