For an ample line bundle on a noetherian scheme , every coherent sheaf becomes a globally generated sheaf after tensoring with for all sufficiently large . Finitely many global sections suffice by finite global generation on a quasi-compact scheme. This is the global-generation characterization of an ample line bundle.[ref]
For a closed subscheme of projective space, take . One way to see why twisting helps is to choose finitely many module generators on each standard affine open subscheme. Multiplication by a sufficiently high power of its homogeneous coordinate extends each generator to a global section of a twist. Choose one exponent for all generators. On the original chart that coordinate is invertible, so these extended sections still generate; doing this for every chart proves global generation. Tensoring back by the inverse invertible sheaf gives a surjection from a finite direct sum of sheaves of negative twists onto .
Write over its ground field; the argument also works over any Noetherian affine base. Since is a closed immersion, is a noetherian scheme and a quasi-compact scheme. Let
Here the pullback of a sheaf of modules makes an invertible sheaf, the restriction of the twisting sheaf on projective space. It is an ample line bundle.
By global generation by sufficiently positive twists, choose such that is a globally generated sheaf. Finitely many global sections suffice: at each point, finite generation of the stalk of the coherent sheaf lets us select finitely many generating germs of global sections. Those sections generate on a neighbourhood, because their cokernel sheaf is a coherent sheaf with zero stalk at that point. A finite subcover, using that is a quasi-compact scheme, supplies finitely many global sections generating everywhere. This is finite global generation on a quasi-compact scheme, and gives a surjective sheaf morphism
Tensor with , where is the dual of a sheaf. Here tensoring with an invertible sheaf is exact: locally the tensor product of sheaves is tensoring with a free module of rank one. Using the permitted identity , we obtain
A finite direct sum of sheaves of invertible sheaves is a locally free sheaf of finite rank, and it is a coherent sheaf on the noetherian scheme . This constructs the required . No regularity or smoothness assumption on is needed.
Let , the sheaf of meromorphic principal parts. Exactness of taking stalks gives
Choose a holomorphic coordinate vanishing at . Every meromorphic germ has a finite negative tail in its Laurent series; the holomorphic tail vanishes in the quotient. Hence
This coordinate description is a vector-space identification; the intrinsic space is the quotient of germs, so a coordinate change need not preserve the displayed basis.
For each point inclusion , a principal part defines a local meromorphic germ near , whose quotient class is zero off . Gluing with zero on the complement gives a map from its skyscraper sheaf to . These maps induce an isomorphism on every stalk and therefore an isomorphism of sheaves:
The direct sum of sheaves means the sheafification of the sectionwise direct-sum presheaf. Its sections can have infinitely many nonzero components globally, but their point supports form a locally finite family of subsets. This matches the fact that poles of a meromorphic function are locally finite. On a compact Riemann surface only finitely many points can occur; on a noncompact one a discrete infinite family is allowed.
For a global principal-part family , choose local meromorphic lifts on a sufficiently small open cover. The differences are holomorphic functions and form a Čech cocycle. The connecting homomorphism sends to the resulting class in . If this class vanishes, after refining the cover write ; then the functions glue to a global meromorphic function. Conversely any global lift makes the class zero. Equivalently, exactness of the given long exact sequence in sheaf cohomology says
The connecting class is the obstruction to the Mittag-Leffler problem on a Riemann surface. It rules on the specified poles and their finite negative Laurent tails, with no additional poles allowed. When a solution exists, any two solutions differ by a global holomorphic function.
On a Riemann surface, the quotient sheaf records the finite negative Laurent series tails of meromorphic germs. At , a local coordinate identifies its stalk with . As a sheaf it is the direct sum of sheaves . Global sections prescribe locally finite families of principal parts, possibly infinite on a noncompact surface. The connecting homomorphism to is exactly the obstruction to a global meromorphic function with those parts and no extra poles.