We prove that the Cuntz semigroup is recovered functorially from the Elliott invariant for a large class of C*-algebras. In particular, our results apply to the largest class of simple C*-algebras for which K-theoretic classification can be hoped for. This work has three significant consequences. First, it provides new conceptual insight into Elliott's classification program, proving that the usual form of the Elliott conjecture is equivalent, among Z-stable algebras, to a conjecture which is in general substantially weaker and for which there are no known counterexamples. Second and third, it resolves, for the class of algebras above, two conjectures of Blackadar and Handelman concerning the basic structure of dimension functions on C*-algebras. We also prove in passing that the Cuntz-Pedersen semigroup is recovered functorially from the Elliott invariant for a large class of unital simple C*-algebras.
Let $A$ be a simple, separable C$^*$-algebra of stable rank one. We prove that the Cuntz semigroup of $\CC(\T,A)$ is determined by its Murray-von Neumann semigroup of projections and a certain semigroup of lower semicontinuous functions (with values in the Cuntz semigroup of $A$). This result has two consequences. First, specializing to the case that $A$ is simple, finite, separable and $\mathcal Z$-stable, this yields a description of the Cuntz semigroup of $\CC(\T,A)$ in terms of the Elliott invariant of $A$. Second, suitably interpreted, it shows that the Elliott functor and the functor def…
Building on work of Elliott and coworkers, we present three applications of the Cuntz semigroup: (i) for many simple C$^*$-algebras, the Thomsen semigroup is recovered functorially from the Elliott invariant, and this yields a new proof of Elliott's classification theorem for simple, unital AI algebras; (ii) for the algebras in (i), classification of their Hilbert modules is similar to the von Neumann algebra context; (iii) for the algebras in (i), approximate unitary equivalence of self-adjoint operators is characterised in terms of the Elliott invariant.
The classical Cuntz semigroup has an important role in the study of C*-algebras, being one of the main invariants used to classify recalcitrant C*-algebras up to isomorphism. We consider C*-algebras that have Hopf algebra structure, and find additional structure in their Cuntz semigroups, thus generalizing the equivariant Cuntz semigroup. We develop various aspects of the theory of such semigroups, and in particular, we give general results allowing classification results of the Elliott classification program to be extended to classification results for C*-algebraic quantum groups.
In this article we survey some of the recent goings-on in the classification programme of C$^*$-algebras, following the interesting link found between the Cuntz semigroup and the classical Elliott invariant and the fact that the Elliott conjecture does not hold at its boldest. We review the construction of this object both by means of positive elements and via its recent interpretation using countably generated Hilbert modules (due to Coward, Elliott and Ivanescu). The passage from one picture to another is presented with full, concise, proofs. We indicate the potential role of the Cuntz semig…
In this paper we describe the Cuntz semigroup of continuous fields of C$^*$-algebras over one dimensional spaces whose fibers have stable rank one and trivial $K_1$ for each closed, two-sided ideal. This is done in terms of the semigroup of global sections on a certain topological space built out of the Cuntz semigroups of the fibers of the continuous field. When the fibers have furthermore real rank zero, and taking into account the action of the space, our description yields that the Cuntz semigroup is a classifying invariant if and only if so is the sheaf induced by the Murray-von Neumann s…
We show that the dimension of the Cuntz semigroup of a C*-algebra is determined by the dimensions of the Cuntz semigroups of its separable sub-C*-algebras. This allows us to remove separability assumptions from previous results on the dimension of Cuntz semigroups. To obtain these results, we introduce a notion of approximation for abstract Cuntz semigroups that is compatible with the approximation of a C*-algebra by sub-C*-algebras. We show that many properties for Cuntz semigroups are preserved by approximation and satisfy a Löwenheim-Skolem condition.
Let A be a C*-algebra and I a closed two-sided ideal of A. We use the Hilbert C*-modules picture of the Cuntz semigroup to investigate the relations between the Cuntz semigroups of I, A and A/I. We obtain a relation on two elements of the Cuntz semigroup of A that characterizes when they are equal in the Cuntz semigroup of A/I. As a corollary, we show that the Cuntz semigroup functor is exact. Replacing the Cuntz equivalence relation of Hilbert modules by their isomorphism, we obtain a generalization of Kasparov's Stabilization theorem.
