Random walks on semaphore codes and delay de Bruijn semigroups

We develop a new approach to random walks on de Bruijn graphs over the alphabet $A$ through right congruences on $A^k$, defined using the natural right action of $A^+$. A major role is played by special right congruences, which correspond to semaphore codes and allow an easier computation of the hitting time. We show how right congruences can be approximated by special right congruences.Comment: 34 pages; 10 figures; as requested by the journal, the previous version of this paper was divided into two; this version contains Sections 1-8 of version 1; Sections 9-12 will appear as a separate paper with extra material adde

The Catenary Degree of Krull Monoids I

Let $H$ be a Krull monoid with finite class group $G$ such that every class contains a prime divisor (for example, a ring of integers in an algebraic number field or a holomorphy ring in an algebraic function field). The catenary degree $\mathsf c (H)$ of $H$ is the smallest integer $N$ with the following property: for each $a \in H$ and each two factorizations $z, z'$ of $a$, there exist factorizations $z = z_0, ..., z_k = z'$ of $a$ such that, for each $i \in [1, k]$, $z_i$ arises from $z_{i-1}$ by replacing at most $N$ atoms from $z_{i-1}$ by at most $N$ new atoms. Under a very mild condition on the Davenport constant of $G$, we establish a new and simple characterization of the catenary degree. This characterization gives a new structural understanding of the catenary degree. In particular, it clarifies the relationship between $\mathsf c (H)$ and the set of distances of $H$ and opens the way towards obtaining more detailed results on the catenary degree. As first applications, we give a new upper bound on $\mathsf c(H)$ and characterize when $\mathsf c(H)\leq 4$

Non-commutative Stone duality: inverse semigroups, topological groupoids and C*-algebras

We study a non-commutative generalization of Stone duality that connects a class of inverse semigroups, called Boolean inverse $\wedge$-semigroups, with a class of topological groupoids, called Hausdorff Boolean groupoids. Much of the paper is given over to showing that Boolean inverse $\wedge$-semigroups arise as completions of inverse semigroups we call pre-Boolean. An inverse $\wedge$-semigroup is pre-Boolean if and only if every tight filter is an ultrafilter, where the definition of a tight filter is obtained by combining work of both Exel and Lenz. A simple necessary condition for a semigroup to be pre-Boolean is derived and a variety of examples of inverse semigroups are shown to satisfy it. Thus the polycyclic inverse monoids, and certain Rees matrix semigroups over the polycyclics, are pre-Boolean and it is proved that the groups of units of their completions are precisely the Thompson-Higman groups $G_{n,r}$. The inverse semigroups arising from suitable directed graphs are also pre-Boolean and the topological groupoids arising from these graph inverse semigroups under our non-commutative Stone duality are the groupoids that arise from the Cuntz-Krieger $C^{\ast}$-algebras.Comment: The presentation has been sharpened up and some minor errors correcte