Rings of quotients of \(C(X)\) induced by points (Q2567419)

A ring of quotients of a commutative ring \(A\) with identity is a ring extension~\(R\) with the property that whenever \(s,t\in R\) and \(t\neq 0\) there is \(a\in A\) such that \(as\in A\) and \(at\neq0\). Such extensions may be formed by taking a filter \(\mathcal I\) of dense ideals, forming the union \(\bigcup\{\Hom(I):I\in\mathcal I\}\) and reducing this union by declaring \(\varphi\) and \(\psi\) to be equivalent if they agree on the intersection of their domains (\(I\)~is dense if \(aI=(0)\) implies \(a=0\) and \(\Hom(I)\) is the set of \(A\)-linear maps from \(I\) into~\(A\)). In case \(A=C(X)\) for some (Tychonoff) space \(X\) one also uses filters of dense open sets: if \(\mathcal D\) is such a filter one considers the union \(\bigcup\{C(U):U\in\mathcal D\}\) modulo the equivalence relation \(\sim\) defined by \(f\sim g\) if \(f\) and~\(g\) agree on the intersection on their domains. Two special cases: in case \(\mathcal D\) consists of all dense open sets one gets the maximal ring of quotients (corresponding to the filter of all dense ideals) and if \(\mathcal D\) consists of all dense cozero sets one gets the so-called classical ring of quotients (corresponding to the filter of those dense ideals that contain a regular element). In the present paper the author considers the filter \(\mathcal F\) consisting of all co-finite dense open sets as well as the filter \(\mathcal M\) of ideals generated by the fixed maximal ideals \(M_p\) (for non-isolated \(p\), where \(M_p=\{f:f(p)=0\}\)). In contrast with the situation above these two filters, though closely related, do not yield the same rings of quotients; the unit interval furnishes a counterexample. The rings do coincide if (and only if) every point \(p\), in the space is an \(h\)-point, by which the author means that if \(f\in C(X_p)\) and \(g\in M_p\) then \(fg\)~extends to a continuous function on the whole of~\(X\). In response to Question~2 in the paper it should be noted that in a compact \(F\)-space every point is an \(h\)-point.