It has been a long-standing question whether every amenable operator algebra is isomorphic to a (necessarily nuclear) $\mathrm{C}^*$-algebra. In this note, we give a nonseparable counterexample. Finding out whether a separable counterexample exists remains an open problem. We also initiate a general study of unitarizability of representations of amenable groups in $\mathrm{C}^*$-algebras and show that our method cannot produce a separable counterexample.

We show Exel’s tight representation of an inverse semigroup can be described in terms of joins and covers in the natural partial order. Using this, we show that the ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra of a finitely aligned category of paths, developed by Spielberg, is the tight ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra of a natural inverse semigroup. This includes as a special case finitely aligned higher-rank graphs: that is, for such a higher-rank graph $\Lambda $, the tight ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra of the inverse semigroup associated to $\Lambda $ is the same as the ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra of $\Lambda $.

We investigate Cartan subalgebras in nontracial amalgamated free product von Neumann algebras ${\mathop{M{}_{1} \ast }\nolimits}_{B} {M}_{2} $ over an amenable von Neumann subalgebra $B$. First, we settle the problem of the absence of Cartan subalgebra in arbitrary free product von Neumann algebras. Namely, we show that any nonamenable free product von Neumann algebra $({M}_{1} , {\varphi }_{1} )\ast ({M}_{2} , {\varphi }_{2} )$ with respect to faithful normal states has no Cartan subalgebra. This generalizes the tracial case that was established by A. Ioana [Cartan subalgebras of amalgamated free product ${\mathrm{II} }_{1} $factors, arXiv:1207.0054]. Next, we prove that any countable nonsingular ergodic equivalence relation $ \mathcal{R} $ defined on a standard measure space and which splits as the free product $ \mathcal{R} = { \mathcal{R} }_{1} \ast { \mathcal{R} }_{2} $ of recurrent subequivalence relations gives rise to a nonamenable factor $\mathrm{L} ( \mathcal{R} )$ with a unique Cartan subalgebra, up to unitary conjugacy. Finally, we prove unique Cartan decomposition for a class of group measure space factors ${\mathrm{L} }^{\infty } (X)\rtimes \Gamma $ arising from nonsingular free ergodic actions $\Gamma \curvearrowright (X, \mu )$ on standard measure spaces of amalgamated groups $\Gamma = {\mathop{\Gamma {}_{1} \ast }\nolimits}_{\Sigma } {\Gamma }_{2} $ over a finite subgroup $\Sigma $.

Suppose that ${\Gamma }^{+ } $ is the positive cone of a totally ordered abelian group $\Gamma $, and $(A, {\Gamma }^{+ } , \alpha )$ is a system consisting of a ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra $A$, an action $\alpha $ of ${\Gamma }^{+ } $ by extendible endomorphisms of $A$. We prove that the partial-isometric crossed product $A\hspace{0.167em} { \mathop{\times }\nolimits}_{\alpha }^{\mathrm{piso} } \hspace{0.167em} {\Gamma }^{+ } $ is a full corner in the subalgebra of $\L ({\ell }^{2} ({\Gamma }^{+ } , A))$, and that if $\alpha $ is an action by automorphisms of $A$, then it is the isometric crossed product $({B}_{{\Gamma }^{+ } } \otimes A)\hspace{0.167em} {\mathop{\times }\nolimits }^{\mathrm{iso} } \hspace{0.167em} {\Gamma }^{+ } $, which is therefore a full corner in the usual crossed product of system by a group of automorphisms. We use these realizations to identify the ideal of $A\hspace{0.167em} { \mathop{\times }\nolimits}_{\alpha }^{\mathrm{piso} } \hspace{0.167em} {\Gamma }^{+ } $ such that the quotient is the isometric crossed product $A\hspace{0.167em} { \mathop{\times }\nolimits}_{\alpha }^{\mathrm{iso} } \hspace{0.167em} {\Gamma }^{+ } $.

