Results on subcategories

This page collects several useful results of the following form: if U:CDU : \C \to \D is a faithful functor (perhaps even fully faithful, or satisfying additional assumptions) and D\D has a certain property, then C\C has this property as well.

Lemma 1.

Let D\D be a category with a (regular) subobject classifier Ω\Omega. Assume that U:CDU : \C \to \D is a fully faithful functor such that (1) UU is coreflective, i.e. there is a functor R:DCR : \D \to \C right adjoint to UU, and (2) every (regular) monomorphism YU(X)Y \to U(X) in D\D is the image of a (regular) monomorphism XXX' \to X in C\C. Then R(Ω)R(\Omega) is a (regular) subobject classifier in C\C.

Proof. If XCX \in \C, then Hom(X,R(Ω))Hom(U(X),Ω)Sub(U(X))Sub(X).\Hom(X,R(\Omega)) \cong \Hom(U(X),\Omega) \cong \Sub(U(X)) \cong \Sub(X). The same proof works for regular subobjects. \square

Lemma 2.

Let C\C be a category with filtered colimits. Assume that U:CDU : \C \to \D is a faithful functor that preserves monomorphisms and filtered colimits. If monomorphisms in D\D are stable under filtered colimits, then the same is true in C\C.

For the record, here is the dual statement: let C\C be a category with cofiltered limits. Assume that U:CDU : \C \to \D is a faithful functor that preserves epimorphisms and cofiltered limits. If epimorphisms in D\D are stable under cofiltered limits, then the same is true in C\C.

Proof. If (fi:XiYi)(f_i : X_i \to Y_i) is a filtered diagram of monomorphisms in C\C, it induces a filtered diagram (U(fi):U(Xi)U(Yi))(U(f_i) : U(X_i) \to U(Y_i)) of monomorphisms in D\D. Hence, its colimit colimiU(fi):colimiU(Xi)colimiU(Yi)\colim_i U(f_i) : \colim_i U(X_i) \to \colim_i U(Y_i) is a monomorphism in D\D. This morphism is isomorphic to U(colimifi):U(colimiXi)U(colimiYi)U(\colim_i f_i) : U(\colim_i X_i) \to U(\colim_i Y_i). Since U(colimifi)U(\colim_i f_i) is a monomorphism in D\D and UU is faithful, it follows that colimifi\colim_i f_i is a monomorphism in C\C. \square

Lemma 3.

Let U:CDU : \C \to \D be a fully faithful functor with a left adjoint L:DCL : \D \to \C (i.e. C\C is equivalent to a reflective subcategory of D\D). Assume that D\D has exact filtered colimits, that C\C has finite limits, and that LL preserves finite limits. Then C\C also has exact filtered colimits.

Proof. It is well known (and easy to prove) that the colimit of a diagram (Xj)(X_j) in C\C is given by L(colimjU(Xj))L(\colim_j U(X_j)), provided that the colimit in D\D exists. In particular, C\C has filtered colimits. By assumption, it also has finite limits, and UU preserves them since it is a right adjoint. Now let X:I×JCX : \I \times \J \to \C be a diagram, where I\I is finite and J\J is filtered. We compute:

colimjlimiX(i,j)L(colimjU(limiX(i,j)))L(colimjlimiU(X(i,j)))L(limicolimjU(X(i,j)))limiL(colimjU(X(i,j)))limicolimjX(i,j) \begin{align*} \colim_j {\lim}_i X(i,j) & \cong L(\colim_j U({\lim}_i X(i,j))) \\ & \cong L(\colim_j {\lim}_i U(X(i,j))) \\ & \cong L({\lim}_i \colim_j U(X(i,j))) \\ & \cong {\lim}_i L(\colim_j U(X(i,j))) \\ & \cong {\lim}_i \colim_j X(i,j) \end{align*} \square

Lemma 4.

Let U:CDU : \C \to \D be a fully faithful functor. Assume that C\C has finite products and filtered colimits, and that UU preserves binary products and filtered colimits. If D\D has cartesian filtered colimits, then so does C\C.

Proof. Let XX be an object of C\C and Y:ICY : \I \to \C a filtered diagram. Then we have the canonical comparison map c:colimiI(X×Yi)X×colimiIYic : \colim_{i\in\I} (X \times Y_i) \to X \times \colim_{i\in\I} Y_i. By the assumptions, UcUc is equivalent to the comparison map colimiI(UX×UYi)UX×colimiIUYi\colim_{i\in\I} (UX \times UY_i) \to UX \times \colim_{i\in\I} UY_i, which is an isomorphism. Since UU is fully faithful and therefore conservative, we conclude that cc is an isomorphism. \square

Lemma 5.

