arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Ionut Chifan.
On page 43 in \cite{Po83} Sorin Popa asked whether the following property holds: \emph{If $ω$ is a free ultrafilter on $\mathbb N$ and $\mathcal R_1\subseteq \mathcal R$ is an irreducible inclusion of hyperfinite II$_1$ factors such that $\mathcal R'\cap \mathcal R^ω\subseteq \mathcal R^ω_1$ does it follows that $\mathcal R_1=\mathcal R$?} In this short note we provide an affirmative answer to this question.
We show that any infinite collection $(Γ_n)_{n\in \mathbb N}$ of icc, hyperbolic, property (T) groups satisfies the following von Neumann algebraic \emph{infinite product rigidity} phenomenon. If $Λ$ is an arbitrary group such that $L(\oplus_{n\in \mathbb N} Γ_n)\cong L(Λ)$ then there exists an infinite direct sum decomposition $Λ=(\oplus_{n \in \mathbb N} Λ_n )\oplus A$ with $A$ icc amenable such that, for all $n\in \mathbb N$, up to amplifications, we have $L(Γ_n) \cong L(Λ_n)$ and $L(\oplus_{k\geq n} Γ_k )\cong L((\oplus_{k\geq n} Λ_k) \oplus A)$. The result is sharp and complements the previous finite product rigidity property found in [CdSS16]. Using this we provide an uncountable family of restricted wreath products $Γ\congΣ\wr Δ$ of icc, property (T) groups $Σ$, $Δ$ whose wreath product structure is recognizable, up to a normal amenable subgroup, from their von Neumann algebras $L(Γ)$. Along the way we highlight several applications of these results to the study of rigidity in the $\mathbb C^*$-algebra setting.
We provide a fairly large family of amalgamated free product groups $Γ=Γ_1\ast_ΣΓ_2$ whose amalgam structure can be completely recognized from their von Neumann algebras. Specifically, assume that $Γ_i$ is a product of two icc non-amenable bi-exact (e.g., hyperbolic) groups, and $Σ$ is icc amenable and has trivial one-sided commensurator in $Γ_i$, for every $i\in\{1,2\}$. Then $Γ$ satisfies the following rigidity property: any group $\La$ such that $L(\La)$ is isomorphic to $L(\G)$ admits an amalgamated free product decomposition $\La=\La_1\ast_Δ\La_2$ such that the inclusions $L(Δ)\subseteq L(\La_i)$ and $L(Σ)\subseteq L(\G_i)$ are isomorphic, for every $i\in\{1,2\}$. This result significantly strengthens some of the previous Bass-Serre rigidity results for von Neumann algebras. As a corollary, we obtain the first examples of amalgamated free product groups which are W$^*$-superrigid.
We prove that there exist uncountably many separable II$_1$ factors whose ultrapowers (with respect to arbitrary ultrafilters) are non-isomorphic. In fact, we prove that the families of non-isomorphic II$_1$ factors originally introduced by McDuff \cite{MD69a,MD69b} are such examples. This entails the existence of a continuum of non-elementarily equivalent II$_1$ factors, thus settling a well-known open problem in the continuous model theory of operator algebras.
We show that several important normal subgroups $Γ$ of the mapping class group of a surface satisfy the following property: any free, ergodic, probability measure preserving action $Γ\curvearrowright X$ is stably OE-superrigid. These include the central quotients of most surface braid groups and most Torelli groups and Johnson kernels. In addition, we show that all these groups satisfy the measure equivalence rigidity and we describe all their lattice-embeddings. Using these results in combination with previous results from [CIK13] we deduce that any free, ergodic, probability measure preserving action of almost any surface braid group is stably W*-superrigid, i.e., it can be completely reconstructed from its von Neumann algebra.
We show that if $Γ= Γ_1\times\dotsb\times Γ_n$ is a product of $n\geq 2$ non-elementary ICC hyperbolic groups then any discrete group $Λ$ which is $W^*$-equivalent to $Γ$ decomposes as a $k$-fold direct sum exactly when $k=n$. This gives a group-level strengthening of Ozawa and Popa's unique prime decomposition theorem by removing all assumptions on the group $Λ$. This result in combination with Margulis' normal subgroup theorem allows us to give examples of lattices in the same Lie group which do not generate stably equivalent II$_1$ factors.
In this paper we introduce a new class of non-amenable groups denoted by ${\bf NC}_1 \cap {\bf Quot}(\mathcal C_{rss})$ which give rise to $\textit{prime}$ von Neumann algebras. This means that for every $Γ\in {\bf NC}_1 \cap {\bf Quot}(\mathcal C_{rss})$ its group von Neumann algebra $L(Γ)$ cannot be decomposed as a tensor product of diffuse von Neumann algebras. We show ${\bf NC}_1 \cap {\bf Quot}(\mathcal C_{rss})$ is fairly large as it contains many examples of groups intensively studied in various areas of mathematics, notably: all infinite central quotients of pure surface braid groups; all mapping class groups of (punctured) surfaces of genus $0,1,2$; most Torelli groups and Johnson kernels of (punctured) surfaces of genus $0,1,2$; and, all groups hyperbolic relative to finite families of residually finite, exact, infinite, proper subgroups.