We provide an abstract characterization for the Cuntz semigroup of unital commutative AI-algebras, as well as a characterization for abstract Cuntz semigroups of the form $\text{Lsc} (X,\overline{\mathbb{N}})$ for some $T_1$-space $X$. In our investigations, we also uncover new properties that the Cuntz semigroup of all AI-algebras satisfies.
We give a local characterization for the Cuntz semigroup of AI-algebras building upon Shen's characterization of dimension groups. Using this result, we provide an abstract characterization for the Cuntz semigroup of AI-algebras.
We study the Cuntz semigroup for non-simple $\text{C}^*$-algebras in this paper. In particular, we use the extended Elliott invariant to characterize the Cuntz comparison for $\text{C}^*$-algebras with the projection property which have only one ideal.
For a C$^*$-algebra $A$, it is an important problem to determine the Cuntz semigroup $\mathrm{Cu}(A\otimes\mathcal{Z})$ in terms of $\mathrm{Cu}(A)$. We approach this problem from the point of view of semigroup tensor products in the category of abstract Cuntz semigroups, by analysing the passage of significant properties from $\mathrm{Cu}(A)$ to $\mathrm{Cu}(A)\otimes_\mathrm{Cu}\mathrm{Cu}(\mathcal{Z})$. We describe the effect of the natural map $\mathrm{Cu}(A)\to\mathrm{Cu}(A)\otimes_\mathrm{Cu}\mathrm{Cu}(\mathcal{Z})$ in the order of $\mathrm{Cu}(A)$, and show that, if $A$ has real rank z…
Let A be a simple, unital, exact, and finite C*-algebra which absorbs the Jiang-Su algebra Z tensorially. We prove that the Cuntz semigroup of A admits a complete order embedding into an ordered semigroup obtained from the Elliott invariant in a functorial manner. We conjecture that this embedding is an isomorphism, and prove the conjecture in several cases. In these same cases -- Z-stable algebras all -- we prove that the Elliott conjecture in its strongest form is equivalent to a conjecture which appears much weaker. Outside the class of Z-stable algebras, this weaker conjecture has no known…
We show that abstract Cuntz semigroups form a closed symmetric monoidal category. Thus, given Cuntz semigroups $S$ and $T$, there is another Cuntz semigroup $[[S,T]]$ playing the role of morphisms from $S$ to $T$. Applied to C$^*$-algebras $A$ and $B$, the semigroup $[[\mathrm{Cu}(A),\mathrm{Cu}(B)]]$ should be considered as the target in analogues of the UCT for bivariant theories of Cuntz semigroups. Abstract bivariant Cuntz semigroups are computable in a number of interesting cases. We also show that order-zero maps between C$^*$-algebras naturally define elements in the respective bivarian…
This paper argues that the unitary Cuntz semigroup, introduced in [10] and termed Cu$_1$, contains crucial information regarding the classification of non-simple C$^*$-algebras. We exhibit two (non-simple) C$^*$-algebras that agree on their Cuntz semigroups, termed Cu, and their K$_1$-groups and yet disagree at level of their unitary Cuntz semigroups. In the process, we establish that the unitary Cuntz semigroup contains rigorously more information about non-simple C$^*$-algebras than Cu and K$_1$ alone.
This paper contains computations of the Cuntz semigroup of separable C*-algebras of the form C_0(X,A), where A is a unital, simple, Z-stable ASH algebra. The computations describe the Cuntz semigroup in terms of Murray-von Neumann semigroups of C(K,A) for compact subsets K of X. In particular, the computation shows that the Elliott invariant is functorially equivalent to the invariant given by the Cuntz semigroup of C(T,A). These results are a contribution towards the goal of using the Cuntz semigroup in the classification of well-behaved non-simple C*-algebras.
We revise the construction of the augmented Cuntz semigroup functor used by the first author to classify inductive limits of 1-dimensional noncommutative CW complexes. The original construction has good functorial properties when restricted to the class of C*-algebras of stable rank one. The construction proposed here has good properties for all C*-algebras: We show that the augmented Cuntz semigroup is a stable, continuous, split exact functor, from the category of C*-algebras to the category of Cu-semigroups.