Let U:CDU : \C \to \D be a fully faithful functor with a right adjoint R:DCR : \D \to \C (i.e. C\C is equivalent to a coreflective subcategory of D\D). Assume that C\C has binary products, and that UU preserves these binary products. If D\D is cartesian closed, then so is C\C, with exponentials in C\C given by [X,Y]CR([UX,UY]D).[X, Y]_{\C} \cong R([UX, UY]_{\D}).

Proof. For any objects X,Y,ZX, Y, Z of C\C we have natural isomorphisms

HomC(Z×X,Y)HomD(UZ×UX,UY)HomD(UZ,[UX,UY])HomC(Z,R([UX,UY])). \begin{align*} \Hom_\C(Z\times X, Y) & \cong \Hom_\D(UZ \times UX, UY) \\ & \cong \Hom_\D(UZ, [UX,UY]) \\ & \cong \Hom_\C\bigl(Z, R([UX,UY])\bigr). \end{align*} \square

Corollary 6.

If C\C is a cartesian closed category and PP is a subterminal object of C\C, then the slice category C/P\C / P is also cartesian closed, with exponentials in C/P\C / P given by [X,Y]C/P[X,Y]C×P.[X, Y]_{\C / P} \cong [X, Y]_{\C} \times P.

Proof. The forgetful functor C/PC\C / P \to \C is fully faithful; it has right adjoint ×P{-} \times P; and it preserves binary products (in fact all inhabited limits). Hence, Lemma 5 applies. \square

Lemma 7.

Let U:CDU : \C \to \D be a functor preserving pullbacks. Assume that D\D is regular and that C\C has finite limits and coequalizers of kernel pairs. If UU preserves and reflects regular epimorphisms, then C\C is regular. Moreover, this condition is satisfied when UU is conservative and preserves coequalizers.

Proof. Since C\C has finite limits and coequalizers of kernel pairs, it remains to prove that regular epimorphisms are stable under pullbacks in C\C. Assume first that UU preserves and reflects regular epimorphisms. If XYX \to Y is a regular epimorphism and ZYZ \to Y is any morphism in C\C, then U(X)U(Y)U(X) \to U(Y) is a regular epimorphism, and therefore also U(X)×U(Y)U(Z)U(Z)U(X) \times_{U(Y)} U(Z) \to U(Z) is a regular epimorphism. Since UU preserves pullbacks, this identifies with U(X×YZ)U(Z)U(X \times_Y Z) \to U(Z), the image under UU of X×YZZX \times_Y Z \to Z. Since UU reflects regular epimorphisms, it follows that X×YZZX \times_Y Z \to Z is a regular epimorphism, finishing the proof.

Now assume that UU is conservative and preserves coequalizers. Then it clearly preserves regular epimorphisms. Conversely, suppose that f:XYf : X \to Y is a morphism in C\C such that U(f)U(f) is a regular epimorphism. Then in C\C we have the diagram X×YXXpim(f)iYX \times_Y X \rightrightarrows X \xrightarrow{p} \im(f) \xrightarrow{i} Y where X×YXXX \times_Y X \rightrightarrows X is the kernel pair of ff, and im(f)\im(f) is the coequalizer. By the assumptions on UU, its image is equivalent to the diagram in D\D: U(X)×U(Y)U(X)U(X)U(p)U(im(f))U(i)U(Y)U(X) \times_{U(Y)} U(X) \rightrightarrows U(X) \xrightarrow{U(p)} U(\im(f)) \xrightarrow{U(i)} U(Y) where U(X)×U(Y)U(X)U(X) \times_{U(Y)} U(X) is the kernel pair of U(f)U(f), and U(im(f))U(\im(f)) is the coequalizer. Since U(f)U(f) is a regular epimorphism and D\D is regular, we must have that U(i)U(i) is an isomorphism. Since UU is conservative, ii is an isomorphism as well, so ff is a regular epimorphism. \square

Lemma 8.

Let U:CDU : \C \to \D be a fully faithful functor. Assume that C\C has finite limits and coequalizers, and that UU preserves inhabited finite limits and coequalizers. If D\D has effective congruences, then so does C\C.

