Английская Википедия:Isotopy of an algebra

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In mathematics, an isotopy from a possibly non-associative algebra A to another is a triple of bijective linear maps Шаблон:Nowrap such that if Шаблон:Nowrap then Шаблон:Nowrap. This is similar to the definition of an isotopy of loops, except that it must also preserve the linear structure of the algebra. For Шаблон:Nowrap this is the same as an isomorphism. The autotopy group of an algebra is the group of all isotopies to itself (sometimes called autotopies), which contains the group of automorphisms as a subgroup.

Isotopy of algebras was introduced by Шаблон:Harvs, who was inspired by work of Steenrod. Some authors use a slightly different definition that an isotopy is a triple of bijective linear maps a, b, c such that if Шаблон:Nowrap then Шаблон:Nowrap. For alternative division algebras such as the octonions the two definitions of isotopy are equivalent, but in general they are not.

Examples

  • If Шаблон:Nowrap is an isomorphism then the triple Шаблон:Nowrap is an isotopy. Conversely, if the algebras have identity elements 1 that are preserved by the maps a and b of an isotopy, then Шаблон:Nowrap is an isomorphism.
  • If A is an associative algebra with identity and a and c are left multiplication by some fixed invertible element, and b is the identity then Шаблон:Nowrap is an isotopy. Similarly we could take b and c to be right multiplication by some invertible element and take a to be the identity. These form two commuting subgroups of the autotopy group, and the full autotopy group is generated by these two subgroups and the automorphism group.
  • If an algebra (not assumed to be associative) with an identity element is isotopic to an associative algebra with an identity element, then the two algebras are isomorphic. In particular two associative algebras with identity elements are isotopic if and only if they are isomorphic. However associative algebras with identity elements can be isotopic to algebras without identity elements.
  • The autotopy group of the octonions is the spin group Spin8, much larger than its automorphism group G2.
  • If B is a mutation of the associative algebra A by an invertible element, then there is an isotopy from A to B.
  • If a, b, and c are any invertible linear maps of an algebra, and one defines a new product Шаблон:Nowrap, then the algebra defined by this new product is isotopic to the original algebra. For example, the complex numbers with the product xШаблон:Overline is isotopic to the complex numbers with the usual product, even though it is not commutative and has no identity element.

References