In this paper we show that the universal C*-algebra satisfying the Cuntz-Li relations is generated by an inverse semigroup of partial isometries. We apply Exel's theory of tight representations to this inverse semigroup. We identify the universal C*-algebra as the C*-algebra of the tight groupoid associated to the inverse semigroup.
We calculate the Cuntz semigroup of the tensor product A with A. We restrict our attention to C*-algebras A which are unital, simple, nuclear, stably finite, have stable rank one, absorbs the Jiang-Su algebra tensorially and satisfy the UCT.
We introduce a notion of covering dimension for Cuntz semigroups of C*-algebras. This dimension is always bounded by the nuclear dimension of the C*-algebra, and for subhomogeneous C*-algebras both dimensions agree. Cuntz semigroups of Z-stable C*-algebras have dimension at most one. Further, the Cuntz semigroup of a simple, Z-stable C*-algebra is zero-dimensional if and only if the C*-algebra has real rank zero or is stably projectionless.
We prove that the category of abstract Cuntz semigroups is bicomplete. As a consequence, the category admits products and ultraproducts. We further show that the scaled Cuntz semigroup of the (ultra)product of a family of C*-algebras agrees with the (ultra)product of the scaled Cuntz semigroups of the involved C*-algebras. As applications of our results, we compute the non-stable K-Theory of general (ultra)products of C*-algebras and we characterize when ultraproducts are simple. We also give criteria that determine order properties of these objects, such as almost unperforation.
In this paper, we show that for unital, separable $C^*$-algebras of stable rank one and real rank zero, the unitary Cuntz semigroup functor and the functor ${\rm K}_*$ are naturallly equivalent. Then we introduce a refinement of the unitary Cuntz semigroup, say the total Cuntz semigroup, which is a new invariant for separable $C^*$-algebras of stable rank one, is a well-defined continuous functor from the category of $C^*$-algebras of stable rank one to the category ${\rm\underline{ Cu}}$. We prove that this new functor and the functor ${\rm \underline{K}}$ are naturallly equivalent for unital…
It is shown that the Cuntz semigroup of a space with dimension at most two, and with second cohomology of its compact subsets equal to zero, is isomorphic to the ordered semigroup of lower semicontinuous functions on the space with values in the natural numbers with the infinity adjoined. This computation is then used to obtain the Cuntz semigroup of all compact surfaces. A converse to the first computation is also proven: if the Cuntz semigroup of a separable C*-algebra is isomorphic to the lower semicontinuous functions on a topological space with values in the extended natural numbers, then…
We prove stability theorems in the Cuntz semigroup of a commutative C*-algebra which are analogues of classical stability theorems for topological vector bundles over compact Hausdorff spaces. Several applications to simple unital AH algebras of slow dimension growth are then given: such algebras have strict comparison of positive elements; their Cuntz semigroups are recovered functorially from the Elliott invariant; the lower-semicontinuous dimension functions are dense in the space of all dimension functions, and the latter is a Choquet simplex.
We investigate $C^*$-algebras associated with row-finite topological higher-rank graphs with no source, which are based on product system $C^*$-algebras. We prove the Cuntz-Krieger uniqueness theorem, and provide the condition of simplicity and purely infiniteness of our algebras. We give examples of non-discrete topological higher-rank graphs whose $C^*$-algebras contain Cuntz's $ax+b$-semigroup $C^*$-algebra over $\mathbb{N}$.
We introduce a bivariant version of the Cuntz semigroup as equivalence classes of order zero maps generalizing the ordinary Cuntz semigroup. The theory has many properties formally analogous to KK-theory including a composition product. We establish basic properties, like additivity, stability and continuity, and study categorical aspects in the setting of local C*-algebras. We determine the bivariant Cuntz semigroup for numerous examples such as when the second algebra is a Kirchberg algebra, and Cuntz homology for compact Hausdorff spaces which provides a complete invariant. Moreover, we est…
This paper is a contribution to the theory of what might be termed $0$-dimensional non-commutative spaces. We prove that associated with each inverse semigroup $S$ is a Boolean inverse semigroup presented by the abstract versions of the Cuntz-Krieger relations. We call this Boolean inverse semigroup the Exel completion of $S$ and show that it arises from Exel's tight groupoid under non-commutative Stone duality.