For any $n\geqslant 4$ let $\tilde B_n=B_n/Z(B_n)$ be the quotient of the braid group $B_n$ through its center. We prove that any free ergodic probability measure preserving (pmp) action $\tilde B_n\curvearrowright (X,μ)$ is W$^*$-superrigid in the following sense: if $L^{\infty}(X)\rtimes\tilde B_n\cong L^{\infty}(Y)\rtimesΛ$, for an arbitrary free ergodic pmp action $Λ\curvearrowright (Y,ν)$, then the actions $\tilde B_n\curvearrowright X,Λ\curvearrowright Y$ are stably (or, virtually) conjugate. Moreover, we prove that the same holds if $\tilde B_n$ is replaced with a finite index subgroup of the direct product $\tilde B_{n_1}\times\cdots\times\tilde B_{n_k}$, for some $n_1,\ldots,n_k\geqslant 4$. The proof uses the dichotomy theorem for normalizers inside crossed products by free groups from \cite{PV11} in combination with the OE superrigidity theorem for actions of mapping class groups from \cite{Ki06}.
This paper includes a series of structural results for von Neumann algebras arising from measure preserving actions by product groups on probability spaces. Expanding upon the methods used earlier by the first two authors \cite{CS}, we obtain new examples of strongly solid factors as well as von Neumann algebras with unique or no Cartan subalgebra. For instance we show that every II$_1$ factor associated with a weakly amenable group in the class $\mathcal S$ of Ozawa is strongly solid, \cite{OzSolid}. There is also the following product version of this result: any maximal abelian $\star$-subalgebra of any II$_1$ factor associated with a finite product of weakly amenable groups in the class $\mathcal S$ of Ozawa has an amenable normalizing algebra. Finally, pairing some of these results with cocycle superrigidity results from \cite{IoaCSR}, it follows that compact actions by finite products of lattices in $Sp(n, 1)$, $n \geq2$, are virtually $W^*$-superrigid.
We show that a large class of i.c.c., countable, discrete groups satisfying a weak negative curvature condition are not inner amenable. By recent work of Hull and Osin, our result recovers that mapping class groups and Out(F_n) are not inner amenable. We also show that the group-measure space constructions associated to free, strongly ergodic p.m.p. actions of such groups do not have property Gamma of Murray and von Neumann.
This note establishes a new weak mean ergodic theorem for 1-cocycles associated to weakly mixing representations of amenable groups.
We prove a new weak mean ergodic theorem (Theorem A) for 1-cocycles associated to weakly mixing representations of amenable groups. Let $G$ be a finitely generated, discrete, amenable group $G$ which admits a controlled Folner sequence. We use Theorem A to deduce that any affine action $G\ca^T \Cal H$ on Hilbert space with weakly mixing linear part admits a sequence of almost fixed points (Theorem B). Specializing to the case that $G$ is a finitely generated group of polynomial growth, we show that convex combinations of averages of the associated 1-cocycle over $n$-balls provide a sequence of almost fixed points for the action $G\ca^T \Cal H$ (Corollary C). This affirms a weak form of a conjecture of Shalom independently of Gromov's theorem on the virtual nilpotency of groups of polynomial growth. As a consequence, we are able to give a new, elementary, ergodic-theoretical proof of Gromov's theorem.
Ozawa showed that for any i.c.c., hyperbolic group, the associated group factor is solid. Developing a new approach that combines some methods of Peterson, Ozawa and Popa, and Ozawa, we strengthen this result by showing that these factors are strongly solid. Using our methods in cooperation with a cocycle superrigidity result of Ioana, we show that profinite actions of lattices in Sp(n,1), n>1, are virtually W*-superrigid.
We use deformation-rigidity theory in von Neumann algebra framework to study probability measure preserving actions by wreath product groups. In particular, we single out large families of wreath products groups satisfying various type of orbit equivalence (OE) rigidity. For instance, we show that whenever $H$, $K$, $\G$, $\La$ are icc, property (T) groups such that $H\wr \G$ is measure equivalent to $K\wr \La$ then automatically $\G$ is measure equivalent to $\La$ and $H^{\G}$ is measure equivalent to $K^{\La}$. Rigidity results for von Neumann algebras arising from certain actions of such groups (i.e. W$^*$-rigidity results) are also obtained.
Using an approach emerging from the theory of closable derivations on von Neumann algebras, we exhibit a class of groups CR satisfying the following property: given any groups G_1, G_2 in CR, then any free, ergodic, measure preserving action on a probability space G_1 x G_2 on X gives rise to a von Neumann algebra with unique group measure space Cartan subalgebra. Pairing this result with Popa's Orbit Equivalence Superrigidity Theorem we obtain new examples of W*-superrigid actions.
We obtain new Bass-Serre type rigidity results for ${\rm II_1}$ equivalence relations and their von Neumann algebras, coming from free ergodic actions of free products of groups on the standard probability space. As an application, we show that any non-amenable factor arising as an amalgamated free product of von Neumann algebras $\mathcal{M}_1 \ast_B \mathcal{M}_2$ over an abelian von Neumann algebra $B$, is prime, i.e. cannot be written as a tensor product of diffuse factors. This gives, both in the type ${\rm II_1}$ and in the type ${\rm III}$ case, new examples of prime factors.
In this short note we construct two countable, infinite conjugacy class groups which admit free, ergodic, probability measure preserving orbit equivalent actions, but whose group von Neumann algebras are not (stably) isomorphic.
We consider the following three properties for countable discrete groups $Γ$: (1) $Γ$ has an infinite subgroup with relative property (T), (2) the group von Neumann algebra $LΓ$ has a diffuse von Neumann subalgebra with relative property (T) and (3) $Γ$ does not have Haagerup's property. It is clear that (1) $\Longrightarrow$ (2) $\Longrightarrow$ (3). We prove that both of the converses are false.