We give sufficient conditions for the existence of a model structure on operads in an arbitrary symmetric monoidal model category. General invariance properties for homotopy algebras over operads are deduced.
This paper proves Koszul duality for coloured operads and uses it to introduce strongly homotopy operads as a suitable homotopy invariant version of operads. It shows that rational chains on configuration spaces of points in the plane form a strongly homotopy operad quasi isomorphic to the chains on the little disks operad.
In this work we present an explicit operad morphism that is also a homotopy equivalence between the operad given by the real Fulton MacPherson compactification of configuration spaces and the little $n$-disks operad. In particular, the construction gives an operadic homotopy equivalence between the associahedra and the little intervals explicitly. It can also be extended to the case of Kontsevich compactification and Voronov swiss-cheese operad.
We prove that the category of algebras over a cofibrant operad admits a closed model category structure. This leads to the notion of "virtual operad algebra" - the algebra over a cofibrant resolution of the given operad. In particular, virtual commutative algebras can serve to an algebraic description of homotopy p-tipes as in the recent preprint of Mandell (electronic Hopf topology archive, october '98, see http://www.hopf.math.purdue.edu. Our main result allows one to significally simplify the proof of Mandell's theorem.
From the `cofree' cooperad $T'(A[-1])$ on a collection $A$ together with a differential, we construct an $L_\infty$-algebra structure on the total space $\bigoplus_nA(n)$ that descends to coinvariants. We use this construction to define an $L_\infty$-algebra controlling deformations of the operad $P$ under $Q$ from a cofibrant resolution for an operad $Q$, and an operad map $Q\longrightarrow P$. Starting from a diffent cofibrant resolution one obtains a quasi isomorohic $L_\infty$-algebra. This approach unifies Markl's cotangent cohomology of operads and the approaches to deformation of $Q$-al…
We prove, under mild assumptions, that a Quillen equivalence between symmetric monoidal model categories gives rise to a Quillen equivalence between their model categories of (non-symmetric) operads, and also between model categories of algebras over operads. We also show left properness results on model categories of operads and algebras over operads. As an application, we prove homotopy invariance for (unital) associative operads.
The transfer of the generating operations of an algebra to a homotopy equivalent chain complex produces higher operations. The first goal of this paper is to describe precisely the higher structure obtained when the unary operations commute with the contracting homotopy. To solve this problem, we develop the Koszul duality theory of operads in the category of modules over a cocommutative Hopf algebra. This gives rise to a simpler category of homotopy algebras and infinity-morphisms, which allows us to get a new description of the homotopy category of algebras over such operads. The main exampl…
We endow categories of non-symmetric operads with natural model structures. We work with no restriction on our operads and only assume the usual hypotheses for model categories with a symmetric monoidal structure. We also study categories of algebras over these operads in enriched non-symmetric monoidal model categories.
