Encomplexed Brown invariant of real algebraic surfaces in ℝP3

Abstract

We construct an invariant of parametrized generic real algebraic surfaces in RP^3 which generalizes the Brown invariant of immersed surfaces from smooth topology. The invariant is constructed using the self intersection, which is a real algebraic curve with points of three local characters: the intersection of two real sheets, the intersection of two complex conjugate sheets or a Whitney umbrella. The Brown invariant was expressed through a self linking number of the self intersection by Kirby and Melvin. We extend the definition of this self linking number to the case of parametrized generic real algebraic surfaces.