Abstract Algebra – Tensor Product Commutes with Infinite Products

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I am reading Chapter 15 (page 319) of Cox's Book Primes of the Form $x^2+ny^2$. Given $K$ a quadratic field and $O$ an order of $K$, he defines the ring of $O$-adeles as $\hat O=O\otimes_{\mathbb Z}\hat {\mathbb Z} $ where $\hat{\mathbb Z}=\prod_p\mathbb Z_p$.

He says: since $O$ is a free $\mathbb Z$-module we have $\hat O=\prod_pO_p$ where $O_p=O\otimes_{\mathbb Z}\mathbb Z_p$.

I know the very basic stuff on tensor products, i.e. that tensor product preserves direct sums and that $\mathbb Z\otimes_{\mathbb Z} M=M$, but I can't explain his statement since I don't know how tensor product works with infinite products for example and how to use that $O$ is a free $\mathbb Z$-module.

Best Answer

You need to know that $\mathcal{O}$ is a finite free module. In general, tensoring with a module doesn't infinite products unless the module is finitely presented; see this answer for a proof.

In this case we can be more explicit. There is a natural map

$$\mathcal{O} \otimes \widehat{\mathbb{Z}} \to \prod_p \mathcal{O}_p$$

and to show that it's bijective we describe the underlying map of abelian groups as

$$\mathcal{O} \otimes \widehat{\mathbb{Z}} \cong \mathbb{Z}^2 \otimes \widehat{\mathbb{Z}} \cong \widehat{\mathbb{Z}}^2 \cong \prod_p \mathbb{Z}_p^2 \cong \prod_p \mathbb{Z}^2 \otimes \mathbb{Z}_p \cong \prod_p \mathcal{O}_p.$$

This is a composition of isomorphisms (of abelian groups) hence is an isomorphism (of rings).

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