Simplicial monoid actions and associated monoid constructions (Q505025)

The action category \(X/ /M\) for a monoid \(M\) acting on a set \(X\) has the same objects as \(X\) and a morphism (\(x\rightarrow mx\)) for each pair of elements \( x\in X\) and \(m\in M\). If the basepoint of \(X\) is fixed by the \(M\)-action, the reduced action category is defined as the cokernel of \(*//M\rightarrow X//M\). The universal monoid functor \(U:\mathrm{Cat}\rightarrow\mathrm{Mon}\), where Cat is the category of small categories and Mon is the category of monoids, is the left inverse of the functor \(\mathrm{Mon}\hookrightarrow \mathrm{Cat}\), which includes a monoid as a small category with one object. Then, given \(X\) a pointed simplicial set and \(M\) a simplicial monoid, the authors define the simplicial monoid \(J^M[X]\) by applying the functor \(U\) to the reduced action category \(\mathrm{coker}(*//M\rightarrow X//M)\) degree-wise. Let \(EM\) denote a simplicial set with a free \(M\)-action. The diagonal action on \(X\times EM\) is free and its orbit space, \(X\times_M EM\), is known as the Borel construction of \(X\). The reduced Borel construction (denoted by \(X\rtimes_M EM\)) is defined as the homotopy cofiber of \(*\times_MEM\rightarrow X\times_M EM\). Let \(M^\times\) denote the group of invertible elements of \(M\), and let \(\mathrm{Stab}(x)\) be the submonoid of \(M_n\) that fixes \(x\). The main theorem says that if a section of the composite \(M^\times_n\hookrightarrow M_n\rightarrow M_n/\mathrm{Stab}(x)\) exists for each \(x\in X_n\), then there is a cofiber sequence \(X\rightarrow X\rtimes_MEM\rightarrow BJ^M[X]\), where \(B-\) denotes the diagonal of the bisimplicial set obtained by taking the nerve in each dimension. This theorem generalizes previous results from \textit{G. Carlsson} [Topology 23, 85--89 (1984; Zbl 0532.55024)] and \textit{J. Wu} [ibid. 37, No. 5, 1113--1134 (1998; Zbl 0926.55017)], which themselves generalized Milnor's and James' constructions.