On countable locally described structures (Q1096619)

Let \(\underset \tilde{} X\) be a countable class of finitely generated structures in a countable language, and let \(L\underset \tilde{} X\) be generated from \(\underset \tilde{} X\) by closing under unions of chains. [E.g., the pair of finite and locally finite p-groups.] The author makes model theoretic investigations of these classes, (a) by algebraic methods, and (b) utilizing the interplay between the two classes. As to (a): Notions and definitions are given in terms of embeddings and substructures etc., (and not via first order sentences). They include forcing, types as well as generic, closed (an analogue of existentially closed) and saturated (an analogue of existentially universal) structures. As to (b): For example, \(G\in L\underset \tilde{} X\) is called a closed structure if for each commuting diagram of embeddings \((A\to B\to H)=(A\to G\to H)\) with A,B\(\in \underset \tilde{} X\) and \(H\in L\underset \tilde{} X\), there is \(B\to G\) such that \((A\to G)=(A\to B\to G)\). Among the many results, there are conditions for the existence and for the uniqueness of various structures, and for relations among these structures. For instance, a sufficient condition for the unique existence of a countable, closed structure is that \(\underset \tilde{} X\) has the amalgamation property and \(L\underset \tilde{} X\) has the joint embedding property; and in case \(L\underset \tilde{} X\) is first-order axiomatizable, a structure is closed exactly when it is generic. An interesting result of a different nature reads: there are continuum many non-isomorphic, countable generic structures if the class of amalgamators of A is not cofinal in \(\{\) \(B\in \underset \tilde{} X|\) \(A\leq B\}\) for some \(A\in \underset \tilde{} X\). This result brings a new consequence in the class of torsion-free nilpotent groups of class two. This paper abounds with non-trivial examples and includes some new results on them. A few open problems are listed, also.