We express the rational homotopy type of the mapping spaces $\mathrm{Map}^h(\mathsf D_m,\mathsf D_n^{\mathbb Q})$ of the little discs operads in terms of graph complexes. Using known facts about the graph homology this allows us to compute the rational homotopy groups in low degrees, and construct infinite series of non-trivial homotopy classes in higher degrees. Furthermore we show that for $n-m>2$, the spaces $\mathrm{Map}^h(\mathsf D_m,\mathsf D_n^{\mathbb Q})$ and $\mathrm{Map}^h(\mathsf D_m,\mathsf D_n)$ are simply connected and rationally equivalent. As application we determine the ratio…
This is an expository article about operads in homotopy theory written as a chapter for an upcoming book. It concentrates on what the author views as the basic topics in the homotopy theory of operadic algebras: the definition of operads, the definition of algebras over operads, structural aspects of categories of algebras over operads, model structures on algebra categories, and comparison of algebra categories when changing operad or underlying category. In addition, it includes two applications of the theory: The original application to $n$-fold loop spaces, and an application to algebraic …
In this paper, we set up a rational homotopy theory for operads in simplicial sets whose term of arity one is not necessarily reduced to an operadic unit, extending results obtained by the author in the book "Homotopy of operads and Grothendieck-Teichmüller groups". In short, we prove that the rational homotopy type of such an operad is determined by a cooperad in cochain differential graded algebras (a cochain Hopf dg-cooperad for short) as soon as the Sullivan rational homotopy theory works for the spaces underlying our operad (e.g. when these spaces are connected, nilpotent, and have finite…
Hurwitz spaces are homotopy quotients of the braid group action on the moduli space of principal bundles over a punctured plane. By considering a certain model for this homotopy quotient we build an aspherical topological operad that we call the little bundles operad. As our main result, we describe this operad as a groupoid-valued operad in terms of generators and relations and prove that the categorical little bundles algebras are precisely Turaev's crossed categories. Moreover, we prove that the evaluation on the circle of a homotopical two-dimensional equivariant topolological field theory…
We correct a mistake in the construction of push-outs along free morphisms of algebras over a nonsymmetric operad in arXiv:1101.1634 [math.AT], and we fix the affected results in arXiv:1101.1634 [math.AT] and arXiv:1304.6641 [math.AT].
We establish model category structures on algebras and modules over operads in symmetric spectra, and study when a morphism of operads induces a Quillen equivalence between corresponding categories of algebras (resp. modules) over operads.
This paper deals with the homotopy theory of differential graded operads. We endow the Koszul dual category of curved conilpotent cooperads, where the notion of quasi-isomorphism barely makes sense, with a model category structure Quillen equivalent to that of operads. This allows us to describe the homotopy properties of differential graded operads in a simpler and richer way, using obstruction methods.
The goal of the present paper is to compare, in a precise way, two notions of operads up to homotopy which appear in the literature. Namely, we construct a functor from the category of strict unital homotopy colored operads to the category of infinity-operads. The former notion, that we make precise, is the operadic generalization of the notion of A-infinity-categories and the latter notion was defined by Moerdijk--Weiss in order to generalize the simplicial notion of infinity-category of Joyal--Lurie. This functor extends in two directions the simplicial nerve of Faonte--Lurie for A-infinity-…
We present a definition of homotopy algebra for an operad, and explore its consequences. The paper should be accessible to topologists, category theorists, and anyone acquainted with operads. After a review of operads and monoidal categories, the definition of homotopy algebra is given. Specifically, suppose that M is a monoidal category in which it makes sense to talk about algebras for some operad P. Then our definition says what a homotopy P-algebra in M is, provided only that some of the morphisms in M have been marked out as `homotopy equivalences'. The bulk of the paper consists of examp…
We establish certain smash operations on spaces over operads which are general analogues of the Samelson product on single loop spaces, and obtain a conceptual description of the structure of the homotopy groups of spaces $Y$ over a symmetric $K(π,1)$ operad: $π_*Y$ is a module over the free algebraic symmetric operad generated by operations on homotopy groups induced by these smash operations. In particular the homotopy groups of double loop spaces is a module over the free algebraic symmetric operad generated by the conjugacy classes of Brunnian braids modulo the conjugation action of pure b…
We introduce the notion of homotopy inner products for any cyclic quadratic Koszul operad $\mathcal O$, generalizing the construction already known for the associative operad. This is done by defining a colored operad $\widehat{\mathcal O}$, which describes modules over $\mathcal O$ with invariant inner products. We show that $\widehat{\mathcal O}$ satisfies Koszulness and identify algebras over a resolution of $\widehat{\mathcal O}$ in terms of derivations and module maps. As an application we construct a homotopy inner product over the commutative operad on the cochains of any Poincaré duali…
The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, we review applications of the bar duality of operads to the construction of explicit cofibrant replacements in categories of algebras over an operad. In view toward applications, we check that the constructions of the bar duality work properly for algebras over operads in unbounded differential graded modules over a ring. In a second part, we use the operadic cobar construction to define explicit cyclinder objects in the category of operads. Then we apply this construction to prove that certain homotopy morphisms of algebras over operads are equival…
This paper extends the results of "Operads and Algebraic Homotopy" in giving algebraic invariants for the stable homotopy type of a pointed simply-connected simplicial set.
