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23 votes
3 answers
1k views

Which $\ast$-algebras are $C^\ast$-algebras?

It's well-known that the norm on a $C^\ast$-algebra is uniquely determined by the underlying $\ast$-algebra by the spectral radius formula. Therefore there should be a way to axiomatize $C^\ast$-...
Tim Campion's user avatar
  • 63.9k
15 votes
4 answers
3k views

Universal $C^*$-algebra with generators and relations

We say that the $C^*$-algebra $A$ generated by $a_1,...,a_n$ is universal subject to relations $R_1,...,R_m$ if for every $C^*$-algebra $B$ with elements $b_1,...,b_n$ satisfying relations $R_1,...,...
truebaran's user avatar
  • 9,330
10 votes
1 answer
492 views

Which W*-algebras are the duals of C*-coalgebras?

A Banach algebra (assumed associative and unital) is precisely a monoid object in the monoidal category of Banach spaces, short linear maps, and the projective tensor product. A Banach coalgebra is ...
Toby Bartels's user avatar
  • 2,754
6 votes
1 answer
680 views

Is there an operator algebraic reformulation of the invariant subspace problem?

Let $H$ be an infinite dimensional separable Hilbert space and $B(H)$ the algebra of bounded operators. Invariant subspace problem: Let $T \in B(H)$. Is there a non-trivial closed $T$-invariant ...
Sebastien Palcoux's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
414 views

A question on an argument in Woronowicz’s paper on the compact quantum group $ {\text{SU}_{q}}(2) $

Let $ q \in [0,1) $. The compact quantum group $ {\text{SU}_{q}}(2) $ is defined to be the universal unital $ C^{*} $-algebra that is generated by two elements $ \alpha $ and $ \beta $ satisfying the ...
Transcendental's user avatar
27 votes
0 answers
1k views

Unital $C^{*}$ algebras whose all elements have path connected spectrum

A unital $C^{*}$ algebra is called a "Path connected algebra" if the spectrum of all its elements is a path connected subset of $\mathbb{C}$. What is an example of a non commutative ...
Ali Taghavi's user avatar
25 votes
2 answers
1k views

Can nuclearity be determined by tensoring with a single C*-algebra?

A C*-algebra is nuclear if the algebraic tensor product $A\odot B$ ($B$ is any other C*-algebra) admits a unique C*-norm. This definition requires testing the condition for nuclearity with `all' C*-...
Lech Roch's user avatar
  • 505
20 votes
2 answers
1k views

The Gelfand duality for pro-$C^*$-algebras

The Gelfand duality says that $$X\to C(X)$$ is a contravariant equivalence between the category of compact Hausdorff spaces and continuous maps and the category of commutative unital $C^*$-algebras ...
Ilan Barnea's user avatar
  • 1,344
20 votes
2 answers
870 views

C$^*$-algebras isomorphic after tensoring with $M_n(\mathbb C)$

In 1977, Joan Plastiras gave a striking example of two non $*$-isomorphic C$^*$-algebras $\mathcal A$ and $\mathcal B$ such that $$\mathcal A \otimes M_2(\mathbb C) \simeq \mathcal B\otimes M_2(\...
Chris Ramsey's user avatar
  • 3,984
15 votes
2 answers
2k views

Range of completely positive projection

Let $A$ be a C*-algebra. Suppose that $P:A \rightarrow A$ is a contractive completely positive projection. Does the range $P(A)$ is completely order isomorphic to a $C^*$-algebra? In the case where ...
BigBill's user avatar
  • 1,222
13 votes
1 answer
806 views

Inner and extendible automorphisms of C*-algebras

If an automorphism $\alpha$ of a C*-algebra $A$ is inner then whenever $A$ is a subalgebra of another C*-algebra $B$, $\alpha$ obviously extends to $B$. Is the converse true: if an automorphism $\...
Aaron Tikuisis's user avatar
13 votes
2 answers
775 views

Properties of orthogonality-preserving c.p. maps between $C^*$-algebras

Suppose that $A,C$ are $C^*$-algebras and $\phi:A \to C$ is a completely positive, orthogonality-preserving linear map. (Orthogonality preserving means: if $a,b \in A$ satisfy $ab=0$ then $\phi(a)\phi(...
Aaron Tikuisis's user avatar
12 votes
1 answer
901 views

Is there a proof that the $C^{*}$-algebras don't see the invariant subspace problem?

