Ind- and pro-definable sets (Q2373696)

``From the author's introduction: Given a direct limit \(Y\) of some system \(Y_i\) in a given category, the morphisms from \(Y\) to another object \(X\) are described, by definition, as a certain collection of morphisms from each \(Y_i\) to \(X\). In contrast, there is, in general, no simple description of morphisms in the other direction, from \(X\) to \(Y\). However, if the category in question is, for example, a category of topological spaces, and \(X\) is compact, then any morphism from \(X\) to \(Y\) will factor via some \(Y_i\). The category Ind\(({\mathcal C})\) of ind-objects of a category \(\mathcal C\) is a category containing the original category \(\mathcal C\), in which any filtering system has a limit, and the objects of the original category are ``compact'' (or, more formally, finitely presented) in the above sense. This construction, which appears in [\textit{A. Grothendieck} et al., Théorie des topos et cohomologie étale des schémas. Tome 1: Théorie des topos. Lect. Notes Math. 269. Berlin-Heidelberg-New York: Springer-Verlag (1972; Zbl 0234.00007)], along with the dual construction of pro-objects, can be applied to any category. In the context of first-order logic, and definable sets, there is a natural notion of compactness, and given a system of definable sets, one may compute limits of their points in a given model. The purpose of this note is to describe how the categorical notions of ind- and pro-objects apply to definable sets, and in particular to describe the categories of ind- and pro-definable sets in terms of points in a model.''