Fundamental group of simple $C^*$-algebras with unique trace

Abstract

We introduce the fundamental group ${\mathcal F}(A)$ of a unital simple $C^*$-algebra $A$ with a unique normalized trace. We compute fundamental groups ${\mathcal F}(A)$ of several nuclear or non-nuclear $C^*$-algebras $A$. K-theoretical obstruction enables us to compute the fundamental group easily. Our study is essentially based on the computation of Picard groups by Kodaka.