Sahlqvist theory for impossible worlds

TL;DR

This paper extends Sahlqvist theory to regular modal logics with impossible worlds, establishing canonicity, adapting the ALBA algorithm, and proving strong completeness for certain epistemic logics.

Contribution

It introduces Sahlqvist inequalities for regular modal logics, proves their canonicity, and adapts ALBA for non-classical bases, enabling new completeness proofs.

Findings

Proved canonicity of Sahlqvist inequalities in regular modal logics.

Successfully adapted ALBA algorithm to non-classical bases.

Provided alternative proofs of strong completeness for Lemmon's epistemic logics.

Abstract

We extend unified correspondence theory to Kripke frames with impossible worlds and their associated regular modal logics. These are logics the modal connectives of which are not required to be normal: only the weaker properties of additivity and multiplicativity are required. Conceptually, it has been argued that their lacking necessitation makes regular modal logics better suited than normal modal logics at the formalization of epistemic and deontic settings. From a technical viewpoint, regularity proves to be very natural and adequate for the treatment of algebraic canonicity J\'onsson-style. Indeed, additivity and multiplicativity turn out to be key to extend J\'onsson's original proof of canonicity to the full Sahlqvist class of certain regular distributive modal logics naturally generalizing Distributive Modal Logic. Most interestingly, additivity and multiplicativity are key to J\'onsson-style canonicity also in the original (i.e. normal) DML. Our contributions include: the definition of Sahlqvist inequalities for regular modal logics on a distributive lattice propositional base; the proof of their canonicity following J\'onsson's strategy; the adaptation of the algorithm ALBA to the setting of regular modal logics on two non-classical (distributive lattice and intuitionistic) bases; the proof that the adapted ALBA is guaranteed to succeed on a syntactically defined class which properly includes the Sahlqvist one; finally, the application of the previous results so as to obtain proofs, alternative to Kripke's, of the strong completeness of Lemmon's epistemic logics E2-E5 with respect to elementary classes of Kripke frames with impossible worlds.