The class of $\lambda $-synchronizing subshifts generalizes the class of irreducible sofic shifts. A $\lambda $-synchronizing subshift can be presented by a certain $\lambda $-graph system, called the $\lambda $-synchronizing $\lambda $-graph system. The $\lambda $-synchronizing $\lambda $-graph system of a $\lambda $-synchronizing subshift can be regarded as an analogue of the Fischer cover of an irreducible sofic shift. We will study algebraic structure of the ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra associated with a $\lambda $-synchronizing $\lambda $-graph system and prove that the stable isomorphism class of the ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra with its Cartan subalgebra is invariant under flow equivalence of $\lambda $-synchronizing subshifts.

We define the class of weakly approximately divisible unital ${C}^{\ast } $-algebras and show that this class is closed under direct sums, direct limits, any tensor product with any ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra, and quotients. A nuclear ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra is weakly approximately divisible if and only if it has no finite-dimensional representations. We also show that Pisier’s similarity degree of a weakly approximately divisible ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra is at most five.

In the third and latest paper in this series, we recover the imprimitivity theorems of Mansfield and Fell using our technique of Fell bundles over groupoids. Also, we apply the Rieffel surjection of the first paper in the series to relate our version of Mansfield’s theorem to that of an Huef and Raeburn, and to give an automatic amenability result for certain transformation Fell bundles.

For a countable discrete space $V$, every nondegenerate separable ${C}^{\ast } $-correspondence over ${c}_{0} (V)$ is isomorphic to one coming from a directed graph with vertex set $V$. In this paper we demonstrate why the analogous characterizations fail to hold for higher-rank graphs (where one considers product systems of ${C}^{\ast } $-correspondences) and for topological graphs (where $V$ is locally compact Hausdorff), and we discuss the obstructions that arise.

Results of Fowler and Sims show that every k-graph is completely determined by its k-coloured skeleton and collection of commuting squares. Here we give an explicit description of the k-graph associated with a given skeleton and collection of squares and show that two k-graphs are isomorphic if and only if there is an isomorphism of their skeletons which preserves commuting squares. We use this to prove directly that each k-graph Λ is isomorphic to the quotient of the path category of its skeleton by the equivalence relation determined by the commuting squares, and show that this extends to a homeomorphism of infinite-path spaces when the k-graph is row finite with no sources. We conclude with a short direct proof of the characterization, originally due to Robertson and Sims, of simplicity of the C*-algebra of a row-finite k-graph with no sources.

Paterson showed how to construct an étale groupoid from an inverse semigroup using ideas from functional analysis. This construction was later simplified by Lenz. We show that Lenz’s construction can itself be further simplified by using filters: the topological groupoid associated with an inverse semigroup is precisely a groupoid of filters. In addition, idempotent filters are closed inverse subsemigroups and so determine transitive representations by means of partial bijections. This connection between filters and representations by partial bijections is exploited to show how linear representations of inverse semigroups can be constructed from the groups occurring in the associated topological groupoid.

Let A be a unital C*-algebra with the canonical (H) C*-bundle over the maximal ideal space of the centre of A, and let E(A) be the set of all elementary operators on A. We consider derivations on A which lie in the completely bounded norm closure of E(A), and show that such derivations are necessarily inner in the case when each fibre of is a prime C*-algebra. We also consider separable C*-algebras A for which is an (F) bundle. For these C*-algebras we show that the following conditions are equivalent: E(A) is closed in the operator norm; A as a Banach module over its centre is topologically finitely generated; fibres of have uniformly finite dimensions, and each restriction bundle of over a set where its fibres are of constant dimension is of finite type as a vector bundle.

Suppose that $G$ is a second countable, locally compact Hausdorff groupoid with abelian stabiliser subgroups and a Haar system. We provide necessary and sufficient conditions for the groupoid ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra to have Hausdorff spectrum. In particular, we show that the spectrum of ${C}^{\ast } (G)$ is Hausdorff if and only if the stabilisers vary continuously with respect to the Fell topology, the orbit space ${G}^{(0)} / G$ is Hausdorff, and, given convergent sequences ${\chi }_{i} \rightarrow \chi $ and ${\gamma }_{i} \cdot {\chi }_{i} \rightarrow \omega $ in the dual stabiliser groupoid $\widehat{S}$ where the ${\gamma }_{i} \in G$ act via conjugation, if $\chi $ and $\omega $ are elements of the same fibre then $\chi = \omega $.