The mapping spaces of the $r$-truncated versions of the $E_n$ operads appear as the $r$-th stage of the Taylor tower for long embedding spaces. It has been shown that their rational homotopy groups can be expressed through graph homology in the limit $r\to \infty$. For finite $r$ only a part of the graph homology appears in the homotopy groups of the Taylor tower at this stage, possibly along with some additional unstable homotopy groups. In this paper we study the convergence properties in some more detail. In particular, we provide bounds for the stage $r$ at which the various graph homology…
We provide general conditions under which the algebras for a coloured operad in a monoidal model category carry a Quillen model structure, and prove a Comparison Theorem to the effect that a weak equivalence between suitable such operads induces a Quillen equivalence between their categories of algebras. We construct an explicit Boardman-Vogt style cofibrant resolution for coloured operads, thereby giving a uniform approach to algebraic structures up to homotopy over coloured operads. The Comparison Theorem implies that such structures can be rectified.
We study the homotopy derivations of the framed little discs operads, which correspond to the homotopy derivations of the BV2n operads. By extending a result by Willwacher about the homotopy derivations of the en operads we show that the homotopy derivations of the BV2n operads may be described through the cohomology of a suitable graph complex. We will present an explicit quasi-isomorphic map.
We study two colored operads of configurations of little $n$-disks in a unit $n$-disk, with the centers of the small disks of one color restricted to an $m$-plane, $m<n$. We compute the rational homotopy type of these \emph{extended Swiss Cheese operads} and show how they are connected to the rational homotopy types of the inclusion maps from the little $m$-disks to the little $n$-disks operad.
We introduce the notion of homotopy inner products for any cyclic quadratic Koszul operad $\mathcal O$, generalizing the construction already known for the associative operad. This is done by defining a colored operad $\hat{\mathcal O}$, which describes modules over $\mathcal O$ with invariant inner products. We show that $\hat{\mathcal O}$ satisfies Koszulness and identify algebras over a resolution of $\hat{\mathcal O}$ in terms of derivations and module maps. An application to Poincaré duality on the chain level of a suitable topological space is given.
The aim of this brief note is mainly to advocate our approach to homotopy algebras based on the minimal model of an operad. Our exposition is motivated by two examples which we discuss very explicitly - the example of strongly homotopy associative algebras and the example of strongly homotopy Lie algebras. We then indicate what must be proved in order to show that these homotopy algebraic structures are really `stable under a homotopy.' The paper is based on a talk given by the author on June 16, 1998, at University of Osnabrueck, Germany.
We study the subcategory of topological operads $P$ such that $P(0) = *$ (the category of unitary operads in our terminology). We use that this category inherits a model structure, like the category of all operads in topological spaces, and that the embedding functor of this subcategory of unitary operads into the category of all operads admits a left Quillen adjoint. We prove that the derived functor of this left Quillen adjoint functor induces a left inverse of the derived functor of our category embedding at the homotopy category level. We deduce from this result that the derived mapping sp…
We define the concept of a bi-operad. We develop the homotopy theory of "Bital-Sets" and of infinite-bi-operads. We develop a geometry of generalized schemes based on the spectra of distributive monochromatic bi-operads.
We compare two models for $\infty$-operads: the complete Segal operads of Barwick and the complete dendroidal Segal spaces of Cisinski and Moerdijk. Combining this with comparison results already in the literature, this implies that all known models for $\infty$-operads are equivalent - for instance, it follows that the homotopy theory of Lurie's $\infty$-operads is equivalent to that of dendroidal sets and that of simplicial operads.
