Normalizing extensions and the second layer condition (Q4370965)

Since the second layer condition plays a central role for the theory of localization as well as for the representation theory of noetherian rings, it is natural to ask when this condition is inherited by an extension ring \(S\) of a noetherian ring \(R\) that satisfies it. Special instances for which this is known include the group ring \(S=RG\), where \(R\) is commutative noetherian and \(G\) is a polycyclic-by-finite group (\textit{K. A. Brown} [J. Algebra 69, 247-260 (1981; Zbl 0471.16012)]\ and \textit{A. V. Jategaonkar} [Commun. Algebra 10, 19-69 (1982; Zbl 0476.16014)]), and the case where \(S\) is finitely generated as a left and right \(R\)-module (\textit{E. S. Letzter} [J. Algebra 135, 412-439 (1990; Zbl 0721.16010)]). In the paper under review, the author considers a noetherian normalizing extension \(S\) of a noetherian ring \(R\) satisfying the second layer condition and develops criteria for a link closed subset \(\Omega\subseteq\text{Spec}(S)\) to satisfy this condition. A number of technical hypotheses are assumed for the triple \((R,S,\Omega)\) which, for example, are satisfied in the following instances. (1) \(S\) is a centralizing extension of \(R\) and \(\Omega=\text{Spec}(S)\), (2) \(S=R[y,y^{-1};\sigma]\) where \(\sigma\in\Aut(R)\), \(\Omega=\text{Spec}(S)\) and \(R\) has a locally finite link graph, and (3) \(S=R[y;\sigma]\), \(\Omega=\{P\in\text{Spec}(S)\mid y\not\in P\}\) and \(R\) has a locally finite link graph. It turns out that in the situations (2) and (3) the set \(\Omega\) satisfies the second layer condition whenever either \(R\) is an FBN ring and for each \(P\in\Omega\) the automorphism \(\sigma_P\) of \(R/P\cap R\) induced by \(\sigma\) has finite order, or \(R\) is a polycentral ring and the restriction of \(\sigma_P\) to the center of \(R/P\cap R\) has finite order. As a consequence, if \(R\) is as above, then \(S\) satisfies the second layer condition, since it is proved that the set \(\{P\in\text{Spec}(S)\mid y\in P\}\) for \(S=R[y;\sigma]\) always satisfies this condition. It is well known that AR-separation in a noetherian ring implies the strong second layer condition, and in the last section of the paper the author establishes a partial converse of this implication for a centralizing extension \(S\) of a noetherian AR-separated ring \(R\). He proves that if \(S\) satisfies the strong second layer condition, then for any two prime ideals \(Q\subset P\) of \(S\) with \(Q\cap R\subset P\cap R\) there exists an ideal \(Q\subset J\subseteq P\) such that \(J/Q\) satisfies the Artin-Rees property. The technical machinery developped for these results is quite substantial, and it is the reviewer's feeling that it could well be applicable to obtain more general theorems. Extensive use is made of the author's earlier notion of the ``classical'' Krull dimension of a module \(M\), that is, the deviation of the partially ordered set \(\{K\mid K\subseteq M\) and \(M/K\) is tame\}. For the entire collection see [Zbl 0878.00051].