Topic 1 : Sheaf
1 Presheaves and sheaves “The concept of a sheaf provides a systematic way of keeping track of local algebraic data on a topological space” – Hartshorne, ‘Algebraic Geometry’
Figure 1: A jig-saw puzzle is consisted of small pieces and rules for patching them together
Let us recall our old memory. Let X RN be an n-dimensional topological manifold. ⇢ One e↵ective way to study X is not only considering X itself, but also observing contin- uous functions to R. Since an atlas (U↵,'↵) defines X, a continuous function f can be { } seen as a collection of continuous functions on smaller open subsets (U ,f ) .Indeed, { ↵ |U↵ } we may assume that each U↵ is an n-dimensional Euclidean ball, which is a fundamental object in classical topology, and f is a real-valued continuous function. When we are |U↵ interested in smooth manifolds, one may substitute X by a smooth manifold and observe smooth functions. It is straightforward to assign local data from additional structures such as: continuous functions, smooth functions, or holomorphic functions, etc. In every cases, such data can be restricted to smaller open sets in a natural way. Conversely, suppose that we have a collection of local data which comes from a single (X, f : X R). In order to make it sense, local pieces should recover the original ! (X, f : X R) by gluing them together. Hence, a right notion for the ‘playground’ ! should contain the following data:
the topology of X, that is, the set of all open subsets of X; •
3 Topic 1 : Sheaf
the collection of a local structure we want to observe, for instance, the set of local • continuous functions on each subset U X; ✓ a notion of “restriction” when V U is a further open subset, for instance, sending • ✓ fU : U R to fU V : V R; ! | ! a notion of “gluing” when we have two local data compatible on their intersection. • It is hard to pin down who invented the sheaf theory. It seems reasonable to the connec- tion between the extension problem (such as analytic continuations). Such an idea was mostly developed by several people working in algebraic topology during 30’s and 40’s, including Jean Leray. The work when he was in a prisoner camp is essential to bring out the modern sheaf theory and the development of spectral sequences. Serre brought the sheaf theory to algebraic geometry in 50’s, and then it becomes a fundamental language in this world. Sheaves have various applications in algebraic topology and in algebraic geometry. First, geometric structures like vector bundles on a smooth manifold (or an algebraic variety) can be expressed in terms of sheaves of modules on the given space. Also, sheaves provide (a hint of) a cohomology theory generalizing the usual cohomology such as singular cohomology. Sheaves are designed in a much more general and abstract way, however, in this course, we only deal with a few simpler cases. Definition 1. Let X be a topological space. A presheaf of abelian groups on X is a F contravariant functor from Top(X)toAb. Note that the category Top(X) is consisted of the objects as the open subsets of X and the morphisms are the inclusion maps between open subsets. Therefore, is a collection F of the data (1) abelian group (U) for each open subset U X; F ✓ (2) a (homo)morphism of abelian groups ⇢ : (U) (V ) for every UV F !F inclusion V U of open subsets of X ✓ satisfying the following conditions (a) ( ) = 0, the empty set assigns a terminal object; F ; (b) ⇢ : (U) (U) is the identity map; UU F !F (c) ⇢ = ⇢ ⇢ where W V U are three open subsets. UW VW UV ✓ ✓ Of course, we may define a presheaf of rings, or of sets just by replacing the words “abelian groups” by “rings”, or “sets”. The abelian groups (U), also denoted by F (U, ), is called the sections of the presheaf over the open set U. The morphisms F F ⇢ are called restriction maps.Wewrites := ⇢ (s)wheres (U). UV |V UV 2F Roughly speaking, a sheaf is a presheaf whose sections are determined by further local data, as we discussed above. Definition 2. A presheaf is a sheaf if it satisfies the following further conditions: F
