Pairs of Subspaces, Split Quaternions and the Modular Operator

Abstract

We revisit the work of Rieffel and van Daele on pairs of subspaces of a real Hilbert space, while relaxing as much as possible the assumption that all the relevant subspaces are in general positions with respect to each other. We work out, in detail, how two real projection operators lead to the construction of a complex Hilbert space where the theory of the modular operator is applicable, with emphasis on the relevance of a central extension of the group of split quaternions. Two examples are given for which the subspaces have unequal dimension and therefore are not in generic position.