Amenability and uniqueness (Q390736)

This article is primarily concerned with the following problem: If \(\mathcal A\) is a \(C^*\)-algebra, \(\mathcal M\) is a von Neumann algebra and \(\phi,\psi:\mathcal A \to \mathcal M\) are nondegenerate \(*\)-homomorphisms, when is it the case that \(\phi\) and \(\psi\) are weak\(^*\)-approximately unitarily equivalent? Weak\(^*\)-approximate unitary equivalence of \(\phi\) and \(\psi\) means that there exists a net \((u_\alpha)\) of unitaries such that \(\mathrm{Ad}(u_\alpha) \circ \phi(a) \to \psi(a)\) in the weak\(^*\)-topology, for every \(a \in \mathcal A\). To describe the results, we say that \(\phi\) and \(\psi\) have the same \(W^*\)-rank if, for each \(a \in \mathcal A_+\), the support projections of \(\phi(a)\) and \(\psi(a)\) are Murray-von Neumann equivalent in \(\mathcal M\). The first main result is: if \(\mathcal A\) is nuclear or \(\mathcal M\) is injective, then \(\phi\) and \(\psi\) are weak\(^*\)-approximately unitarily equivalent if and only if they have the same \(W^*\)-rank. The hypothesis that either \(\mathcal A\) is nuclear or that \(\mathcal M\) is injective is used to prove both the forward and reverse implications. The other main results show that the hypothesis that either \(\mathcal A\) is nuclear or that \(\mathcal M\) is injective is necessary. The authors show that: (i) \(\mathcal M\) is injective if and only if, for any \(C^*\)-algebra \(\mathcal A\) and any \(\phi,\psi:\mathcal A \to \mathcal M\), if \(\phi\) and \(\psi\) have the same \(W^*\)-rank, then they are weak\(^*\)-approximately unitarily equivalent. (ii) \(\mathcal A\) is nuclear if and only if, for any von Neumann algebra \(\mathcal M\) and any \(\phi,\psi:\mathcal A \to \mathcal M\), if \(\phi\) and \(\psi\) have the same \(W^*\)-rank, then they are weak\(^*\)-approximately unitarily equivalent. Related to (ii), the authors also characterize nuclearity of \(\mathcal A\) in terms of a condition about when maps \(\psi\) and \(\phi\) are weakly-approximately unitarily equivalent. Injectivity of von Neumann algebras and the closely related notion of nuclearity of \(C^*\)-algebras are both fundamental concepts in the theory of operator algebras, and the results of this article show a beautiful relationship between these concepts and approximate unitary equivalence. Approximate unitary equivalence is itself an important notion, particularly in the classification of operator algebras, where the term ``uniqueness theorem'' is given to such results as the first one above. In the classification of \(C^*\)-algebras, although norm-approximate unitary equivalence is most applicable, weak\(^*\)-approximate unitary equivalence has also proven useful, for example in [\textit{H. Matui} and \textit{Y. Sato}, ``Decomposition rank of UHF-absorbing \(C^*\)-algebras'', Duke Math. J., to appear, \url{arXiv 1303.4371}].