Valuations on lattice polytopes (Q957983)

Fix a lattice \(L\) and let \(\mathcal L\) denote the family of all lattice polytopes in \(L \otimes_{\mathbb Z} {\mathbb Q}\) (a \textit{lattice polytope} is the convex hull of finitely many points in \(L\)). A \textit{valuation} on \(\mathcal L\) is a function \(\phi\) from \(\mathcal L\) into some abelian group such that \[ \phi(P \cup Q) + \phi(P \cap Q) = \phi(P) + \phi(Q) \] whenever \(P, Q, P \cup Q \in \mathcal L\) (and therefore also \(P \cap Q \in \mathcal L\)). Volume and Euler characteristic are well-known examples of valuations. More generally, \(\phi\) is said to satisfy the \textit{inclusion-exclusion principle} if for all \(P_1, P_2, \dots, P_n \in \mathcal L\), \[ \phi(P_1 \cup P_2 \cup \cdots \cup P_n) = \sum_{ I \subseteq \left\{ 1, 2, \dots, n \right\} } (-1)^{ |I|-1 } \phi(P_I) \, , \] whenever \(P_1 \cup P_2 \cup \cdots \cup P_n \in \mathcal L\); here \(P_I := \bigcap \left\{ P_j : \, j \in I \right\}\) for each nonempty \(I \subseteq \left\{ 1, 2, \dots, n \right\}\), and we sum over all nonempty \(I\). Yet more general, the valuation \(\phi\) has the \textit{extension property} if there is a function \(\overline \phi\) defined on finite unions of sets in \(\mathcal L\) such that \[ \overline \phi(P_1 \cup P_2 \cup \cdots \cup P_n) = \sum_{ I \subseteq \left\{ 1, 2, \dots, n \right\} } (-1)^{ |I|-1 } \phi(P_I) \, . \] The main theorem of the paper under review says that any valuation on \(\mathcal L\) has the extension property (and satisfies therefore the inclusion-exclusion principle). In fact, the statement of the main theorem is yet stronger, namely, that the class of a lattice polytope in the abstract group for valuations on \(\mathcal L\) can be identified with its characteristic function in \(L \otimes_{\mathbb Z} {\mathbb Q}\).