Higher Green’s functions for modular forms

Abstract

Higher Green functions are real-valued functions of two variables on the upper half plane which are bi-invariant under the action of a congruence subgroup, have logarithmic singularity along the diagonal, but instead of the usual equation $\Delta f=0$ we have equation $\Delta f = k(1-k) f$. Here $k$ is a positive integer. Properties of these functions are related to the space of modular forms of weight $2k$. In the case when there are no cusp forms of weight $2k$ it was conjectured that the values of the Green function at points of complex multiplication are algebraic multiples of logarithms of algebraic numbers. We show that this conjecture can be proved in any particular case if one constructs a family of elements of certain higher Chow groups on the power of a family of elliptic curves. These families have to satisfy certain properties. A different family of elements of Higher Chow groups is needed for a different point of complex multiplication. We give an example of such family, thereby proving the conjecture for the case when the group is $PSL_2(Z)$, $k=2$ and one of the arguments is $\sqrt{-1}$.