Commutative Hopf algebras, Lie coalgebras, and divided powers (Q1076124)

A detailed study of (infinite dimensional) Lie coalgebras and their associated universal coenveloping algebras is performed. The objects are \({\mathbb{N}}\) resp. \({\mathbb{Z}}_ 2\) graded but in general not connected, so the ungraded case is included. At prime characteristic the bialgebras carry an additional structure of divided powers (\(\Gamma\)-bialgebra) which comes naturally in characteristic zero. Among the principal results is a dual of the Poincaré-Birkhoff-Witt theorem with a short elegant proof, saying that the associated graded object Gr(UcK) to the filtered universal enveloping coalgebra of a Lie coalgebra K is isomorphic as Hopf \(\Gamma\)-algebra to the free divided power algebra BK on K. As a consequence a new proof is given for (a generalized version of) the Milnor-Moore-André theorem stating that a connected graded \(\Gamma\)- bialgebra is universal coenveloping algebra of its associated Lie coalgebra.