When is multiplication in a Banach algebra open? (Q1680297)

As is well known, an onto linear map between Banach spaces is open. Surprisingly, things are much more complicated in the case of multilinear maps. A very convincing counterexample is due to D.~H.~Fremlin: pointwise multiplication is not open on the space \(C[0,1]\) of real continuous functions. Fremlin's example motivated a number of researchers in the last few decades who started to investigate openness (and variants of openness) of multilinear maps systematically. Two aspects of the problem have to be distinguished: {\parindent=0.8cm \begin{itemize}\item[(1)] Let \(f:A\times A \to B\) be bilinear and continuous, where, e.g., \(A,B\) are Banach algebras. Characterize those pairs \((x_{1},x_{2})\in A\times A\) where \(f\) is locally open, i.e., where one finds for every \(\varepsilon>0\) a \(\delta>0\) such that \(\|x_{1}-x\|,\|x_{2}-x'\|\leq \delta\) implies that \(\|f(x,x')-f(x_{1},x_{2})\|\leq \varepsilon\). \item[(2)] Suppose again that \(f:A\times A \to B\) is bilinear and continuous, where \(A,B\) are Banach algebras. Describe conditions on \(f\) and \(A,B\) such that \(f\) is locally open at every pair \((x_{1},x_{2})\). \end{itemize}} The paper under review deals mainly with the second aspect. It starts with some introductory remarks and some preparations. (For example, Section~3 is devoted to permanence properties: The property ``multiplication is open'' passes to quotients and surjective images and, under natural additional conditions, also to direct products and ultraproducts. These results are, admittedly, not very surprising.) The main results are collected in Section~4. First it is shown in Proposition~4.1 that, for a Banach algebra, multiplication is open only if the invertible elements are dense. Next (Proposition~4.4), \textit{A. Komisarski}'s [Fundam. Math. 189, No. 2, 149--154 (2006; Zbl 1093.54004)] results on the connection between openness of multiplication on \(C(X)\) (where \(X\) is a compact Hausdorff space) and the topological dimension of \(X\) are extended. Also new is the investigation of spaces \(l^1(S)\) for general semigroups \(S\). Surprisingly, only if \(S\) is a group, multiplication can be open (Proposition~4.7). As a corollary, an open problem can be solved: multiplication is not open on \(l^1({\mathbb N}_{0})\) provided with the Cauchy product. The investigations are continued with the algebras \(l^1({\mathbb Z})\), \(l^1({\mathbb Q})\) (multiplication is open) and the algebra of functions of bounded variation on \([0,1]\) (multiplication is not open). Finally, the last section deals with algebras of operators. As a sample result, consider Theorem~4.15: If a Banach space \(E\) contains a proper subspace that is complemented, then the algebra of \({\mathcal B}(E)\) of bounded linear operators on \(E\) does not have open multiplication.