Identifying derivations through the spectra of their values (Q1928560)

In this interesting paper, the authors consider the relationship between two derivations \(d, g\) of a Banach algebra \(B\) that satisfy \(\sigma(g(x)) \subseteq \sigma(d(x))\) for all \(x\in B\), where \(\sigma(\cdot)\) denotes the spectrum. They show that in the case \(B= B(X)\), the only possibilities are that \(g= d\), \(g= 0\), and if \(d\) is an inner derivation implemented by an algebraic element of degree 2, then also \(g= -d\). The same results hold for primitive Banach algebras with nonzero socle. For a general semisimple Banach algebra, under the assumption that \(d(x)\) has a finite spectrum for all \(x\in B\), the spectral inclusion condition is also studied. In the case that \(B\) is a von Neumann algebra, the spectral inclusion condition implies that \(B\) can be decomposed into three parts such that on each part one of the possibilities \(g= d\), \(g= 0\) and \(g= -d\) holds. In general \(C^*\)-algebras, the authors restrict their attention to inner derivations implemented by selfadjoint elements. They also consider a related condition called norm inequality condition \(\|[b, x]\| \leq M \|[a, x]\|\) for all selfadjoint elements \(x\) from a \(C^*\)-algebra \(B\), where \(a, b \in B\) and \(a\) is normal. We know that if \(a\), \(b\) are selfadjoint, the norm inequality condition follows immediately from the spectral inclusion condition. They show that if \(B\) is a prime \(C^*\)-algebra and \(a\) is a normal element, the norm inequality condition implies that \(b= f(a)\), where \(f\) is a Lipschitz function on the spectrum of \(a\). Some more complete results in general \(C^*\)-algebras are obtained under the assumption that equality holds in the norm inequality condition, which is equivalent to the condition that \(r([b,x])= r([a, x])\) for all selfadjoint \(x \in B\), where \(r(\cdot)\) stands for the spectral radius.