Axiomatic Closure Operations, Phantom Extensions, and Solidity

Abstract

In this article, we generalize a previously defined set of axioms for a closure operation that induces balanced big Cohen-Macaulay modules. While the original axioms were only defined in terms of finitely generated modules, these new ones will apply to all modules over a local domain. The new axioms will lead to a notion of phantom extensions for general modules, and we will prove that all modules that are phantom extensions can be modified into balanced big Cohen-Macaulay modules and are also solid modules. As a corollary, if $R$ has characteristic $p>0$ and is $F$-finite, then all solid algebras are phantom extensions. If $R$ also has a big test element (e.g., if $R$ is complete), then solid algebras can be modified into balanced big Cohen-Macaulay modules. (Hochster and Huneke have previously demonstrated that there exist solid algebras that cannot be modified into balanced big Cohen-Macaulay algebras.) We also point out that tight closure over local domains in characteristic $p$ generally satisfies the new axioms and that the existence of a big Cohen-Macaulay module induces a closure operation satisfying the new axioms.