4 (3) if U is an open covering of an open subset U X, and if s, t (U) { i} ✓ 2F are sections such that s = t for all i,thens = t; |Ui |Ui (4) if U is an open covering of an open subset U X, and if we have { i} ✓ sections s (U ) for each i such that they agree on the intersections: i 2F i si U U = sj U U for every pair i, j, then there is a section s (U) | i\ j | i\ j 2F such that s = s for each i. |Ui i Example 3. Let X be a variety over a field k. For each open subset U X,let (U) ✓ OX be the ring of regular functions from U to k, and for each V U,let⇢ : (U) ✓ UV OX ! (V ) be the usual restriction map. Then is a sheaf of rings on X, which is called OX O the sheaf of regular functions on X, or the structure sheaf of X (when we regard X as a locally ringed space, or a scheme). Let Y X be a closed subset of X. For each open set U X, we assign U I (U) ✓ ✓ 7! Y where I (U) (U) be the ideal of regular functions vanish at every point of Y U. Y ✓OX \ This forms a sheaf IY , and called the sheaf of ideals of Y , or the ideal sheaf of Y . Example 4. One can define the sheaf of continuous functions on any topological space, or the sheaf of di↵erentiable functions on a di↵erentiable manifold, or the sheaf of holo- morphic functions on a complex manifold. Example 5. Let A be an abelian group. We define the constant sheaf A on X as follows. Give A the discrete topology, and for each U X,letA (U) be the group of all ✓ continuous maps from U to A.WehaveA (U) A for every connected open subset U. ' Example 6. Let A be an abelian group, and P X be a point. We define a sheaf 2 i (A) on X as follows: i (A)(U)=A if P U and i (A)(U) = 0 otherwise. i (A)is P P 2 P P called the skyscraper sheaf. Now we will see more definitions to play with sheaves. They are not quite di↵erent from the basic notions in commutative algebra and homological algebra. Definition 7. Let be a presheaf on X, and let P X be a point. We define the stalk F 2 of at P be the direct limit of the groups (U) for every open subset U containing FP F F P , via the restriction maps. An element of is represented by a pair U, s ,whereU is an open neighborhood of FP h i P , and s (U). Two pairs U, s and V,t defines the same element in if and only 2F h i h i FP if there is a smaller open subset W U V such that s = t . Hence, the elements ✓ \ |W |W of the stalk are germs of sections at the point P . FP Exercise 8. What are the stalks of the previous examples? Definition 9. Let and are presheaves on X.Amorphism ' : is a collection F G F!G of morphisms of abelian groups '(U): (U) (U) for each open set U X such F !G ✓ that the diagram '(U) (U) / (U) F G
⇢UVF ⇢UVG ✏ '(V ) ✏ (V ) / (V ) F G
5 Topic 1 : Sheaf commutes for any inclusion of open sets V U,where⇢ and ⇢ denotes the restriction ✓ F G maps in and . A morphism of sheaves follows the same definition. An isomorphism F G is a morphism which admits a two-sided inverse. A morphism ' : of presheaves on X induces a morphism ' : on the F!G P FP !GP stalks, for any P X. The following proposition shows the local nature of a sheaf. 2 Proposition 10. Let ' : be a morphism of sheaves on X. ' is an isomorphism F!G if and only if the induced map ' is an isomorphism for every P X. P 2 Proof. It is enough to show that ' is an isomorphism when all the induced maps on the stalks are isomorphisms. To do this, we claim that each '(U): (U) (U) is an F !G isomorphism where U X is an open subset. Suppose the claim is true. Let be the ✓ 1 inverse defined by (U)='(U) .Since
'( (⇢UVG (t))) = ⇢UVG (t)=⇢UVG ('( (t))) = '(⇢UVF ( (t))) for any t (U) and an open subset V U, we conclude that (⇢G (t)) = ⇢ ( (t)) 2G ✓ UV UVF commutes. First we show that '(U) is injective. Let s (U) be an element such that '(s)=0 2F in (U). For every point P U, the image '(s) of '(s) in the stalk is zero. Since G 2 P GP ' is injective, we have s =0in for every P X. It means, there exist an open P P FP 2 neighborhood P W U such that s = 0. Since W gives a covering of U,we 2 P ✓ |WP { P } conclude that s =0inU from the sheaf property. Next, we show that '(U) is surjective. Let t (U) be a section, and t be its germ 2G P at P U. Since each ' is an isomorphism, we have s such that ' (s )=t . 2 P P 2FP P P P Let s is represented by a section s(P ) on an open neighborhood P W U.Then P 2 P ✓ '(s(P )) and t are two sections in W whose germs at P coincide. Hence, replacing |WP P W by a smaller neighborhood if necessary, we may assume that '(s(P )) = t in P |WP (WP ). For any P, Q X, '(s(P )) W W = t W W = '(s(Q)) W W coincide on G 2 | P \ Q | P \ Q | P \ Q the intersection. Since ' is injective, we have s(P ) W W = s(Q) W W . Hence, by | P \ Q | P \ Q the sheaf property, there is a section s (U) such that s = s(P ) for each P X. 2F |WP 2 Again by the sheaf property for , we conclude that '(s)=t. G Caution. (1) The proposition only holds for a morphism of sheaves, not for presheaves. (2) It is not true that ' is an isomorphism when and are isomorphic for each FP GP P X. Isomorphisms on the stalks must be induced from a single morphism '. 2 For instance, let X = P, Q with the discrete topology, and let A be an abelian group. { } We take as a presheaf defined by (U)=A for any nonempty open subset U X, F F ⇢ and let as the constant sheaf. Let ' : be a morphism of presheaves defined by G F!G '( P )=id ,'( Q )=id ,'(X)= { } A { } A A where (a)=(a, a) A A. Clearly, they are not isomorphic, but the induced maps A 2 on all the stalks are isomorphisms.
