The \(C^*\)-algebra of the semi-direct product \(K \ltimes A\) (Q779997)

Every \(C^*\)-algebra can be realised as an algebra of operator-valued functions on its spectrum. This realisation becomes most useful when one has an explicit description of the spectrum as a topological space, and an explicit characterisation of those operator-valued functions that correspond to elements of the \(C^*\)-algebra. In this paper the authors consider the case of \(C^*(K\ltimes A)\), the group \(C^*\)-algebra of the semi-direct product group associated to an action of a compact group \(K\) on a locally compact abelian group \(A\). The spectrum of this \(C^*\)-algebra -- or in other words, the unitary dual \(\widehat{K\ltimes A}\) -- has been computed by \textit{G. W. Mackey} [Ann. Math. (2) 55, 101--139 (1952; Zbl 0046.11601)], and its topology as been described in detail by \textit{L. Baggett} [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 132, 175--215 (1968; Zbl 0162.18802)]. The main result of this paper is a characterisation of the image of \(C^*(K\ltimes A)\) in the algebra of operator-valued functions on \(\widehat{K\ltimes A}\) in terms of three conditions: a fibrewise-compactness condition; a vanishing-at-infinity condition; and a continuity condition. The continuity condition requires a comparison of operators acting on a priori different Hilbert spaces, and much of the paper is devoted to getting around this difficulty by realising certain families of representations of \(K\ltimes A\) as subspaces of a single Hilbert space. The main result is illustrated through the discussion of two examples: the Cartan motion group \(SO(n)\ltimes \mathbb{R}^n\), whose \(C^*\)-algebra had previously been computed in [\textit{F. Abdelmoula} et al., Bull. Sci. Math. 135, No. 2, 166--177 (2011; Zbl 1216.46050)]; and the semi-direct product for the action of the direct product \(\{ \pm 1\}^{\infty}\) by multiplication on the direct sum \(\mathbb{Z}^{\oplus\infty}\).