Properties of Congruence Lattices of Graph Inverse Semigroups

TL;DR

This paper characterizes the properties of congruence lattices of graph inverse semigroups derived from directed graphs, focusing on conditions for lower-semimodularity, atomisticity, and minimal generating sets.

Contribution

It provides a simple characterization of graphs for which the congruence lattice is lower-semimodular and describes conditions for atomisticity and minimal generating sets.

Findings

Characterization of graphs with lower-semimodular congruence lattices.

Identification of graphs with atomistic congruence lattices.

Description of minimal generating sets for finite simple graphs.

Abstract

From any directed graph $E$ one can construct the graph inverse semigroup $G(E)$, whose elements, roughly speaking, correspond to paths in $E$. Wang and Luo showed that the congruence lattice $L(G(E))$ of $G(E)$ is upper-semimodular for every graph $E$, but can fail to be lower-semimodular for some $E$. We provide a simple characterisation of the graphs $E$ for which $L(G(E))$ is lower-semimodular. We also describe those $E$ such that $L(G(E))$ is atomistic, and characterise the minimal generating sets for $L(G(E))$ when $E$ is finite and simple.