The bidual of a tensor product of Banach spaces (Q2493576)

Let \(X_1, \dots, X_n\) be Banach spaces and let \(X_1\widehat\otimes \dots \widehat\otimes X_n\) denote their completed \(n\)-fold projective tensor product. The authors consider the natural norm one operator \[ \alpha : X^{\ast\ast}_1\widehat\otimes \dots \widehat\otimes X^{\ast\ast}_n\rightarrow (X_1\widehat\otimes \dots \widehat\otimes X_n)^{\ast\ast} \] defined through the Aron-Berner (or Davie-Gamelin) extension of multilinear operators. The main Theorem is as follows. If the biduals \(X^{\ast\ast}_1,\dots, X^{\ast\ast}_n\) have the bounded approximation property, then \(\alpha\) embeds \(X^{\ast\ast}_1\widehat\otimes \dots \widehat\otimes X^{\ast\ast}_n\) in \((X_1\widehat\otimes \dots \widehat\otimes X_n)^{\ast\ast}\) as a locally complemented subspace. Notice that ``locally'' cannot be dropped here since by \textit{F. C. Sánchez, D. Pérez-Garcia} and \textit{I. Villanueva} [Lond. Math. Soc., II. Ser. 74, No. 2, 512--526 (2006; Zbl 1122.46008)] \(\ell_\infty\widehat\otimes\ell_\infty\) is not complemented in \((c_0\widehat\otimes c_0)^{\ast\ast}\). An immediate consequence is that the continuous \(n\)-linear forms \({\mathcal L}(^nX^{\ast\ast})\) form a complemented subspace of \(({\mathcal L}(^nX))^{\ast\ast}\) whenever \(X^{\ast\ast}\) has the bounded approximation property. The authors also provide conditions when \(\alpha\) is an isomorphic embedding. In particular, they show relying on a result of [\textit{G. Pisier}, Math. Ann. 276, 105--136 (1986; Zbl 0619.47016)] that \(\alpha\) embeds \(X^{\ast\ast}\widehat\otimes X^{\ast\ast}\) in \((X\widehat\otimes X)^{\ast\ast}\) isomorphically whenever \(X\) has type 2 and \(X^\ast\) has cotype 2. This applies, for instance, if \(X\) is any \(C^\ast\)-algebra, thus recovering a result from [\textit{A. Kumar, A. M. Sinclair}, Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 350, No. 5, 2033--2048 (1998; Zbl 0906.46043)]. The paper also presents applications to the Dunford-Pettis property and to holomorphic functions.