Cohen-Macaulay properties of ring homomorphisms (Q1380331)

The aim of the paper under review is to introduce some numerical invariants which measure the Cohen-Macaulay character of ring homomorphisms and to study them systematically. The theory developed in the paper leads, among others, to a determination of those homomorphisms which preserve the Cohen-Macaulay character of the rings, to the discovery of new classes of homomorphisms with stability properties, and to solutions of Grothendieck's localization problem concerning Cohen-Macaulay and Gorenstein properties. Cohen factorizations due to \textit{L. L. Avramov, H.-B. Foxby} and \textit{B. Herzog} [J. Algebra 164, No. 1, 124-145 (1994; Zbl 0798.13002)] play an important role in the theory. The notions of dimension, depth, Cohen-Macaulay defect (\(\text{cmd}=\dim- \text{depth}\)), type for rings and modules are well known. (We note that the definition of the type in this paper is as follows: For a local ring \((R,m,k)\), \(\text{type} R=\text{rank}_k \text{Ext}_R^t(k,R)\) where \(t=\text{depth} R\).) These notions are extended to those for homomorphisms. Let \(\varphi:(R,m,k) \to (S,n,\ell)\) be a local homomorphism of local rings, and \(\dot{\varphi}:R \to R'\), \(\varphi':R' \to \widehat{S}\) a Cohen factorization of \(\grave{\varphi}:R \to \widehat{S}\) (\(\widehat{\;}\) means the maximal ideal adic completion). The dimension, the depth, the Cohen-Macaulay defect and the type of \(\varphi\) are defined as follows: \(\dim \varphi=\dim R'-\dim R-\text{height(Ann}_{R'}\widehat{S})\); \(\text{depth} \varphi=\text{depth} S-\text{depth} R\); \(\text{cmd} \varphi=\dim \varphi-\text{depth} \varphi\); \(\text{type} \varphi=\nu_{\widehat{S}}(\text{Ext}_{R'}^t(\widehat{S},R'))\) where \(t=\text{depth} R'-\text{depth} S=-\text{depth} \varphi'\) (\(\nu_{\widehat{S}}\) means the minimal number of generators). We say that \(\varphi\) is Cohen-Macaulay if \(\varphi\) is of finite flat dimension and \(\text{cmd} \varphi=0\), and that \(\varphi\) is Gorenstein if it is Cohen-Macaulay and \(\text{type} \varphi=1\). A great number of inequalities and equalities concerning these numerical invariants are established. The reviewer would like to state, among others, the following four theorems, the first two of which give solutions of Grothendieck's localization problem concerning Cohen-Macaulay and Gorenstein properties: (5.3) Assume that \(\varphi\) is of finite flat dimension, and let \(q\) be a prime ideal of \(S\) and \(p=q \cap R\). Then we have an inequality \(\text{cmd} \varphi_q + \text{cmd} \widehat{S}_q/q\widehat{S}_q \leq \text{cmd} \varphi + \text{cmd} \widehat{R}_p/p\widehat{R}_p\), where \(\varphi_q:R_p \to S_q\); (8.11) Let \(q\) be a prime ideal of \(S\) and \(p=q \cap R\). Assume that \(\varphi\) is Cohen-Macaulay and that \(\widehat{R}_p/p\widehat{R}_p\) is Cohen-Macaulay. Then \(\varphi_q\) is also Cohen-Macaulay, \(\widehat{S}_q/q\widehat{S}_q\) is Cohen-Macaulay, and there is an inequality: \((\text{type} \varphi_q)(\text{type} \widehat{S}_q/q\widehat{S}_q) \leq (\text{type} \varphi)(\text{type} \widehat{R}_p/p\widehat{R}_p)\) ; (4.1) Let \(\psi:Q \to R\) and \(\varphi:R \to S\) be local homomorphisms. Then we have an inequality: \(\text{cmd} \varphi\psi \leq \text{cmd} \psi + \text{cmd} \varphi\), and equality holds when \(\psi\) is of finite flat dimension and \(\varphi\) is flat ; (7.5) Let \(\psi:Q \to R\) and \(\varphi:R \to S\) be local homomorphisms of finite flat dimension. Then there is an equality: \(\text{type} \varphi\psi=(\text{type} \psi)(\text{type} \varphi)\) . In the appendix, the authors show that the following are equivalent: (1) \(\dim R/I + \text{grade}_R R/I=\dim R\) for any ideal \(I\) in a local ring \(R\) with \(\text{pd}_R I < \infty\) (a conjecture of Auslander for cyclic modules); (2) \(\text{cmd} R + \text{cmd} \varphi=\text{cmd} S\) for all local homomorphisms \(\varphi:R \to S\) of finite flat dimension. The reviewer ends the review by giving the titles of the sections: Introduction; 1. Commutative algebra of complexes; 2. Codimension and finite projective dimension; 3. Cohen-Macaulay defect of a local homomorphism; 4. Composition of local homomorphisms; 5. Localization and formal fibers; 6. Cohen-Macaulay defects of a ring homomorphism; 7. Type of a local homomorphism; 8. Locally Cohen-Macaulay homomorphisms; Appendix. Codimension conjectur.