PlanetMath (more info)
 Math for the people, by the people.
Encyclopedia | Requests | Forums | Docs | Wiki | Random | RSS  
Login
create new user
name:
pass:
forget your password?
Main Menu
Owner confidence rating: Very high Entry average rating: Very high
von Neumann regular (Definition)

An element $ a$ of a ring $ R$ is said to be von Neumann regular if there exists $ b\in R$ such that $ aba=a$. Such an element $ b$ is known as a pseudoinverse of $ a$.

For example, any unit in a ring is von Neumann regular. Also, any idempotent element is von Neumann regular. For a non-unit, non-idempotent von Nuemann regular element, take $ M_2(\mathbb{R})$, the ring of $ 2\times 2$ matrices over $ \mathbb{R}$. Then

$ \begin{pmatrix} 2 & 0 \ 0 & 0 \end{pmatrix}= \begin{pmatrix} 2 & 0 \ 0 & 0... ...{1}{2} & 0 \ 0 & 0 \end{pmatrix}\begin{pmatrix} 2 & 0 \ 0 & 0 \end{pmatrix}$
is von Neumann regular. In fact, we can replace $ 2$ with any non-zero $ r\in \mathbb{R}$ and the resulting matrix is also von Neumann regular. There are several ways to generalize this example. One way is take a central idempotent $ e$ in any ring $ R$, and any $ rs=f$ with $ ef=e$. Then $ re$ is von Neumann regular, with $ s,se$ and $ sf$ all as pseudoinverses. In another generalization, we have two rings $ R,S$ where $ R$ is an algebra over $ S$. Take any idempotent $ e\in R$, and any invertible element $ s\in S$ such that $ s$ commutes with $ e$. Then $ se$ is von Neumann regular.

A ring $ R$ is said to be a von Neumann regular ring (or simply a regular ring, if the meaning is clear from context) if every element of $ R$ is von Neumann regular.

For example, any division ring is von Neumann regular, and so is any ring of matrices over a division ring. In general, any semisimple ring is von Neumann regular.

Remark. Note that regular ring in the sense of von Neumann should not be confused with regular ring in the sense of commutative algebra, which is a Noetherian ring whose localization at every prime ideal is a regular local ring.



"von Neumann regular" is owned by CWoo. [ full author list (2) | owner history (1) ]
(view preamble)

View style:

Also defines:  von Neumann regular ring, regular ring, pseudoinverse

Attachments:
nested ideals in von Neumann regular ring (Theorem) by CWoo
Log in to rate this entry.
(view current ratings)

Cross-references: regular local ring, prime ideal, localization, noetherian ring, semisimple ring, division ring, clear, invertible, algebra, matrices, regular element, idempotent element, unit, ring
There are 5 references to this entry.

This is version 10 of von Neumann regular, born on 2002-08-14, modified 2007-07-25.
Object id is 3295, canonical name is VonNeumannRegular.
Accessed 4629 times total.

Classification:
AMS MSC16E50 (Associative rings and algebras :: Homological methods :: von Neumann regular rings and generalizations)

Pending Errata and Addenda
None.
[ View all 7 ]
Discussion
Style: Expand: Order:
forum policy

No messages.

Interact
post | correct | update request | add derivation | add example | add (any)