On the structure of \(GL_ 2\) over stable range one rings (Q914844)

For a large class of rings R (including all commutative rings) Vaserstein has proved that, when \(n\geq 3\), the subgroups of \(GL_ n(R)\) normalized by \(E_ n(R)\), the subgroup generated by the elementary matrices, are completely determined by the R-ideals. From the extremely complicated normal subgroup structure of \(SL_ 2({\mathbb{Z}})\), where \({\mathbb{Z}}\) is the ring of rational integers, it is clear that for a general commutative ring R the subgroups of \(GL_ 2(R)\), normalized by \(E_ 2(R)\), cannot be completely determined in this way by special subsets of R like, for example, R-ideals. For anything like Vaserstein's result to extend to the case \(n=2\) it would appear that the ring has to contain ``sufficiently many units''. Costa and Keller have proved that, if A is a commutative \(SR_ 2\)-ring containing 1/2, then the normal subgroups of \(SL_ 2(A)\) are completely determined by the A-ideals. (Fields and semi-local rings, for example, are \(SR_ 2\)-rings.) In the present paper the authors have extended this result to all \(SR_ 2\)-rings B containing 1/2. They prove that the subgroups of \(GL_ 2(B)\), normalized by \(E_ 2(B)\), are completely determined by special subsets of B called quasi-ideals. (In any commutative ring containing 1/2 any quasi-ideal is an ideal.)