6 We now define the kernel, cokernel, and image of a morphism of (pre)sheaves. Definition 11. Let ' : be a morphism of presheaves. We define the presheaf ker- F!G nel, presheaf cokernel, presheaf image of ' to be the presheaves given by U ker '(U), 7! U coker '(U), and U im '(U), respectively. 7! 7! Caution. Let ' : is a morphism of sheaves. The presheaf kernel of ' is a sheaf, F!G but the presheaf cokernel and image are not sheaves in general. Definition–Theorem 12. Given a presheaf , there is a sheaf + and a morphism F F ✓ : +, with the universal property that for any sheaf and a morphism ' : , F!F G F!G there is a unique morphism : + such that ' = ✓. The pair ( +,✓)isunique F !G F up to unique isomorphism. + is called the sheaf associated to the presheaf , or the F F sheafification of . F Proof. For any open set U X,let +(U) be the set of functions s+ : U ✓ F ! P U FP such that 2 S (i) for each P U, s+(P ) , and 2 2FP (ii) for each P U, there is an open neighborhood P V U and an element 2 2 ✓ t (V ) such that for every Q V , the germ t of t at Q is equal to s+(Q). 2F 2 Q Then + with the natural restriction maps is a sheaf. All the other conditions are F clear, so let us only check the gluing property. Let U be an open covering of an open { i} set U X. Suppose that we have functions s+ : U compatible on the i i P Ui P ✓ ! + 2 F intersections. It is straightforward that there is a function s : U P U P such that + + + S ! 2 F s = s and s (P ) for each P U. Let P Ui U. By the condition (ii), |Ui i 2FP 2 2 ✓ S there is an open neighborhood P V U and an element t (V ) such that the 2 i ✓ i i 2F i germ of t at Q V is equal to s+(Q)=s+ (Q)=s+(Q). Thus we have s+ +(U). i 2 i i |Ui 2F It is also clear that the natural map
s (U) s+ : U 2F 7! ! FP P U ! [2 by s+(P )=s defines a morphism ✓ : +. P F!F Now let be a sheaf and ' : be a morphism (of presheaves). We define G F!G : + as follows. Let U X be an open set, and let s+ +(U). For each F !G ✓ 2F P U, there is an open neighborhood P V U and an element t(P ) (V ) whose 2 2 P ✓ 2F P germ at Q is equal to s+(Q) for every Q V . We have sections '(t(P )) (V ) for 2 P 2G P each P X. Since two germs ' (s+(Q)) and '(t(P )) coincide in for every Q V , 2 Q Q GQ 2 P we replace V by a smaller open subset if necessary, and may assume that '(t(P )) P { } are compatible on the intersections. Since is a sheaf, they glue together and form a G section (s+). This defines a morphism : + . It is straightforward that this F !G equals to '(s)whens+ = ✓(s). The uniqueness of the pair ( +,✓) follows from the universal property. F Remark 13. Note that the induced map on stalks ✓ : + is an isomorphism P FP !FP for each P X.When itself is a sheaf, then is isomorphic to +. 2 F F F
7 Topic 1 : Sheaf
2 More definitions and basic properties
In several literatures, one can find the same process via the notion of espace ´etal´e. Let F be a presheaf on X.Wedefinetheespace ´etal´e as the topological space Sp´e( ) together F with a projection ⇡ :Sp´e( ) X in a following way. As a set, Sp´e( )= be F ! F P X FP the disjoint union of all the stalks. The projection is defined in a trivial way: ⇡2(s):=P ` when s . Let s (U) be a section over an open set U. Then we have an element 2FP 2F s : U Sp´e( )bysendingP s , its germ at P .Since⇡ s = id , one may consider ! F 7! P U s as a “(topological) section” of ⇡ over U. The topology of Sp´e( ) is given by the F strongest topology such that all the maps s : U Sp´e( ) are continuous for any choice ! F of open sets U X and s (U). Via this notion, +(U) is identified with the set of ✓ 2F F continuous sections of Sp´e( )overU. F Definition 14. Let be a sheaf on X, and let s (U) be a section on an open set F 2F U X.Thesupport of s is defined to be the set P U s =0 . We immediately see ✓ { 2 | P 6 } that the set Supp(s) U is closed; if we take a point P U Supp(s) in the complement, ✓ 2 \ then there is an open neighborhood P V U such that s = 0. The support of is 2 ✓ |V F defined to be the set P X =0 . { 2 |FP 6 } Definition 15. Let , be sheaves, and ' : be a morphism of sheaves. A F G F!G subsheaf of a sheaf is a sheaf such that for every open set U X, (U) (U) F 0 F ✓ F 0 ✓F is a subgroup, and the restriction maps are induced by those of .Thekernel of ', F denoted by ker ', is the presheaf kernel of ' (which is a sheaf). A morphism ' : F!G is injective if ker ' = 0. The image of ', denoted by im ', is the sheaf associated to the presheaf image of '. By the universal property, there is a natural injective map im ' . A morphism ' : is surjective if im ' = .Thecokernel of ', !G F!G G denoted by coker ', is the sheaf associated to the presheaf cokernel of '.Thesheaf of local morphisms of into (or sheaf hom for short), denoted by om( , ), is defined F G H F G by U Hom( U U ). 