On Rees algebras of 2-determinantal ideals

Let I be the ideal of minors of a 2 by n matrix of linear forms with the expected codimension. In this paper we prove that the Rees algebra of I and its special fiber ring are Cohen-Macaulay and Koszul; in particular, they are quadratic algebras. The main novelty in our approach is the analysis of a stratification of the Hilbert scheme of determinantal ideals. We study degenerations of Rees algebras along this stratification, and combine it with certain squarefree Groebner degenerations.