Continuous orbit equivalence of semigroup actions (Q6580095)

The profound work of \textit{T. Giordano} et al. [J. Reine Angew. Math. 469, 51--111 (1995; Zbl 0834.46053)] on topological orbit equivalence is generalized to a weaker algebraic setting. Continuous orbit equivalence and its one-sided version for actions of countable left Ore semigroups acting on compact spaces by surjective local homeomorphisms are introduced and characterized in terms of the corresponding transformation groupoids and their operator algebras. Along with several illustrative examples, it is shown that two essentially free semigroup actions on totally disconnected compact spaces are continuously orbit equivalent if and only if there is a canonical abelian subalgebra preserving \(C^*\)-isomorphism between the associated transformation groupoid \(C^*\)-algebras, recovering much of the standard setting.