homotopy theory, (∞,1)-category theory, homotopy type theory
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Introductions
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The category , or for short, is the category whose objects are simplicial sets and whose morphisms are simplicial maps.
Equivalently, this is the functor category from the opposite category of the simplex category to the category of sets:
Many basic properties of the category of simplicial sets follow as it being a special case of a category of presheaves over a small category (namely over the simplex category), and hence in particular a Grothendieck topos.
For example, this immediately implies (see therepresheaves#GeneralProperties)) that and how is complete and cocomplete (with limits and colimits constructed levelwise) and cartesian closed.
In this vein:
A morpism of simplicial sets is
a monomorphism precisely if all component functions are injections;
an epimorphism precisely if all component functions are surjections.
This is the immediate specialization of this Proposition for general presheaves.
As described at closed monoidal structure on presheaves the cartesian tensor product of simplicial sets and is the simplicial set
where the product on the right is the cartesian product in Set.
One central reason why simplicial sets are useful and important is that this simple monoidal structure (“disturbingly simple minded” in the words of Friedman08, p. 24) actually does fully capture the standard monoidal structure on topological spaces under geometric realization
For and simplicial sets, we have
where on the right the cartesian product is in the nice category of compactly generated Hausdorff spaces.
See also at products of simplices.
As described at closed monoidal structure on presheaves, the internal hom of simplicial sets is the simplicial set
where is the standard simplicial -simplex, the image of under the Yoneda embedding. This formula is clearly representing a Kan extension.
The maps and described in the examples are actually functors, both of which have left adjoints. These adjoint pairs are examples of a very general sort of adjunction involving simplicial sets, of which there are many examples.
Let be any cocomplete category and let be a functor. We define the right adjoint as follows. Given an object the -simplices of are defined to be the set of morphisms in from to . Face and degeneracy maps are given by precomposition by the appropriate (dual) maps in the image of . is defined on morphisms by postcomposition.
The left adjoint is defined to be the left Kan extension of along the Yoneda embedding . Because the is full and faithful, we will have , i.e., . By specifying , we have already defined a functor to on the represented simplicial sets; is the unique cocontinuous extension of this functor to . It can be described explicitly on objects as a coend, or as a weighted colimit.
(Easy) abstract nonsense shows that and form an adjoint pair .
Here are some examples:
Let and be the functor (the inclusion of posets into categories). The right adjoint is the nerve functor described above. The left adjoint takes a simplicial set to its fundamental category.
Let and be the functor . The right adjoint is the total singular complex functor described above. The left adjoint is called geometric realization. As a consequence of the Kan extension construction, the geometric realization of the represented simplicial set is the standard -simplex .
(Barycentric) subdivision and extension .
The homotopy coherent nerve functor and its left adjoint where SimpCat? denotes the category of simplicially enriched categories, i.e., categories enriched in .
The adjunction between the product with a simplicial set and the internal-hom, which makes into a cartesian closed category.
Let be a Grothendieck topos equipped with an “interval” , i.e. a totally ordered object in the internal logic equipped with distinct top and bottom elements. Then we have the functor sending to the subobject which gives rise to a geometric morphism . Therefore, is the classifying topos of such “intervals”.
There are important model category structures on .
The standard model structure on simplicial sets presents the (∞,1)-category ∞Grpd of ∞-groupoids.
The model structure for quasi-categories on presents the (∞,2)-category of (∞,1)-categories (∞,1)Cat.
Like any elementary topos, has an internal logic. Here we list some properties of this logic.
It is a two-valued topos, i.e. the only subobjects of are and . (This is not really a property of the internal logic, but we include it to contrast with the next point.)
It is not Boolean. In general, the complement of a simplicial subset is the full simplicial subset on the vertices of not contained in (“full” meaning it contains a simplex of as soon as it contains all its vertices). Thus, only if is a connected component of , i.e. any simplex with at least one vertex in lies entirely in .
By Diaconescu's theorem, therefore does not satisfy the axiom of choice.
Like any presheaf topos, it satisfies dependent choice (assuming it holds in the metatheory); see Fourman and Scedrov. Moreover, natural numbers object is simply the discrete simplicial set of ordinary natural numbers.
Similarly, it satisfies Markov's principle.
Less obviously, it satisfies the Kreisel-Putnam axiom? that ; see this MO question and answers.
Ho(sSet) (the homotopy category of simplicial sets)
dSet (category of dendroidal sets)
Last revised on January 17, 2024 at 19:12:39. See the history of this page for a list of all contributions to it.