Quotients of locally minimal groups (Q2633787)

The paper contains, for a Hausdorff topological group $(G,\tau)$, a precise analysis of different minimality conditions, in particular of their local versions. $(G,\tau)$ is minimal if $G$ admits no properly coarser Hausdorff group topology; and totally minimal if each Hausdorff quotient of $G$ is minimal. $(G,\tau)$ is locally minimal if there is a $\tau$-neighbourhood $V$ of the identity $1\in G$ such that a Hausdorff group topology $\sigma\leq\tau$ for which $V$ is a $\sigma$-neighbourhood of 1 coincides with $\tau$; and locally $t$-minimal if each Hausdorff quotient of $G$ is locally minimal. $(G,\tau)$ is locally $q$-minimal (locally $q^*$-minimal) if there is a $\tau$-neighbourhood $V$ of $1\in G$ such that every continuous surjective homomorphism $f:G\rightarrow H$ onto a Hausdorff topological group $H$ is open whenever $f(V)$ is a neighbourhood of $1\in H$ (and $\ker f \subseteq V$). The authors study the relationship between these conditions, their permanence properties with respect to taking closed or open subgroups or extensions, and the connection with compactness-like properties. Among various examples, locally $q$-minimal subgroups of $\mathbb{T}^n$ and $\mathbb{R}^n$ are described; in particular it is shown that a dense subgroup of $\mathbb{R}^n$ is locally $q$-minimal iff it is divisible.