Reflective subcategories (Q5896370)

The three major questions relating to reflective subcategories, namely characterization, existence of reflective hulls and the preservation of reflectiveness under intersection are discussed within the context of a well-powered, cowell-powered category \({\mathcal A}\) with products. Given a (full replete) subcategory \({\mathcal B}\) of \({\mathcal A}\), a morphism e: \(A\to B\) in \({\mathcal A}\) with codomain in \({\mathcal B}\) is called a \({\mathcal B}\)-epi iff for any pair of morphisms r,s: \(B\to C\) with \(r e=s e\) and with C in \({\mathcal B}\), always \(r=s.\) The full subcategory comprising all objects C with this property in relation to each \({\mathcal B}\)-epi is called the point-separation axiom epi-generated by \({\mathcal B}\). The subcategory \({\mathcal B}\) is said to be cowell-powering if every object in \({\mathcal A}\) is the domain of at most a representative set of \({\mathcal B}\)-epis. The following results are established: A cowell-powering subcategory is reflective iff it is closed under products and extremal subobjects within the point-separation axiom which epigenerates it. In particular, the intersection of a family of reflective subcategories is reflective whenever it is cowell-powering. Further, the intersection of a family of cowell-powering reflective subcategories which epi-generate the same point-separation axiom is reflective. Reflective hulls are also characterized and examples from Top are given to illustrate the insensitivity of the process of epi-generating a point-separation axiom.