This post is an appendix of this one. Let $H$ be an infinite dimensional separable Hilbert space and $B(H)$ the algebra of bounded operators. Invariant subspace problem: Let $T \in B(H)$. Is ...
Sebastien Palcoux's user avatar
9 votes
1 answer
596 views

Why is the Berkovich spectrum of a C*-Algebra the same as the Gelfand spectrum?

Let $A = \mathcal{C}(X)$ be a commutative (unital) C*-Algebra. Let $Spec(A)$ denote its Gelfand spectrum $$ Spec(A) = \{A \rightarrow \mathbb{C} : \text{non-zero *-homomorphism} \} \simeq X. $$ Now ...
Niki's user avatar
  • 335
9 votes
1 answer
338 views

Commuting nets for commuting projections

I think this should not be too difficult, but I am not an expert. I did not get an answer on stackexchange. Let $A$ be a $C$*-algebra and let $p,q\in A^{**}$ be two commuting projections. Then there ...
Mark Roelands's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
355 views

Proving a certain $ C^{*} $-algebraic inequality

Let $ A $ be a non-unital $ C^{*} $-algebra. Is there an ‘elementary’ way to prove, for all $ (a,\lambda) \in A \times \mathbb{C} $, the inequality $$ |\lambda| \leq \sup_{b \in A, ~ \| b \| \leq 1} \|...
Transcendental's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
390 views

Order bounded version of monotone complete $C^*$-algebras

Let $A$ be a $C^*$-algebra with self-adjoint part $A_{\operatorname{sa}}$. Then $A$ is called monotone complete if every increasing norm bounded net in $A_{\operatorname{sa}}$ has a supremum (with ...
Jochen Glueck's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
429 views

Open projections and Murray-von Neumann equivalence

Let $\mathcal{A}$ be a $C^*$-algebra and $p\in\mathcal{A}^{**}$ be an open projection, that is, $p=p^*=p^2$ and $p\in\overline{(p\mathcal{A}^{**}p\cap\hat{\mathcal{A}})}^{\operatorname{w}^*}$, where $\...
Masayoshi Kaneda's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
572 views

What is $\hat{A}=\{[\pi]:\pi$ is a irreducible representation of $A$} ( $A$ is a $C^*$-algebra)?

Let $A=\{f:[0,1]\to M_2(\mathbb{C}): $f continuous and $ f(0)=\begin{pmatrix} f_{11}(0) & 0 \\ 0 & f_{22}(0) \end{pmatrix}\}$ be a $C^*$-algebra with pointwise multiplication, involutions and ...
Sabrina Gemsa's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
702 views

A Question About Pure States, Support Projections and Central Covers

I am trying to study the paper Consistency of a Counterexample to Naimark’s Problem by Charles Akemann and Nik Weaver, and there is a claim in Lemma 1 of the paper that I am stuck at, which is as ...
user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
1k views

Reference needed for: every idempotent in a C*-algebra is similar to a hermitian one

The result stated in the title is thoroughly standard - or that's the impression I got. I seem to remember seeing it stated somewhere in a book I was reading in the library, and then reverse-...
Yemon Choi's user avatar
  • 25.8k
6 votes
1 answer
150 views

Examples of non-isomorphic $C^\ast$ algebras with isomorphic quasi-state spaces

Let $A$ (resp. $B$) be a unital $C^\ast$-algebra, $\mathcal{Q}(A)$ (resp. $\mathcal{Q}(B)$) the compact convex subset of $A^\ast$ equipped with the $\sigma(A^\ast, A)$ (resp. $\sigma(B^\ast, B)$) ...
Rick Sternbach's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
307 views

Can an AW*-algebra be recovered from its lattice of projections?

