Approximations and adjoints in homotopy categories (Q431236)

The main result of the paper is the following criterion for the existence of right approximations in cocomplete additive categories. Let \({\mathcal A}\) be a locally presentable additive category, and let \({\mathcal B}\) be a full additive subcategory, closed under filtered colimits. Suppose there exists a regular cardinal \(\alpha\) such that \({\mathcal B}\) is closed under \(\alpha\)-pure subobjects or under \(\alpha\)-pure quotients. Then each object in \({\mathcal A}\) admits a right \({\mathcal B}\)-approximation. This is a generalisation of a result due to \textit{R. El Bashir} [Algebr. Represent. Theory 9, No. 5, 423--430 (2006; Zbl 1114.16002)], and many criteria for the existence of right approximations can be derived from this criterion. The main theorem is used to construct adjoint of functors between homotopy categories. These results read as follows. Assume that \(B\) is also closed under \(\alpha\)-pure subobjects or under \(\alpha\)-pure quotients for some regular cardinal \(\alpha\); then the inclusion \({\mathbf K}({\mathcal B}) \to {\mathbf K}({\mathcal A})\) admits a right adjoint. Assume that exact sequences are closed under filtered colimits; then the canonical functor \({\mathbf K}({\mathcal A}) \to {\mathbf D}({\mathcal A})\) admits a fully faithful right adjoint; in particular, the category \({\mathbf D}({\mathcal A})\) has small Hom-sets. Finally, several applications to pure derived categories are given.