Proof. Suppose we have a congruence EX×XE \hookrightarrow X\times X in C\C. We can then form the quotient XX/EX \to X/E as a coequalizer, along with the kernel pair X×X/EXX \times_{X/E} X and the comparison map ii in the diagram below: EiX×X/EXXX/E.E \xrightarrow{i} X \times_{X/E} X \rightrightarrows X \to X/E. By the assumptions, the image under UU is equivalent to the diagram in D\D: UEUiUX×U(X/E)UXUXU(X/E).UE \xrightarrow{Ui} UX \times_{U(X/E)} UX \rightrightarrows UX \to U(X/E). Here, UEUXUE \rightrightarrows UX is a congruence: the map UEUX×UXUE \to UX \times UX is a monomorphism since UU preserves pullbacks and therefore preserves monomorphisms; the reflexivity and symmetry morphisms for EE are easily seen to transform under UU to reflexivity and symmetry morphisms for UEUE; and similarly, since UU preserves pullbacks, the transitivity morphism for EE transforms under UU to a transitivity morphism for UEUE. This congruence UEUE of D\D is effective, so we must have UiUi is an isomorphism. Since UU is fully faithful and therefore conservative, we get ii is an isomorphism as well, so EE is effective. \square

Lemma 9.

Let LL be a functor which is left adjoint to a faithful functor UU. Then LL preserves generating sets. (Thus in particular, any reflective subcategory of a category with a generating set also has a generating set; and similarly for a single generator.)

Proof. If SS is a generating set,

GSHom(L(G),)GSHom(G,U())(GSHom(G,))U \begin{align*} \prod_{G\in S} \Hom(L(G),-) & \cong \prod_{G\in S} \Hom(G,U(-)) \\ & \cong \left( \prod_{G\in S} \Hom(G,-) \right) \circ U \end{align*}

is a composition of faithful functors, hence faithful. \square

Lemma 10.

Any fully faithful functor reflects extremal generating sets (and therefore, by duality, it also reflects extremal cogenerating sets). In other words, if U:CDU : \C \to \D is a fully faithful functor, and SS is a set of objects such that U(S)U(S) is an extremal generating set of D\D, then SS is an extremal generating set of C\C.

Proof. Under the given assumptions, we can factor C(Set+)S\C \to (\Set^+)^S, X(HomC(G,X))GSX \mapsto (\Hom_\C(G, X))_{G\in S}, as being isomorphic to the composition of U:CDU : \C \to D followed by Y(HomD(UG,Y))GSY \mapsto (\Hom_\D(UG, Y))_{G\in S}, using the assumption on UU to identify HomD(UG,UX)\Hom_\D(UG, UX) with HomC(G,X)\Hom_C(G, X) naturally in XX. In this composition, the first is fully faithful and therefore also conservative; and the second is assumed to be faithful and conservative. Therefore, the composition is also faithful and conservative. \square

Lemma 11.

Let U:CDU : \C \to \D be a faithful conservative functor (for example, a fully faithful functor). Assume that D\D is extensive, that C\C has finite coproducts and pullbacks along coproduct inclusions, and that UU preserves both. Then C\C is extensive. A similar statement holds for infinitary extensive (and countably extensive) categories, in which case we assume that C\C has all coproducts (resp. all countable coproducts) and that UU preserves these.

Proof. This is straight forward. We need to prove that finite coproducts are disjoint and stable under pullbacks in C\C. If A,BCA,B \in \C, the coproduct inclusion AA+BA \to A + B is a monomorphism: Since UU is faithful, it suffices to prove that its image under UU is a monomorphism. Since UU preserves finite coproducts, the image identifies with the coproduct inclusion U(A)U(A)+U(B)U(A) \to U(A) + U(B), which is a monomorphism since D\D is extensive. Moreover, the unique morphism 0A×A+BB0 \to A \times_{A + B} B is an isomorphism: Since UU is conservative, it suffices to prove that its image under UU is an isomorphism. Since UU preserves finite coproducts and pullbacks along coproduct inclusions, the image identifies with the unique morphism 0U(A)×U(A)+U(B)U(B)0 \to U(A) \times_{U(A) + U(B)} U(B), which is an isomorphism since D\D is extensive. This proves that finite coproducts are disjoint in C\C. To prove that they are stable under pullbacks, let TA+BT \to A + B be any morphism in C\C, and consider the pullbacks TAT×A+BAT_A \coloneqq T \times_{A + B} A and TBT×A+BBT_B \coloneqq T \times_{A + B} B. We need to show that the canonical morphism TA+TBTT_A + T_B \to T is an isomorphism. Since UU is conservative, it suffices to prove that its image under UU is an isomorphism. Since UU preserves finite coproducts and pullbacks along coproduct inclusions, the image identifies with the canonical morphism U(T)U(A)+U(T)U(B)U(T)U(T)_{U(A)} + U(T)_{U(B)} \to U(T) induced by the morphism U(T)U(A)+U(B)U(T) \to U(A) + U(B) in D\D, which is an isomorphism since D\D is extensive. \square

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