The MF property for amalgamated free products

Abstract

A C*-algebra (or a group) is called MF (matricial field) if it admits finite dimensional approximate unitary representations which are approximately injective, where approximately is meant with respect to the operator norm. It is proved that for any MF C*-algebra $A$ and its C*-subalgebra $C$, $A\ast_C A$ is MF. For general amalgamated free products, $A\ast_C B$, a necessary and sufficient condition for being MF is given. It is shown that the following groups -- amalgamated free products of amenable groups, semidirect products of amenable groups by free groups, and $\mathbb Z^2\rtimes SL_2(\mathbb Z)$ -- all have MF full group C*-algebra. It is shown that the class of MF C*-algebras is closed under maximal tensor products with $C^*(\mathbb F_n)$.