$W^*$-categories are von Neumann

Abstract

A $C^*$-category is to a $C^*$-algebra what a groupoid is to a group. An example is the category of Hilbert spaces and bounded linear maps, and indeed, every $C^*$-category can be represented as a sub-$*$-category of this. Analogously, a $W^*$-category is a $C^*$-category where every object has a predual, and we might expect a representation theory on Hilbert spaces where the resulting morphism spaces are $σ$-weakly closed. We identify a gap in the literature here, stemming from the (perhaps surprising) fact that a $C^*$-algebra can have a non-isometric predual and yet not be a $W^*$-algebra. Using the theory of dual TROs (ternary rings of operators) we repair this gap, and along the way, also give further justification to arguments in the literature about dual TROs. Motivated by the theory of Dual Banach Algebras, we offer an alternative axiomatisation of $W^*$-categories where we allow non-isometric preduals of the hom spaces, but require that they are additionally bimodules in a certain sense. This involves the theory of self-dual Hilbert $C^*$-modules.