The generalized prefix expansion of a weakly left ample semigroup. (Q2502254)

Let \(S\) be a semigroup and \(\widetilde{\mathcal R}\) the relation on \(S\) defined by \(a\widetilde{\mathcal R}b\) if and only if \(\{e\in E(S):ea=a\}=\{e\in E(S):eb=b\}\). The semigroup \(S\) is said to be `weakly left ample' if \(E(S)\) is a semilattice, \(\widetilde{\mathcal R}\) a left congruence on \(S\), each \(\widetilde{\mathcal R}\)-class \(\widetilde{\mathcal R}_a\) has a unique idempotent (denoted by \(a^+\)) and \(ae=(ae)^+a\) for all \(a\in S\) and \(e\in E(S)\). Weakly left ample semigroups form a quasivariety of algebras of type \((2,1)\). It is proved that for a weakly left ample semigroup \(S\), \(S^{\text{Pr}}=\{(A,s)\in{\mathcal P}_{\text{fin}}(S)\times S:s,s^+\in A\), \(A\subseteq\widetilde{\mathcal R}_s\}\) with multiplication \((A,s)(B,t)=((st)^+A\cup sB,st)\) is a weakly left ample semigroup as well. For a given \((2,1)\)-homomorphism \(\theta\colon S\to T\) from \(S\) onto \(T\) of weakly left ample semigroups such that, for any \(a\in T\), there exists a maximum element \(m(a\theta^{-1})\) in \(a\theta^{-1}\), a mapping \(\theta^*\colon T\to S\) by \(a\theta^*=m(a\theta^{-1})\) can be defined. If \(\theta^*\) is order-preserving and \(a\theta^*b\theta^*=(a\theta^*)^+(ab)\theta^*\) for any \(a,b\in T\), then \(\theta\) is said to be an `FA-morphism' from \(S\) onto \(T\). The main theorem proves that if \(S\) is a weakly left ample semigroup, then \(\eta_S\colon S^{\text{Pr}}\to S\), \((A,s)\mapsto s\), is an (initial) universal object in the category \(\mathcal{FA}_S\) of all FA-morphisms onto \(S\).