Asymptotic unitary equivalence in \(KK\)-theory (Q5952134)

We cite from the introduction: ``The versatility of KK-theory is due to some extent to the remarkable fact that all ``reasonable'' equivalence relations on the set of Kasparov-bimodules over a pair of (separable) \(C^*\)-algebras, ranging from homotopy to cobordism, prove to be the same. They all give rise to the same object, Kasparov's bivariant KK-group.'' The authors introduce a new equivalence relation on Kasparov-bimodules which yields still another description of KK-theory. They call two representations \(\varphi, \psi:A\to {\mathcal L}(E)\) of a separable \(C^*\)-algebra \(A\) in the endomorphism ring of a \(C^*\)-module \(E\) over a \(\sigma\)-unital \(C^*\)-algebra \(B\) asymptotically unitarily equivalent if there is a continuous path of unitaries \[ u:[0,\infty) \to {\mathcal U}\bigl( {\mathcal K}(E)+ \mathbb{C}\cdot 1_E\bigr) \] such that \[ \lim_{t\to \infty}\bigl \|u_t\varphi (a)u^*_t-\psi (a)\bigr\|= 0,\;\forall a\in A, \] \[ u_t \varphi (a)u_t^*-\psi (a)\in {\mathcal K}(E),\;\forall t\in [0,\infty),\;a\in A. \] They show then that the set of asymptotic unitary equivalence classes of Cuntz-pairs of representations \[ \rho^+, \rho^-: A\to{\mathcal L}(E),\;\rho^+(a)-\rho^-(a) \in{\mathcal K}(E),\;\forall a\in A \] coincides with Kasparov's bivariant K-group \(KK(A,B)\). This result is applied to some questions arising in the classification theory of nuclear \(C^*\)-algebras.