The Möbius function of generalized subword order (Q409623)

Given a finite poset \(P\), denote by \(P^*\) the set of all finite-length words on \(P\). The generalized subword order on \(P^*\) is defined by \(u\leq w\) if and only if there is a subword \(u'\) of \(w\) having the same length as \(u\) such that each element of \(u\) is less than or equal to the corresponding element of \(u'\) in \(P\). Note that this coincides with the classical subword order when \(P\) is discrete (i.e. an antichain). The authors prove a simple formula for the Möbius function of \(P^*\) in terms of the Möbius function of \(P\). They also derive various applications of this result: they determine the homotopy type of all intervals of \(P^*\) for any finite poset \(P\) of rank at most \(1\) and obtain alternative proofs of previous results of Björner, Sagan and Vatter, and Tomie.