Can an AW*-algebra be recovered (up to Jordan isomorphism) from its lattice of projections? This is possible in the commutative/Boolean case.
Cameron Zwarich's user avatar
4 votes
0 answers
123 views

Restricting a function defined on an étale groupoid to an isotropy group

Let $\mathcal G$ be an étale groupoid, let $x$ be a point in the unit space of $\mathcal G$, and let $\mathcal G(x)$ be the isotropy group of $x$. If $f$ is a continuous, complex valued, compactly ...
Ruy's user avatar
  • 2,263
3 votes
1 answer
274 views

Finite codimensional subvector space of $C^{*}$ algebras which contains no invertible elements

Assume that $A$ is a unital $C^{*}$ algebra. Is there a subvector space $Y\subset A$ of finite codimension which does not contain any invertible element? Let $n(A)$ be the infimum of such ...
Ali Taghavi's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
475 views

Strict topology on the multiplier algebra

Let $A$ be a $C^*$-algebra. Let $M(A)$ be its multiplier $C^*$-algebras. The strict topology on $M(A)$ is given by $$x_\lambda \to x \iff \forall a\in A: (\|x_\lambda a-xa\| + \|ax_\lambda - ax\| \to ...
Andromeda's user avatar
  • 175
3 votes
1 answer
740 views

Centralizers in C*-algebra

Let $a,b\in A$ be self-adjoint elements in $C^*$-algebra $A$ with equal centralizers, $\{x\in A; [a,x]=0\}=\{x\in A; [b,x]=0\}$. Can we say anything about the correspondence between $a$ and $b$? For ...
spelas's user avatar
  • 179
3 votes
2 answers
470 views

If $ F(x,\bullet) \in {L^{2}}(G,B) $ for all $ x \in G $, then is $ x \mapsto F(x,\bullet) $ strongly measurable?

This question is related to something that I asked yesterday: If $ F(x,\bullet) \in {L^{\infty}}(G,B) $ for all $ x \in G $, then is $ x \mapsto F(x,\bullet) $ strongly measurable? Pietro Majer ...
Transcendental's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
397 views

Is the ideal property of $X^{**}$ inheritable to $X$?

Let $X$ be an operator space such that there is a weak$^*$-continuous complete isometry $\phi$ from its second dual $X^{**}$ into a $W^*$-algebra $M$ in which $\phi(X^{**})$ is a (necessarily weak$^*$-...
Masayoshi Kaneda's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
131 views

Closeness of points in the irreducible decomposition of a C$^{*}$-algebra representation

Suppose $X$ and $Y$ are compact metric spaces. Let $\varphi\colon C(X)\to M_{n}(C(Y))$ be any $*$-homomorphism. If $\pi$ is an irreducible representation of $M_{n}(C(Y))$, then $\pi$ is unitarily ...
ervx's user avatar
  • 267
2 votes
1 answer
244 views

$R$ is a right multiplier and $R(a)b=a\overset{?}{\implies} A$ is unital

Let $A$ be a $C^*$-algebra, and $R:A\to A$ its right multilplier. Is it true that $$ \exists b\in A\quad \forall a\in A \quad R(a)b=a\qquad $$ implies $A$ is unital. I know this is true if A is a weak$...
Norbert's user avatar
  • 1,697
1 vote
0 answers
178 views

A locally convex $C^*$ algebra without zero divisor

Let we have a locally convex $C^*$ algebra $A$. That is $A$ is a TVS equipped with an algebra and an involution structure such that all operations are continuous. Moreover the topology on $A$ ...
Ali Taghavi's user avatar