In this paper, we apply the theory of inverse semigroups to the $C^{*}$-algebra $U[\mathbb{Z}]$ considered in \cite{Cuntz}. We show that the $C^{*}$-algebra $U[\mathbb{Z}]$ is generated by an inverse semigroup of partial isometries. We explicity identify the groupoid $\mathcal{G}_{tight}$ associated to the inverse semigroup and show that $\mathcal{G}_{tight}$ is exactly the same groupoid obtained in \cite{Cuntz-Li}.
The functionals on an ordered semigroup S in the category Cu--a category to which the Cuntz semigroup of a C*-algebra naturally belongs--are investigated. After appending a new axiom to the category Cu, it is shown that the "realification" S_R of S has the same functionals as S and, moreover, is recovered functorially from the cone of functionals of S. Furthermore, if S has a weak Riesz decomposition property, then S_R has refinement and interpolation properties which imply that the cone of functionals on S is a complete distributive lattice. These results apply to the Cuntz semigroup of a C*-…
We provide an abstract categorical framework that relates the Cuntz semigroups of the C$^*$-algebras $A$ and $A\otimes \mathcal{K}$. This is done through a certain completion of ordered monoids by adding suprema of countable ascending sequences. Our construction is rather explicit and we show it is functorial and unique up to isomorphism. This approach is used in some applications to compute the stabilized Cuntz semigroup of certain C$^*$-algebras.
In this paper we analyse the structure of the Cuntz semigroup of certain $C(X)$-algebras, for compact spaces of low dimension, that have no $\mathrm{K}_1$-obstruction in their fibres in a strong sense. The techniques developed yield computations of the Cuntz semigroup of some surjective pullbacks of C$^*$-algebras. As a consequence, this allows us to give a complete description, in terms of semigroup valued lower semicontinuous functions, of the Cuntz semigroup of $C(X,A)$, where $A$ is a not necessarily simple C$^*$-algebra of stable rank one and vanishing $\mathrm{K}_1$ for each closed, two …
We define a notion of ideal for objects in the category of abstract unitary Cuntz semigroups introduced in [3] and termed Cu$^\sim$. We show that the set of ideals of a Cu$^\sim$-semigroup has a complete lattice structure. In fact, we prove that for any C$^*$-algebra of stable rank one $A$, the assignment $I\longmapsto$Cu$_1(I)$ defines a complete lattice isomorphism between the set of ideals of $A$ and the set of ideals of its unitary Cuntz semigroup Cu$_1(A)$. Further, we introduce a notion of quotients and exactness for the (non abelian) category Cu$^\sim$. We show that Cu$_1(A)/$Cu$_1(I)\s…
We define a Riesz type interpolation property for the Cuntz semigroup of a $C^*$-algebra and prove it is satisfied by the Cuntz semigroup of every $C^*$-algebra with the ideal property. Related to this, we obtain two characterizations of the ideal property in terms of the Cuntz semigroup of the $C^*$-algebra. Some additional characterizations are proved in the special case of the stable, purely infinite $C^*$-algebras, and two of them are expressed in language of the Cuntz semigroup. We introduce a notion of comparison of positive elements for every unital $C^*$-algebra that has (normalized) q…
We study topological aspects of the category of abstract Cuntz semigroups, termed Cu. We provide a suitable setting in which we are able to uniformly control how to approach an element of a Cu-semigroup by a rapidly increasing sequence. This approximation induces a semimetric on the set of Cu-morphisms, generalizing Cu-metrics that had been constructed in the past for some particular cases. Further, we develop an approximate intertwining theory for the category Cu. Finally, we give several applications such as the classification of unitary elements of any unital AF-algebra by means of the func…
We provide an equivariant extension of the bivariant Cuntz semigroup introduced in previous work for the case of compact group actions over C*-algebras. Its functoriality properties are explored and some well-known classification results are retrieved. Connections with crossed products are investigated, and a concrete presentation of equivariant Cuntz homology is provided. The theory that is here developed can be used to define the equivariant Cuntz semigroup. We show that the object thus obtained coincides with the recently proposed one by Gardella and Santiago, and we complement their work b…
We provide a new and concise proof of the existence of suprema in the Cuntz semigroup using the open projection picture of the Cuntz semigroup initiated by Ortega, Rordam and Thiel. Our argument is based on the observation that the supremum of a countable set of open projections in the bidual of a C*-algebra A is again open and corresponds to the generated hereditary sub-C*-algebra of A.
