The basic geometry of Witt vectors. II: Spaces (Q652250)

Let \(R\) be a ring, \(E\) a set of finitely presented maximal ideals \(\mathfrak{m}\) of \(R\) so that each \(R_{\mathfrak m}\) is a discrete valuation ring with finite residue field, and \(n\in \bigoplus_E\mathbb N\). In [\textit{J. Borger}, Algebra Number Theory 5, No. 2, 231--285 (2011; Zbl 1276.13018)], the author constructed the \(E\)-typical Witt functor \(W_n=W_{R,E,n}\) from the category of \(R\)-algebras to itself. In the case where \(E\) consists of the single maximal ideal \(p\mathbb Z\) of \(\mathbb Z\), this is the \(p\)-typical Witt functor. The functor \(W_{R, E, n}\) has a left adjoint. Let \(S=\mathrm{Spec}\,R\), let \(\mathbf{Aff}_S\) be the category of affine \(S\)-schemes, and let \(W_n(\mathrm{Spec}\,A)=\mathrm{Spec}\,W_n(A)\). For any sheaf of sets \(X\) on \(\mathbf{Aff}_S\) with respect to the étale topology, we define \[ W_{n\ast}(X)=X\circ W_n. \] \(W_{n\ast}\) is a functor from the category \(\mathbf{Sp}_S\) of sheaves of sets on \(\mathbf{Aff}_S\) to itself. It has a left adjoint \(W_n^\ast\) satisfying \[ W_n^\ast(X)=\mathrm{colim}_U W_n(U), \] where \(U\) runs over the category of affine schemes equipped with a map to \(X\) and the affine scheme \(W_n(U)\) is considered as an object in \(\mathbf{Sp}_S\) which it represents. The main result of the paper says that if \(X\) is an algebraic space, then so are \(W_n^\ast(X)\) and \(W_{n\ast}(X)\), and if \(X\) is a scheme, then so are \(W_n^\ast(X)\) and \(W_{n\ast}(X)\).