7! F| !G|'i 1 'i Asequence i 1 i i+1 of sheaves is exact if ker 'i =im'i 1 at ···!F ! F ! F !··· each stage. Let be a subsheaf of .Thequotient sheaf / is the sheaf associated to the F 0 F F F 0 presheaf U (U)/ (U). 7! F F 0 Remark 16. A morphism ' : of sheaves is injective if and only if the map on F!G sections '(U): (U) (U) is injective for each U X. However, the corresponding F !G ✓ statement for the surjective morphisms is not true. For instance, let X = S1 R2 with the usual topology, be the sheaf of all R-valued ⇢ F continuous functions, and let be the sheaf of all S1 = R/Z-valued continuous functions. G A natural morphism is surjective on any small open neighborhood, however, there F!G 1 is no global R-valued continuous function from S which maps to idS1 . We give another example here. Let X = C 0 be the punctured complex plane, be \{ } F the sheaf of holomorphic functions, and let be the sheaf of nowhere-zero holomorphic G functions. Let ' : be the exponential map '(f)=ef . On a small open F!G neighborhood, we may take the log branch, and hence ' is a surjective morphism of
8 sheaves. However, it is impossible to take a log branch on the whole punctured complex plane, in particular, there is no global holomorphic function f : X C such that ! ef (z)=z for every z X. 2 Definition 17. A sheaf is called a flasque sheaf if the restriction map (U) (V ) F F !F is surjective for every inclusion V U of open subsets. ✓ Let us briefly observe just one major property of flasque sheaves, which will be useful in ' the remaining course. Let 0 0 be a short exact sequence of sheaves. !F0 !F!F00 ! In general, the (global) section functor (U, ) is left exact but not exact: the map (U) (U) needs not to be surjective. On the other hand, when is flasque, then F !F00 F 0 we have a short exact sequence of abelian groups 0 (U) (U) (U) 0 for !F0 !F !F00 ! any open set U X. A sketch of proof is as follows: ✓
Let s00 00(U). Since the induced map on stalks P : P P00 is surjective, 2F 1 F !F we may take s (s ) for each P X. Let s is represented by a pair P 2 P P00 2 P (V ,s(P )) where P V U be an open neighborhood and s(P ) (V ) P 2 P ✓ 2F P such that (s(P )) = s . The problem is that s(P ) and s(Q) needs not 00|VP to be the same on the intersection V V . On the other hand, followed P \ Q from the left exactness, there is a section s (PQ) (V V ) such that 0 2F0 P \ Q '(s0(PQ)) = s(P ) V V s(Q) V V .Since 0 is flasque, there is a section | P \ Q | P \ Q F s0(Q) 0(VQ) such that s0(Q) V V = s0(PQ) for each Q U.Wemay 2F | P \ Q 2 replace s(Q) (V )bys(Q)+'(s (Q)) for every Q U to correct the 2F Q 0 2 di↵erence.
So far, we discussed sheaves on a single topological space X. We also need to define some operations on sheaves with two topological spaces X and Y , together with a continuous map f : X Y . ! Definition 18. Let f : X Y be a continuous map between two topological spaces, ! and let be a sheaf on X, be a sheaf on Y .Wedefinethedirect image sheaf f F 1 G ⇤F on Y by (f )(V )= (f (V )) for each open set V Y .Wedefinetheinverse image ⇤F F ✓ sheaf f 1 on X to be the sheaf associated to the presheaf U lim (V ). Note G 7! V f(U) G 1 ! ◆ that the stalk is easy to compute: (f )P = f(P ). Also note that the functor f ( ) G G ⇤ is left exact, and the functor f 1( ) is exact. When Z X is a subset, and i : Z X be the inclusion map, then := i 1 is ⇢ ! F|Z F called the restriction of onto Z. F Remark 19. When we deal with a morphism f : X Y of locally ringed spaces, ! we often play with sheaves of -modules. Since f 1 does not have an -module OY G OX structure in general, one defines another functor f and the sheaf f which is di↵erent ⇤ ⇤G from f 1 . G We finish by two fundamental propositions.
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