A new proof of the existence of free Lie algebras and an application

Summary: The existence of free Lie algebras is usually derived as a consequence of the Poincaré-Birkhoff-Witt theorem. Moreover, in order to prove that (given a set \(X\) and a field \(\mathbb K\) of characteristic zero) the Lie algebra \(\mathcal L (\mathbb K \langle X \rangle)\) of the Lie polynomials in the letters of \(X\) (over the field \(\mathbb K\)) is a free Lie algebra generated by \(X\), all available proofs use the embedding of a Lie algebra \(\mathfrak g\) into its enveloping algebra \(\mathcal U(\mathfrak g)\). The aim of this paper is to give a much simpler proof of the latter fact without the aid of the cited embedding nor of the Poincaré-Birkhoff-Witt theorem. As an application of our result and of a theorem due to Cartier (1956), we show the relationships existing between the theorem of Poincaré-Birkhoff-Witt, the theorem of Campbell-Baker-Hausdorff, and the existence of free Lie algebras.

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