A criterion for \(I\)-adic completeness (Q2447665)

Describing completions in module topologies is a worthy, but difficult task. The author concentrates on a somewhat tractable case of modules over a commutative Notherian ring \(R\) and \(I\)-adic completions, (\(I\) is an ideal of \(R\)) and gives equivalent conditions for an \(R\)-module to be complete. Some results exist on this topic within various contexts, one of them Jensen's result regarding local rings and finitely generated modules ([\textit{C. U. Jensen}, Les foncteurs dérivés de lim et leurs applications en théorie des modules. Berlin-Heidelberg-New York: Springer-Verlag (1972; Zbl 0238.18007); J. Algebra 15, 151--166 (1970; Zbl 0199.36202)]); also the reviewer in the context of completions and slenderness ([\textit{R. Dimitrić}, Commun. Algebra 11, 1685--1700 (1983; Zbl 0578.13010); Lect. Notes Math. 1006, 375--383 (1983; Zbl 0517.18013)]). The main theorem is as follows: Let \(I\) be an ideal of a commutative Noetherian ring \(R\) and let \(M\) be an \(R\)-module that is Hausdorff in the \(I\)-adic topology. Then the following statements are equivalent: (i) \(M\) is \(I\)-adic complete; (ii) For every \(i\geq 0\), and every flat \(R\)-module \(F\) satisfying \(F\otimes_R R/I=0\), one has \(\mathrm{Ext}_{R}^{i}({F},{M})=0\); (iii) For every \(x\in I\), \(\mathrm{Ext}_{R}^{1}({R_x},{M})=0\) (here \(R_x\) denotes the localization of \(R\) with respect to the set of all natural powers of \(x\)); (iv) There is a set of elements \(X=\{x_i,\dots,x_r\}\) of \(R\) with Rad\(XR\)=Rad\(I\) such that \(\mathrm{Ext}_{R}^{1}({\bigoplus_{i=0}^rR_{x_i}},{M})=0\). Matlis duality arguments are replaced by homological techniques in the construction of a simple flat test module \(F\) featured in the main result.