Pullbacks of generalized universal coverings (Q2464797)

From MaRDI portal
scientific article
Language Label Description Also known as
English
Pullbacks of generalized universal coverings
scientific article

    Statements

    Pullbacks of generalized universal coverings (English)
    0 references
    0 references
    17 December 2007
    0 references
    A continuous map \(p:\widetilde{X}\to X\), from a path-connected, locally path-connected and simply-connected topological space \(\widetilde{X}\) onto a topological space \(X\), is called a generalized universal covering of \(X\) if for every path-connected and locally path-connected topological space \(Z\), for every continuous function \(g:(Z,z)\to (X,x)\) with \(g_\#(\pi_1(Z,z))=1\), and for every \(\widetilde{x}\in \widetilde{X}\) with \(p(\widetilde{x})=x\), there exists a unique continuous lift \(h:(Z,z)\to (\widetilde{X},\widetilde{x})\) with \(p\circ h=g\). A generalized universal covering of \(X\), if it exists, is uniquely determined by these properties. Its group of covering transformations \(Aut(\widetilde{X}\overset{p}{\to}X)\) is isomorphic to \(\pi_1(X,x_0)\) and it acts freely and transitively on every fiber \(p^{-1}(\{x\})\) with \(x\in X\). The author and \textit{A. Zastrow} [Fundam. Math. 197, 167--196 (2007; Zbl 1137.55006)] proved that for a wide class of path-connected spaces \(X\), which are not necessarily semilocally simply-connected and not necessarily locally path-connected, the generalized universal covering exists and can be built by a standard construction. The unique path lifting property of \(p:\widetilde{X}\to X\) makes it necessary for \(X\) to be homotopically Hausdorff: for every \(x\in X\), the only element of \(\pi_1(X,x)\) which can be represented by arbitrarily small loops is the trivial element. For a path-connected topological space \(Y\) and a map \(f:Y\to X\), the author forms the pullback \(f^\ast p:f^\ast \widetilde{X}\to Y\) of such a generalized universal covering \(p:X\to X\) and considers the following question: given a path-component \(Y\) of \(f^\ast X\), when exactly is \(f^\ast p| _Y:Y\to Y\) a generalized universal covering? In order to extend the classical criterion, of \(f_\#:\pi_1(Y)\to \pi_1(X)\) being injective, the author introduces the notion of \(\pi_1\)-injectivity and he proves the following main result. {Theorem 4.3.} Let \(\widetilde{Y}\) be a path-component of \(f^\ast \widetilde{X}\). Then \(f^\ast p| _{\widetilde{Y}}:\widetilde{Y}\to Y\) is a generalized universal covering if and only if \(Y\) is homotopically Hausdorff and \(f:Y\to X\) is gradually \(\pi_1\)-injective.
    0 references
    0 references
    0 references
    0 references
    0 references
    0 references
    generalized universal covering
    0 references
    homotopically Hausdorff
    0 references
    \(\pi_1\)-injectivity
    0 references
    0 references