Interpolation and commutant lifting with weights (Q2401501)

This paper extends the results of \textit{P. S. Muhly} and \textit{B. Solel} reported in [J. Funct. Anal. 158, No. 2, 389--457 (1998; Zbl 0912.46070); Math. Ann. 330, No. 2, 353--415 (2004; Zbl 1066.46049)] by introducing weights in the Hardy algebras. These weighted algebras were recently introduced in [\textit{P. S. Muhly} and \textit{B. Solel}, Integral Equations Oper. Theory 84, No. 4, 501--553 (2016; Zbl 1356.46042)]. The result is a far-reaching generalization in this abstract weighted non-commutative setting of the classical Nevanlinna-Pick theorem that says, in its simplest form, that there is a function \(\phi\in H^\infty(\mathbb{D})\), analytic in the unit disk and bounded by 1, satisfying \(\phi(\omega_i)=\lambda_i\) for \(1\leq i\leq k\) if and only if \([\mathcal{K}(\omega_i,\omega_j)(1-\lambda_i\overline{\lambda_j}]_{i,j=1}^k\) is positive semidefinite. The points \(\omega_i\) are in \(\mathbb{D}=\{z\in\mathbb{C}: |z|<1\}\) and \(\mathcal{K}(w,z)=1/(1-w\overline{z})\) is the Szegő kernel. Adding weights \(\{\beta_i\}\) in this simple setting changes the kernel to\(\mathcal{K}(w,z)=\sum_{i=0}^\infty (w\overline{z})^i/\beta_i^2\). The commutant lifting theorem as generalized by Muhly and Solel was an important tool to obtain their interpolation result. The weighted version of this theorem proved here requires an essentially different approach.