Root numbers of 5-adic curves of genus two having maximal ramification

Abstract

The formulas for local root numbers of abelian varieties of dimension one are known. In this paper we treat the simplest unknown case in dimension two by considering a curve of genus 2 defined over a $5$-adic field such that the inertia acts on the first $\ell$-adic cohomology group through the largest possible finite quotient, isomorphic to $C_5\rtimes C_8$. We give a few criteria to identify such curves and prove a formula for their local root numbers in terms of invariants associated to a Weierstrass equation.