The purpose of this foundational paper is to introduce various notions and constructions in order to develop the homotopy theory for differential graded operads over any ring. The main new idea is to consider the action of the symmetric groups as part of the defining structure of an operad and not as the underlying category. We introduce a new dual category of higher cooperads, a new higher bar-cobar adjunction with the category of operads, and a new higher notion of homotopy operads, for which we establish the relevant homotopy properties. For instance, the higher bar-cobar construction provi…
We survey various approaches to axiomatic stable homotopy theory, with examples including derived categories, categories of (possibly equivariant or localized) spectra, and stable categories of modular representations of finite groups. We focus mainly on representability theorems, localisation, Bousfield classes, and nilpotence.
We define a simplicial enrichment on the category of differential graded Hopf cooperads (the category of dg Hopf cooperads for short). We prove that our simplicial enrichment satisfies, in part, the axioms of a simplicial model category structure on the category of dg Hopf cooperads. We use this simplicial model structure to define a model of mapping spaces in the category of dg Hopf cooperads and to upgrade results of the literature about the homotopy automorphism spaces of dg Hopf cooperads by dealing with simplicial monoid structures. The rational homotopy theory of operads implies that the…
An affine action of an associative algebra $A$ on a vector space $V$ is an algebra morphism $A \to V \rtimes {\rm End}(V)$, where $V$ is a vector space and $V \rtimes {\rm End}(V)$ is the algebra of affine transformations of $V$. The one dimensional version of the Swiss-Cheese operad, denoted ${\mathrm{\bf{sc}}}_1$, is the operad that governs affine actions of associative algebras. This operad is Koszul and admits a minimal model denoted by $({\mathrm{\bf{sc}}}_1)_\infty$. Algebras over this minimal model are called Homotopy Affine Actions, they consist of an $A_\infty$-morphism $A \to V \rtim…
We build model structures on the category of equivariant simplicial operads with a fixed set of colors, with weak equivalences determined by families of subgroups. In particular, by specifying to the family of graph subgroups (or, more generally, one of the indexing systems of Blumberg-Hill), we obtain model structures on the category of equivariant simplicial operads with a fixed set of colors, with weak equivalences determined by norm map data.
This paper constructs model structures on the categories of coalgebras and pointed irreducible coalgebras over an operad. The underlying chain-complex is assumed to be unbounded and the results for bounded coalgebras over an operad are derived from the unbounded case.
In this paper, we prove that the group of homotopy automorphisms of the profinite completion of the operad of little $2$-disks is isomorphic to the profinite Grothendieck-Teichmüller group. In particular, the absolute Galois group of $\mathbb{Q}$ acts faithfully on the profinite completion of $E_2$ in the homotopy category of profinite weak operads.
This thesis is divided into two parts. The first one is composed of recollections on operad theory, model categories, simplicial homotopy theory, rational homotopy theory, Maurer-Cartan spaces, and deformation theory. The second part deals with the theory of convolution algebras and some of their applications, as explained below. Suppose we are given a type of algebras, a type of coalgebras, and a relationship between those types of algebraic structures (encoded by an operad, a cooperad, and a twisting morphism respectively). Then, it is possible to endow the space of linear maps from a coalge…
We introduce an explicit combinatorial characterization of the minimal model ${\cal O}_{\infty}$ of the coloured operad ${\cal O}$ encoding non-symmetric operads. In our description of ${\cal O}_{\infty}$, the spaces of operations are defined in terms of hypergraph polytopes and the composition structure generalizes the one of the $A_{\infty}$-operad. As further generalizations of this construction, we present a combinatorial description of the $W$-construction applied on ${\cal O}$, as well as of the minimal model of the coloured operad ${\cal C}$ encoding non-symmetric cyclic operads.
This paper proves that the homotopy type of a pointed, simply-connected, 2-reduced simplicial set is determined by the chain-complex augmented by functorial diagonal and higher diagonal maps (a simple generalization of the ones used to define Steenrod operations). The treatment of this problem is completely self-contained, and includes material that simplifies, extends, and corrects material from the authors AMS Memoir, "Iterating the cobar construction".
