Brown representability for space-valued functors (Q1955785)

The classical Brown representability theorem classifies contravariant functors from the homotopy category of pointed connected spaces to the category of sets satisfying Milnor's wedge axiom (W) and Mayer-Vietoris property (MV). The author proves a similar result for contravariant small functors between spaces (i.e., simplicial sets) satisfying higher homotopy versions of Milnor's wedge axiom and Mayer-Vietoris property. More precisely, it is proved that for any small homotopy functor \(F:\mathcal{S}^{\mathrm{op}}\to \mathcal{S}\) converting coproducts to products, up to homotopy (hW), and homotopy pushouts to homotopy pullbacks (hMV), one has \(F\simeq \mathcal{S}(-,Y)\) for some fibrant simplicial set \(Y\). The space \(Y\) can be chosen as the fibrant replacement of the simplicial set \(F(*)\). Note that in this new theorem, it is not assumed that the spaces are pointed. But the theorem remains valid in the pointed situation too. A non-stable version of this classification theorem is also proved: every contravariant homotopy functor from finite spaces to spaces satisfying (hMV) is equivalent to a restriction of a representable functor.