A new view at Dixmier traces on \(\mathfrak{L}_{1,\infty} (H)\) (Q2422671)

Let \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) be the quasi-normed Banach ideal of bounded operators \(S \in \mathcal L(H)\) such that the quasi-norm \(\Vert S\Vert_{\mathcal L_{1,\infty}} = \sup_{n \in \mathbb N} n\cdot a_n(S)\) is finite, where \((a_n(S))\) is the sequence of approximation numbers of \(S\). The linear form \(\tau\) on \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) is called a trace if \(\tau(AS) = \tau(SA)\) for all \(S \in \mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) and all \(A \in \mathcal L(H)\). The author describes a novel approach for producing non-trivial Dixmier traces on \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) and related operator ideals. Let \(S = \sum_{h=0}^\infty S_h\) be an \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}\)-representation of \(S \in \mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\), that is, \(rk(S_h) \le 2^h\) for \(h \in \mathbb N_0\) and \(\Vert S_h\Vert = O(2^{-h})\). Then \[ S \mapsto op(S) := \limsup_{k\to \infty} \frac{1}{k+1} \sum_{h=0}^k tr(S_h) \] is a well-defined sublinear function on \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) such that \(\vert op(S)\vert \le \Vert S\Vert_{\mathcal L_{1,\infty}}\) and \(op(-S) \le 0\) for positive operators \(S\). Here \(tr(\cdot)\) is the classical trace for finite-rank operators. The set \(B_{op}(\mathcal L_{1,\infty})\) of proper Dixmier-traces consists of the linear forms \(\phi\) on \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) for which \(\phi(S) \le op(S)\) for all \(S \in \mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\). It follows that \(B_{op}(\mathcal L_{1,\infty})\) is a convex set, such that any \(\phi \in B_{op}(\mathcal L_{1,\infty})\) satisfies \(\phi(S) \ge 0\) for positive operators \(S\) as well as the normalisation \(\phi(\sum_{h=0}^\infty 2^{-h}D_h) = 1\), where \((D_h)\) is the sequence of orthogonal projections onto \(span\{w_{2^{h}},\ldots,w_{2^{h+1}-1}\}\) for any orthonormal basis \((w_n)\) of \(H\). General Dixmier-traces on \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) have the form \(a\phi - b\psi\), where \(\phi, \psi \in B_{op}(\mathcal L_{1,\infty})\) and \(a, b \ge 0\) are scalars. This approach is carefully compared to the earlier constructions of Dixmier traces, where suitable linear limit functionals on \(\ell^\infty(\mathbb N)\) were used to define a non-trivial trace on \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\). The original construction by \textit{J. Dixmier} [C. R. Acad. Sci., Paris, Sér. A 262, 1107--1108 (1966; Zbl 0141.12902)] lived on the somewhat larger Marcinkiewicz ideal \(\mathcal M_{1,\infty}(H)\), where \(S \in \mathcal M_{1,\infty}(H)\) if the norm \(\Vert S\Vert_{\mathcal M_{1,\infty}} := \sup_{n \in \mathbb N} \frac{1}{\log_2n +1} \sum_{k=1}^n a_k(S)\) is finite. The author also discusses the question whether his new approach can be enlarged from \(\mathcal L_{1,\infty}(H)\) to related Banach ideals on \(H\).