We show that the canonical map from the associative operad to the unital associative operad is a homotopy epimorphism for a wide class of symmetric monoidal model categories. As a consequence, the space of unital associative algebra structures on a given object is up to homotopy a subset of connected components of the space of non-unital associative algebra structures.
We show how to induce products in sheaf cohomology for a wide variety of coefficients: sheaves of dg commutative and Lie algebras, symmetric Omega-spectra, filtered dg algebras, operads and operad algebras.
We introduce the classical theory of the interplay between group theory and topology into the context of operads and explore some applications to homotopy theory. We first propose a notion of a group operad and then develop a theory of group operads, extending the classical theories of groups, spaces with actions of groups, covering spaces and classifying spaces of groups. In particular, the fundamental groups of a topological operad is naturally a group operad and its higher homotopy groups are naturally operads with actions of its fundamental groups operad, and a topological $K(π,1)$ operad …
We prove that the homotopy theory of $N_\infty$ operads is equivalent to a homotopy theory of discrete operads, and we construct free and associative operadic realizations of every indexing system. This resolves a conjecture of Blumberg and Hill in the affirmative.
We build model structures on the category of equivariant simplicial operads with weak equivalences determined by families of subgroups, in the context of operads with a varying set of colors (and building on the fixed color model structures in the prequel). In particular, by specifying to the family of graph subgroups (or, more generally, one of the indexing systems of Blumberg-Hill), we obtain model structures on the category of equivariant simplicial operads whose weak equivalences are determined by norm map data.
The framed little 2-discs operad is homotopy equivalent to a cyclic operad. We show that the derived modular envelope of this cyclic operad (i.e., the modular operad freely generated in a homotopy invariant sense) is homotopy equivalent to the modular operad made from classifying spaces of diffeomorphism groups of 3-dimensional handlebodies with marked discs on their boundaries. A modification of the argument provides a new and elementary proof of K. Costello's theorem that the derived modular envelope of the associative operad is homotopy equivalent to the ``open string'' modular operad made …
We verify that certain algebras appearing in string field theory are algebras over Feynman transform of modular operads which we describe explicitly. Equivalent description in terms of solutions of generalized BV master equations are explained from the operadic point of view.
It is well known that the differential graded operad of A_infinity-algebras is a cofibrant replacement (a dg-resolution) of the operad of associative differential graded algebras without units. In this article we find a cofibrant replacement of the operad of associative differential graded algebras with units. Algebras over it are called homotopy unital A_infinity-algebras. We prove that the operad bimodule of A_infinity-morphisms is a cofibrant replacement of the operad bimodule of morphisms of dg-algebras without units. Similarly we show that the operad bimodule of homotopy unital A_infinity…
We extend bar-cobar duality, defined for operads of chain complexes by Getzler and Jones, to operads of spectra in the sense of stable homotopy theory. Our main result is the existence of a Quillen equivalence between the category of reduced operads of spectra (with the projective model structure) and a new model for the homotopy theory of cooperads of spectra. The crucial construction is of a weak equivalence of operads between the Boardman-Vogt W-construction for an operad P, and the cobar-bar construction on P. This weak equivalence generalizes a theorem of Berger and Moerdijk that says the…
In this paper we apply homotopical localization to the framework of differential graded algebras over an operad. We get plus construction by performing nullification with respect to an universal acyclic algebra. This plus construction for Lie and Leibniz algebras up to homotopy yields two new homology theories for associative algebras. They are closely related to cyclic and Hochschild homologies. We also compute their first homology groups.
We generalize Berger and Moerdijk's results on axiomatic homotopy theory for operads to the setting of enriched symmetric monoidal model categories, and show how this theory applies to orthogonal spectra. In particular, we provide a symmetric fibrant replacement functor for the positive stable model structure.