Euler systems for conjugate-symplectic motives

Abstract: Let $\rho$ be a conjugate-symplectic, geometric representation of the Galois group of a CM field. Under the assumption that $\rho$ is automorphic, even-dimensional, and of minimal regular Hodge--Tate type, we construct an Euler system for $\rho$ in the sense of forthcoming work of Jetchev--Nekovar--Skinner. The construction is based on Theta cycles as introduced in a previous paper, following works of Kudla and Liu on arithmetic theta series on unitary Shimura varieties; it relies on a certain modularity hypothesis for those theta series. Under some ordinariness assumptions, one can attach to $\rho$ a p-adic L-function. By recent results of Liu and the author, and the theory of Jetchev--Nekovar--Skinner, we deduce the following (unconditional) result under mild assumptions: if the p-adic L-function of $\rho$ vanishes to order 1 at the centre, then the Selmer group of $\rho$ has rank 1, generated by the class of an algebraic cycle. This confirms a case of the p-adic Beilinson--Bloch--Kato conjecture.