Remarks on linear homeomorphisms of function spaces (Q5932745)

Let \(X\), \(Y\) be completely regular Hausdorff spaces, and let \(C_p(X)\), \(C_p(Y)\) denote the algebras \(C(X)\), \(C(Y)\) provided with the topology of pointwise convergence. By a theorem of Nagata, the spaces \(X\) and \(Y\) are homeomorphic if \(C_p(X)\) and \(C_p(Y)\) are topologically isomorphic as topological algebras. The author proves the following variant: Assume that \(X\), \(Y\) are realcompact, that \(X\) is locally compact and that \(Y\) is of pointwise countable type (i.e., each \(y\in Y\) is contained in a compact subset of \(Y\) with a countable basis of open neighbourhoods). If \(C_p(X)\) and \(C_p(Y)\) are topologically isomorphic as topological vector spaces, then also \(Y\) is locally compact. The proof of this result is based on the following Lemma: (1) If \(X\) is locally compact and \(C_c(X)\) is barrelled, then \(C_c(X)\) is even Bairelike; (2) If \(X\) is of pointwise countable type and \(C_c(X)\) is Bairelike, then \(X\) is locally compact.