We introduce an equivariant version of the Cuntz semigroup, that takes an action of a compact group into account. The equivariant Cuntz semigroup is naturally a semimodule over the representation semiring of the given group. Moreover, this semimodule satisfies a number of additional structural properties. We show that the equivariant Cuntz semigroup, as a functor, is continuous and stable. Moreover, cocycle conjugate actions have isomorphic associated equivariant Cuntz semigroups. One of our main results is an analog of Julg's theorem: the equivariant Cuntz semigroup is canonically isomorphic …
We show that a number of naturally occurring comparison relations on positive elements in a C*-algebra are equivalent to natural comparison properties of their corresponding open projections in the bidual of the C*-algebra. In particular we show that Cuntz comparison of positive elements corresponds to a comparison relation on open projections, that we call Cuntz comparison, and which is defined in terms of-and is weaker than-a comparison notion defined by Peligrad and Zsidó. The latter corresponds to a well-known comparison relation on positive elements defined by Blackadar. We show that Murr…
Let $A$ be a separable simple exact ${\cal Z}$-stable $C^*$-algebra. We show that the unitay group of ${\tilde A}$ has the cancellation property. If $A$ has continuous scale, the Cuntz semigroup of $\tilde A$ has the strict comparison property and a weak cancellation property. Let $C$ be a 1-dimensional non-commutative CW complex with $K_1(C)=\{0\}.$ Suppose that $λ: {\rm Cu}^\sim(C)\to {\rm Cu}^\sim(A)$ is a morphism in Cuntz semigroups which is strictly positive. Then there exists a sequence of homomorphisms $ϕ_n: C\to A$ such that $\lim_{n\to\infty}{\rm Cu}^\sim(ϕ_n)=λ.$ This result leads t…
The Corona Factorization Property, originally invented to study extensions of C*-algebras, conveys essential information about the intrinsic structure of the C*-algebras. We show that the Corona Factorization Property of a σ-unital C*-algebra is completely captured by its Cuntz semigroup (of equivalence classes of positive elements in the stabilization of A). The corresponding condition in the Cuntz semigroup is a very weak comparability property termed the Corona Factorization Property for semigroups. Using this result one can for example show that all unital C*-algebras with finite decomposi…
We prove that separable C*-algebras which are completely close in a natural uniform sense have isomorphic Cuntz semigroups, continuing a line of research developed by Kadison - Kastler, Christensen, and Khoshkam. This result has several applications: we are able to prove that the property of stability is preserved by close C*-algebras provided that one algebra has stable rank one; close C*-algebras must have affinely homeomorphic spaces of lower-semicontinuous quasitraces; strict comparison is preserved by sufficient closeness of C*-algebras. We also examine C*-algebras which have a positive a…
We introduce a new invariant for C*-algebras of stable rank one that merges the Cuntz semigroup information together with the K$_1$-group information. This semigroup, termed the Cu$_1$-semigroup, is constructed as equivalence classes of pairs consisting of a positive element in the stabilization of the given C*-algebra together with a unitary element of the unitization of the hereditary subalgebra generated by the given positive element. We show that the Cu$_1$-semigroup is a well-defined continuous functor from the category of C*-algebras of stable rank one to a suitable codomain category tha…
Domain theory has its origins in Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science. Mathematically it combines order and topology. Its central concepts have their origin in the idea of approximating ideal objects by their relatively finite or, more generally, relatively compact parts. The development of domain theory in recent years was mainly motivated by question in denotational semantics and the theory of computation. But since 2008, domain theoretical notions and methods are used in the theory of C*-algebras in connection with the Cuntz semigroup. This paper is largely expository. It presents t…
We study comparison properties in the category Cu aiming to lift results to the C*-algebraic setting. We introduce a new comparison property and relate it to both the CFP and $ω$-comparison. We show differences of all properties by providing examples, which suggest that the corona factorization property for C*-algebras might allow for both finite and infinite projections. In addition, we show that Rørdam's simple, nuclear C*-algebra with a finite and an infinite projection does not have the CFP.
