On embedding some \(G\)-filtered rings into skew fields. (Q2352684)

Let \(R\) be an associative ring, \(G\) an ordered group and \(G_\infty=G\cup\{\infty\}\) an ordered extension of \(G\) obtained by adjunction of a unique maximal element \(\infty\). We say that \(R\) is a \(G\)-filtered ring, if there exists a function \(v\colon R\to G_\infty\), called a \(G\)-valuation (or \(G\)-filtration), satisfying the following conditions: (i) for each \(x\in R\), \(v(x)=\infty\) if and only if \(x=0\); (ii) \(v(x-y)\geq\min(v(x),v(y))\), \(x,y\in R\); (iii) \(v(xy)\geq v(x)+v(y)\), \(x,y\in R\). Henceforth, we assume that \(R\) is a \(G\)-filtered ring and, as in the paper under review, we tacitly suppose that \(v(xy)=v(x)+v(y)\) whenever \(x,y\in R\) (this holds, for example, if \(R=F[G]\) is the group algebra of \(G\) over a field \(F\), and \(v\) is defined by the rule \(v(\sum_{g\in G}\alpha_g.g)=\min\{g\in G:\alpha_g\neq 0\}\), for each nonzero \(\alpha\in F[G]\)). This ensures that the set \(R^*=R\setminus\{0\}\) is a multiplicative semigroup, i.e. \(R\) is a ring without zero divisors (the extra condition on \(R\) is essential: for instance, the ring \(M_n(R)\) of all \(n\times n\) matrices over \(R\), where \(n\) is an integer \(\geq 2\), can be viewed as a \(G\)-filtered ring with respect to a \(G\)-valuation canonically extending \(v\)). The paper under review considers the question of whether \(R\) is embeddable into a skew field. Following \textit{P. M. Cohn} (who studied the case where \(G=\mathbb Z\), see [Proc. Lond. Math. Soc., III. Ser. 11, 511-530 (1961; Zbl 0104.03203)]), the author considers the following condition: For each pair \(a,b\in R^*\), the function \(f_{a,b}\colon R^*\times R^*\to G_\infty\), defined by the formula \(f_{a,b}(x,y)=v(ax-by)-v(ax)\), is not bounded above, i.e. for each \(g\in G\), there exist \(x_g,y_g\in R^*\), such that \(f_{a,b}(x_g,y_g)>g\). Clearly, for the trivial group \(G\), Cohn's condition is equivalent to the right Ore condition: for each \(a,b\in R^*\), there are \(x,y\in R^*\), such that \(ax=by\). The main result of the reviewed paper states that if the \(G\)-filtered ring \(R\) satisfies Cohn's condition, then it embeds into a skew field \(D\). When \(R\) is a unital ring, it shows that \(D\) becomes a topological ring with respect to the topology of an extension of \(v\) so that the set \(R.R^{-1}\) is (everywhere) dense in \(D\). To prove the latter assertion, the author finds a prime matrix ideal \(P\) over \(R\), which avoids nonzero scalar matrices, and obtains \(D\) as the localization \(R_P\).