Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2014 / iii / Paper 23 / 1 / c / Solution

Write $t(\tau )=\Delta (\tau )/\Delta (2\tau )$. For $\gamma =\left(\begin{array}{cc}a& b\\ c& d\end{array}\right)\in {\Gamma }_0(2)$, the integral matrix ${\gamma }^{\prime }=\left(\begin{array}{cc}a& 2b\\ c/2& d\end{array}\right)$ has determinant one and satisfies $2\gamma \tau ={\gamma }^{\prime }(2\tau )$. Both discriminants acquire the same factor $(c\tau +d{)}^{12}$, so $t$ is invariant. It has neither zeros nor poles in the half-plane.

Reduction modulo two gives index three, with two modular cusp classes, infinity and zero, of cusp widths one and two. These can also be found from the orbits of upper triangular matrices on primitive columns modulo two. Compactness follows from the finite-index argument in part (a).

At infinity $t=q^{-1}(1+O(q))$, so it has a simple pole. At zero use $S\tau =-1/\tau$ and the modular discriminant inversion law:Thus zero is a simple zero, not a pole, in its width-two modular cusp coordinate. The single-pole criterion for a spherical coordinate now givesThis discriminant-ratio coordinate on X0 2 is different from a ratio of two $j$-invariants.