Local properties and maximal Tychonof connected spaces (Q875674)

The authors study the problem whether there exists a \textit{maximal Tychonoff connected} space, i.e., an infinite connected Tychonoff space \(X\) such that any stronger Tychonoff topology on \(X\) is disconnected. The folklore conjecture was that the answer is negative, i.e., there exists no such space. \textit{F. B. Jones} [Bull. Am. Math. Soc. 48, 115--120 (1942; Zbl 0063.03063)] proved that the real line with the usual topology is not maximal Tychonoff connected. \textit{D. B. Shakhmatov, M. G. Tkachenko, V. V. Tkachuk, S. Watson} and \textit{R. G. Wilson} [Proc. Am. Math. Soc. 126, 279--287 (1998; Zbl 0904.54012)] proved that every infinite connected Tychonoff space which is either first countable or separable or locally Čech complete is not maximal Tychonoff connected. In this paper, the authors prove that every infinite connected Tychonoff space \(X\) satisfying one of the following conditions (i)--(iv) is not maximal Tychonoff connected: (i) \(X\) contains at least one point of countable character; (ii) \(X\) is the union of a family of fewer than \(2^\omega\) compact subspaces; (iii) \(X\) is a space of pointwise countable type; and (iv) \(X\) is locally connected. The case (iii) answers positively Problem 2 in the latter paper quoted above. Another remarkable result is that for any Tychonoff space \(X\), the following conditions (a) and (b) are equivalent: (a) \(X\) is maximal Tychonoff connected; (b) for any function \(f: X\to[0,1]\), its graph \(G(f)\subseteq X\times[0,1]\) is connected if and only if \(f\) is continuous. Some related results and open problems are also given.