We study the space of irreducible representations of a crossed product ${C}^{\ast } $-algebra ${\mathop{A\rtimes }\nolimits}_{\sigma } G$, where $G$ is a finite group. We construct a space $\widetilde {\Gamma } $ which consists of pairs of irreducible representations of $A$ and irreducible projective representations of subgroups of $G$. We show that there is a natural action of $G$ on $\widetilde {\Gamma } $ and that the orbit space $G\setminus \widetilde {\Gamma } $ corresponds bijectively to the dual of ${\mathop{A\rtimes }\nolimits}_{\sigma } G$.

We show that if $A$ and $H$ are Hopf algebras that have equivalent tensor categories of comodules, then one can transport what we call a free Yetter–Drinfeld resolution of the counit of $A$ to the same kind of resolution for the counit of $H$, exhibiting in this way strong links between the Hochschild homologies of $A$ and $H$. This enables us to obtain a finite free resolution of the counit of $\mathcal {B}(E)$, the Hopf algebra of the bilinear form associated with an invertible matrix $E$, generalizing an earlier construction of Collins, Härtel and Thom in the orthogonal case $E=I_n$. It follows that $\mathcal {B}(E)$ is smooth of dimension 3 and satisfies Poincaré duality. Combining this with results of Vergnioux, it also follows that when $E$ is an antisymmetric matrix, the $L^2$-Betti numbers of the associated discrete quantum group all vanish. We also use our resolution to compute the bialgebra cohomology of $\mathcal {B}(E)$in the cosemisimple case.

C*-algebras form a 2-category with *-homomorphisms or correspondences as morphisms and unitary intertwiners as 2-morphisms. We use this structure to define weak actions of 2-categories, weakly equivariant maps between weak actions and modifications between weakly equivariant maps. In the group case, we identify the resulting notions with known ones, including Busby–Smith twisted actions and the equivalence of such actions, covariant representations and saturated Fell bundles. For 2-groups, weak actions combine twists in the sense of Green, and Busby and Smith.

The Packer–Raeburn Stabilization Trick implies that all Busby–Smith twisted group actions of locally compact groups are Morita equivalent to classical group actions. We generalize this to actions of strict 2-groupoids.

We prove that every topologically amenable locally compact quantum group is amenable. This answers an open problem by Bédos and Tuset [‘Amenability and co-amenability for locally compact quantum groups’, Internat. J. Math.14 (2003), 865–884].

Cuntz and Li have defined a C*-algebra associated to any integral domain, using generators and relations, and proved that it is simple and purely infinite and that it is stably isomorphic to a crossed product of a commutative C*-algebra. We give an approach to a class of C*-algebras containing those studied by Cuntz and Li, using the general theory of C*-dynamical systems associated to certain semidirect product groups. Even for the special case of the Cuntz–Li algebras, our development is new.

An AF-algebra is assigned to each cusp form f of weight 2; we study properties of this operator algebra when f is a Hecke eigenform.

We prove that, under certain conditions, uniform weak mixing (to zero) of the bounded sequences in Banach space implies uniform weak mixing of their tensor product. Moreover, we prove that ergodicity of tensor product of the sequences in Banach space implies their weak mixing. As applications of the results obtained, we prove that the tensor product of uniquely E-weak mixing C*-dynamical systems is also uniquely E-weak mixing.

Let A and B be C*-algebras. We prove the slice map conjecture for ideals in the operator space projective tensor product . As an application, a characterization of the prime ideals in the Banach *-algebra is obtained. In addition, we study the primitive ideals, modular ideals and the maximal modular ideals of . We also show that the Banach *-algebra possesses the Wiener property and that, for a subhomogeneous C*-algebra A, the Banach * -algebra is symmetric.