We give a detailed introduction to the theory of Cuntz semigroups for C*-algebras. Beginning with the most basic definitions and technical lemmas, we present several results of historical importance, such as Cuntz's theorem on the existence of quasitraces, Rørdam's proof that $\mathcal{Z}$-stability implies strict comparison, and Toms' example of a non $\mathcal{Z}$-stable simple, nuclear C*-algebra. We also give the reader an extensive overview of the state of the art and the modern approach to the theory, including the recent results for C*-algebras of stable rank one (for example, the Black…
The Cuntz semigroup of a C*-algebra is an important invariant in the structure and classification theory of C*-algebras. It captures more information than K-theory but is often more delicate to handle. We systematically study the lattice and category theoretic aspects of Cuntz semigroups. Given a C*-algebra $A$, its (concrete) Cuntz semigroup $Cu(A)$ is an object in the category $Cu$ of (abstract) Cuntz semigroups, as introduced by Coward, Elliott and Ivanescu. To clarify the distinction between concrete and abstract Cuntz semigroups, we will call the latter $Cu$-semigroups. We establish the e…
We examine the ranks of operators in semi-finite C*-algebras as measured by their densely defined lower semicontinuous traces. We first prove that a unital simple C*-algebra whose extreme tracial boundary is nonempty and finite contains positive operators of every possible rank, independent of the property of strict comparison. We then turn to nonunital simple algebras and establish criteria that imply that the Cuntz semigroup is recovered functorially from the Murray-von Neumann semigroup and the space of densely defined lower semicontinuous traces. Finally, we prove that these criteria are s…
A trace $τ$ on a separable C*-algebra $A$ is called matricial field (MF) if there is a trace-preserving morphism from $A$ to $Q_ω$, where $Q_ω$ denotes the norm ultrapower of the universal UHF-algebra $Q$. In general, the trace $τ$ induces a state on the Cuntz semigroup $Cu(A)$. We show there is always a state-preserving morphism from $Cu(A)$ to $Cu(Q_ω)$. As an application, if $A$ is an AI-algebra and $F$ is a free group acting on $A$, then every trace on the reduced crossed product $A \rtimes F$ is MF. This further implies the same result when $A$ is an AH-algebra with the ideal property suc…
Let G be a finite group, let A be an infinite-dimensional stably finite simple unital C*-algebra, and let α\colon G \to Aut (A) be an action of G on A which has the weak tracial Rokhlin property. Let A^α be the fixed point algebra. Then the radius of comparison satisfies rc (A^α) \leq rc (A) and rc ( C* (G, A, α) ) \leq ( 1 / card (G) ) rc (A). The inclusion of A^α in A induces an isomorphism from the purely positive part of the Cuntz semigroup Cu (A^α) to the fixed points of the purely positive part of Cu (A), and the purely positive part of Cu ( C* (G, A, α) ) is isomorphic to this semigroup…
We provide inverse semigroup and groupoid models for the Toeplitz and Cuntz-Krieger algebras of finitely aligned higher-rank graphs. Using these models, we prove a uniqueness theorem for the Cuntz-Krieger algebra.
Let $A$ be a simple C*-algebra of stable rank one and let $p$ and $q$ be two $σ$-compact open projections. It is proved that there is a continuous path of unitaries in ${\tilde A}$ which connects open sub-projections of $p$ which is compactly contained in $p$ to those in $q.$ It is also shown that every Hilbert module is projective in the category whose morphisms are bounded module maps with adjoints. A discussion of projective Hilbert modules (whose morphisms are bounded module maps) is also given.
