Non-associative Ore extensions (Q1650015)

Let \(R\) be an associative ring, and \(\delta\colon R \rightarrow R\) a derivation. The center of the associative Ore extension \(D = R[x; \delta]\), where \(R\) is simple, was described by Amitsur as generated by a single element over the fixed subring of the center \(Z(R)_{\delta}\). Conditions for simplicity of \(R[x;\delta]\) were studied by several authors; an elegant condition was recently given in [\textit{J. Öinert} et al., J. Algebra Appl. 12, No. 4, Paper No. 1250192, 16 p. (2013; Zbl 1277.16016)]: \(D = R[x;\delta]\) is simple if and only if \(R\) is \(\delta\)-simple (i.e. has no \(\delta\)-invariant ideals) and \(Z(D)\) is a field. The current paper is concerned with nonassociative Ore extensions, by which the authors mean a ring of the form \(S = \bigoplus R x^i\) with \(xa = \sigma(a)x + \delta(a)\), where \(\sigma, \delta {\,:\,} R \rightarrow R\) are additive maps normalized so that \(\sigma(1) = 1\) and \(\delta(1)=0\), such that \((S,S,x) = (S,x,S) = 0\) (here \((a,b,c) = (ab)c-a(bc)\) is the associator). We denote \(R[x;\delta] = R[x;1,\delta]\). We say that \(\delta\) is a kernel derivation if \(\delta\) left or right linear over \(R_{\delta} = \left\{a : \delta(a) = 0\right\}\), which in this case is a subring. The authors prove that if \(R\) is \(\delta\)-simple, where \(\delta\) is a kernel derivation, then the center of \(D = R[x;\delta]\) is generated by a single element over \(Z(D)_\delta\); and that \(D\) is simple if and only if \(R\) is \(\delta\)-simple and \(Z(D)\) is a field, if which case \(Z(D) = Z(R)_{\delta}\). As an application, it is shown that when \(T\) is a simple ring, the nonassociative Weyl algebra \(T[x,y \,|\, xy-yx = 1]\) is simple if and only if \(\operatorname{char} T = 0\). Other nonassociative examples are studied as well.