On the comparison of stable and unstable $p$-completion

Abstract

In this note we show that a $p$-complete nilpotent space $X$ has a $p$-complete suspension spectrum if and only if its homotopy groups $\pi_*X$ are bounded $p$-torsion. In contrast, if $\pi_*X$ is not all bounded $p$-torsion, we locate uncountable rational vector spaces in the integral homology and in the stable homotopy groups of $X$. To prove this, we establish a homological criterion for $p$-completeness of connective spectra. Moreover, we illustrate our results by studying the stable homotopy groups of $K(\mathbb{Z}_p,n)$ via Goodwillie calculus.