Elementary equivalence of derivative structures of free lattices (Q1398501)

For a lattice \(L\), \(\text{Con}'(L)\) denotes its congruence lattice enriched with a partial operation \(\circ\) defined whenever relational composition of congruences is a congruence. Thus \(\text{Con}'(L)\) is a partial algebra over the signature \(\langle\land,\lor,\circ\rangle\). For an infinite cardinal \(k\), \(F(k)\) denotes the free distributive lattice over \(k\) generators. The principal result is that the partial algebras \(\text{Con}'(F(k))\) and \(\text{Con}'(F(l))\) are first-order elementary equivalent if and only if the infinite cardinals \(k\) and \(l\) are second-order elementary equivalent as models over the empty signature. A previous result [\textit{A. G. Pinus}, Sib. Math. J. 29, No. 3, 507-508 (1988); transl. from Sib. Mat. Zh. 29, No. 3 (169), 211-212 (1988; Zbl 0709.03031)] allows the author to reduce the problem to showing that if \(\text{Con}'(F(k))\) and \(\text{Con}'(F(l))\) are first-order elementary equivalent, then so are the partition lattices of \(k\) and \(l\). To this goal a first-order interpretation of the partition lattice of a cardinal \(k\) in the structure \(\text{Con}'(F(k))\) is constructed. For two generators \(a,b \in k\), the principal congruence \(\theta_{a,b}\) is characterized by means of a first-order statement, in the language of lattice theory, parametrized on the lower and upper maximal conruences of a generator. These congruences correspond to surjective maps, from the set of generators to the two-element lattice, having a singleton fiber. Congruences of this form are shown to be first-order definable over the signature \(\langle\land,\lor,\circ\rangle\).