nLab
étale groupoid

Definition

Definition

A topological groupoid or Lie groupoid $C$ is called an étale groupoid if the source-map $s:\mathrm{Mor}C\to \mathrm{Obj}C$ is a local homeomorphism or local diffeomorphism, respectively, and hence exhibits the space of morphisms as an étale space over the space of objects.

Remark

In the situation of def. 1 it follows that all the other structure maps (target, identity, composition) are also local homeomorphisms, resp. local diffeomorphisms.

This means that an étale groupoid is equivakentlly internal groupoid in the category whose objects are topological spaces/smooth manifolds and whose morphisms are local homeomorphisms/diffeomorphisms.

Remark

Definition 1 is not invariant under the general notion of equivalence of Lie groupoids, the equivalence between them regarded as smooth groupoids, specifically as differentiable stacks (“Morita equivalence”).

But it does make sense to take an étale smooth groupoid to be a smooth groupoid/differentiable stack which is equivalent, as such, to, hence is presented by an étale Lie groupoid as in def. 1. This notion has been called folitation groupoid in (Crainic-Moerdijk 00).

The following characterizes foliation groupoids

Theorem

For a Lie groupoid ${𝒢}_{•}$ the following are equivalent

1. $𝒢$ is a foliation groupoid, hence is equivalent, as a differentiable stack to an étale groupoid as in def. 1;

2. The Lie algebroid $(𝔤,{𝒢}_0)$ which corresponds to $𝒢$ under Lie differentiation has an injective anchor map;

   hence the orbits of $𝒢$ form the leaves of a foliation, the foliation whose leaves are tangent to the vectors in the image of this anchor map;

3. All isotropy groups of ${𝒢}_{•}$ are discrete groups.

This is (Crainic-Moerdijk 00, theorem 1).

Properties

Cohomology and homology

In the literature one finds, roughly speaking, two different approaches to the study of étale groupoids. One approach is based on the construction of the convolution algebras associated to an étale groupoid, in the spirit of Connes’ noncommutative geometry, and involves the study of cyclic and Hochschild homology and cohomology of these algebras. The other approach uses methods of algebraic topology such as the construction of the classifying space of an étale groupoid and its (sheaf) cohomology groups.

Characterization by convolution Hopf algebroids (Gelfand duality)

The groupoid convolution algebra $C^{*}({𝒢}_{•})$ of a Lie groupoid with its canonical atlas remembered has the structure of a Hopf algebroid. In (Mrčun 99, Kališnik-Mrčun 07) étale Lie groupoids are characterized dually by their Hopf algebroids (a refinement of Gelfand duality to noncommutative topology).

Examples

Étale groupoids arise naturally as models for leaf spaces of foliations, for orbifolds, and for orbit spaces of discrete group actions.

• Every topological space may be regarded as an étale groupoid with only identity morphisms.

• For $X$ a topological space and $\Gamma$ a discrete group with a continuous action $X\times \Gamma \to X$ on $X$, the action groupoid $X//\Gamma$ is étale.

• The Haefliger groupoid ${\Gamma }^q$ has the Cartesian space ${ℝ}^q$ as its space of objects. A morphism $x\to y$ is a germ of a diffeomorphism $({ℝ}^q,x)\to ({ℝ}^q,y)$.

  This groupoid, and its geometric realization play a central role in foliation theory.

• Every orbifold is an étale Lie groupoid.

Related concepts

• étale space

• orbifold, Deligne-Mumford stack

• étale ∞-groupoid

• proper Lie groupoid, effective Lie groupoid

References

A standard textbook account is section 5.5. of

• Ieke Moerdijk, Janez Mrčun, Introduction to foliations and Lie groupoids, Cambridge (2003)

The relation between étale groupoid and foliations is analyzed in detail in

• Marius Crainic, Ieke Moerdijk, Foliation groupoids and their cyclic homology (arXiv:math/0003119)

See also at orbifold for basic and introductory literature.

Further discussion of étale groupoids and their properties is for instance in

• Marius Crainic, Ieke Moerdijk, A Homology Theory for Étale groupoids (journal)

• David Carchedi, Sheaf Theory for Étale Geometric Stacks (arXiv:1011.6070)

The convolution-Hopf algebroids of étale Lie groupoids have been characterized in

• Janez Mrčun, On spectral representation of coalgebras and Hopf algebroids (arXiv:math/0208199)

• Jure Kališnik, Janez Mrčun, Equivalence between the Morita categories of etale Lie groupoids and of locally grouplike Hopf algebroids (arXiv:math/0703374)