Tensor product of algebras

In mathematics, the tensor product of two R-algebras is also an R-algebra. This gives us a tensor product of algebras. The special case R = Z gives us a tensor product of rings, since rings may be regarded as Z-algebras.^[1]

Definition

Let R be a commutative ring and let A and B be R-algebras. Since A and B may both be regarded as R-modules, we may form their tensor product

A \otimes_R B ,

which is also an R-module. We can give the tensor product the structure of an algebra by defining the product on elements of the form a ⊗ b by^[2]^[3]

(a_1\otimes b_1)(a_2\otimes b_2) = a_1 a_2\otimes b_1b_2

and then extending by linearity to all of A ⊗_R B. This product is R-bilinear, associative, and unital with an identity element given by 1_A ⊗ 1_B,^[4] where 1_A and 1_B are the identities of A and B. If A and B are both commutative then the tensor product is commutative as well.

The tensor product turns the category of all R-algebras into a symmetric monoidal category.

Further properties

There are natural homomorphisms of A and B to A ⊗_R B given by^[5]

a\mapsto a\otimes 1_B

b\mapsto 1_A\otimes b

These maps make the tensor product a coproduct in the category of commutative R-algebras. The tensor product is not the coproduct in the category of all R-algebras. There the coproduct is given by a more general free product of algebras. Nevertheless the tensor product of non-commutative algebras can be described by an universal property similar to that of the coproduct:

Hom(A\otimes B,X)\cong \lbrace (f,g)\in Hom(A,X)\times Hom(B,X)\mid \forall a\in A,b\in B:[f(a),g(b)]=0\rbrace

The natural isomorphism is given by identifying a morphism $\phi :A\otimes B\to X$ on the left hand side with the pair of morphism $(f,g)$ on the right hand side where $f(a):=\phi (a\otimes 1)$ and similarly $g(b):=\phi (1\otimes b)$ .

Applications

The tensor product of algebras is of constant use in algebraic geometry: working in the opposite category to that of commutative R-algebras, it provides pullbacks of affine schemes, otherwise known as fiber products.

Notes

↑ Lang (2002), pp. 629-631.
↑ Kassel (1995), p. 32.
↑ Lang 2002, pp. 629-630.
↑ Kassel (1995), p. 32.
↑ Kassel (1995), p. 32.

References

Kassel, Christian (1995), Quantum groups, Graduate texts in mathematics, 155, Springer, ISBN 978-0-387-94370-1 .
Lang, Serge (2002) [first published in 1993]. Algebra. Graduate Texts in Mathematics. 21. Springer. ISBN 0-387-95385-X.

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