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A monad is idempotent when its multiplication is invertible. Then $T\eta =\eta T={\mu }^{-1}$. If $(A,a)$ is an algebra for a monad, its unit law and naturality give $a{\eta }_A=1_A$ and ${\eta }_{A}a=Ta{\eta }_{TA}=T(a{\eta }_A)=1_{TA}$. Thus every algebra is isomorphic to a free algebra, and the Kleisli comparison functor into the Eilenberg-Moore category is an equivalence.

For a monad $(T,\eta ,\mu )$, the free functor $J:\mathcal{C}\to {\mathcal{C}}_T$ and functor $U:{\mathcal{C}}_T\to \mathcal{C}$ with $UA=TA$ and $U(f)={\mu }_{B}T(f)$ form an adjunction inducing that monad. Every other adjunction inducing the same monad receives the unique Kleisli comparison functor commuting with its left and right adjoints and preserving the adjunction structure. This is initiality among adjunctions inducing the specified monad, with morphisms required to respect that structure.

Use $\mathbb{N}=\{0,1,\dots \}$, as required by the formula at zero, and composition of functions as multiplication in $M$. The displayed $T$ preserves identities, and for $n>0$,both sides send zero to zero. Thus $T$ is a functor on the one-object category.

For the shift monad on order-preserving maps of natural numbers, setThese are order-preserving functions. The equations $Tf\eta =\eta f$ and $\mu T^{2}f=Tf\mu$ hold pointwise, giving the required natural transformations. For the second equation, both sides are zero at $n=0,1$, and are $f(n-2)+1$ for $n\ge 2$. The two unit laws are $\mu \eta =\mu T\eta =1$. Associativity is checked byConsequently these maps define a monad. It is not an idempotent monad, since $\mu (0)=\mu (1)$, so $\mu$ cannot be invertible.

An algebra for a monad is a map $a\in M$ with $a\eta =1$ and $aTa=a\mu$. The first equation forces $a(n+1)=n$; monotonicity then forces $a(0)=0$. Thus $a=\mu$, which satisfies the second equation by the monad associativity law. The Eilenberg-Moore category therefore has exactly one object. Its endomorphisms $h$ satisfy $h\mu =\mu Th$, and this equation holds precisely when $h(0)=0$: evaluate at zero for necessity, and at $n>0$ both sides equal $h(n-1)$.

The Kleisli comparison functor takes its only object to this only algebra and sends $f\in M$ toIt is a bijection from the Kleisli arrows to the algebra endomorphisms, with inverse $h\mapsto (n\mapsto h(n+1))$. It preserves identities and composition by the comparison construction; directly, $K(\eta )=1$ and $K(g\star f)=K(g)K(f)$. Bijectivity on objects and arrows makes it an isomorphism of categories:

For $L⊣R$ inducing $T$, the Kleisli comparison functor is always full and faithful, since the adjunction givesTherefore it is part of an equivalence of categories if and only if every object of $\mathcal{D}$ is isomorphic to $LA$ for some $A$.

For an idempotent monad, multiplication is invertible. The unit laws imply $T\eta =\eta T={\mu }^{-1}$. If $(A,a)$ is an algebra for a monad, then $a{\eta }_A=1_A$, while naturality of $\eta$ givesThus $a:TA\to A$ is an isomorphism with inverse ${\eta }_A$. The algebra law $a{\mu }_A=aT(a)$ says that $a$ is a morphism of algebras for a monad from the free algebra $(TA,{\mu }_A)$ to $(A,a)$, so every object of the Eilenberg-Moore category is isomorphic to a free algebra. The criterion above yields

A monad is an endofunctor $T:\mathcal{C}\to \mathcal{C}$ with natural transformations $\eta :1_{\mathcal{C}}\to T$ and $\mu :T^2\to T$ satisfyingIts Kleisli category has the same objects as $\mathcal{C}$, with ${\mathcal{C}}_T(A,B)=\mathcal{C}(A,TB)$, identity ${\eta }_A$, and compositeThe unit laws follow from naturality of $\eta$ and the two monad unit laws. For $h:C\to TD$, the two triple composites reduce, using naturality of $\mu$, tothey agree by the monad associativity law. Thus this is a category.

Define the free functor into a Kleisli category $J$ and the right-hand functor $U$ byThe identity and composition formulas for $J$ areFor $U$, $U({\eta }_A)={\mu }_{A}T{\eta }_A=1_{TA}$, andwhere the last step is naturality of $\mu$. Hence both mappings are functors. The hom-set identity ${\mathcal{C}}_T(JA,B)=\mathcal{C}(A,UB)$ gives the adjunction $J⊣U$. Its unit is $\eta$, and its counit at $B$ is the Kleisli arrow represented by $1_{TB}:TB\to TB$. Applying $U$ to that counit gives ${\mu }_B$, so the induced monad is the specified one.

For any $L⊣R:\mathcal{D}\to \mathcal{C}$ inducing this same monad, with counit $\epsilon$, define the Kleisli comparison functorThe triangular identities give $K({\eta }_A)=1_{LA}$, and naturality of the counit together with $\mu =R\epsilon L$ gives $K(g\star f)=K(g)K(f)$. Explicitly, naturality moves ${\epsilon }_{LB}$ past $L(g)$, then moves the resulting counit past ${\epsilon }_{LC}$, reducing the composite to ${\epsilon }_{LC}L({\mu }_{C}T(g)f)$. Thus $K$ is a functor, with $KJ=L$ and $RK=U$, and it sends the Kleisli counit to ${\epsilon }_L$.

An adjunction morphism here is required to commute with the left and right adjoints and preserve their adjunction structure. Such a morphism must have the above object map; every Kleisli arrow $f$ factors as its counit after $J(f)$, so its arrow map is forced as well. This proves initiality of the Kleisli adjunction:

Let $M$ be the monoid of order-preserving functions $\mathbb{N}\to \mathbb{N}$, with $\mathbb{N}=\{0,1,\dots \}$, regarded as a one-object category. The endofunctor $T$ fixes that object and sends $f$ to $Tf(0)=0$, $Tf(n+1)=f(n)+1$. The displayed maps give its monad unit and multiplication. The multiplication is not injective, so this is not an idempotent monad. Its only algebra for a monad is $\mu$, because $a\eta =1$ forces $a(n+1)=n$ and monotonicity forces $a(0)=0$. Algebra endomorphisms are exactly the functions fixing zero. The Kleisli comparison functor sends $f$ to the function which is zero at zero and equals $f(n)$ at $n+1$; its inverse sends $h$ to $n\mapsto h(n+1)$. Thus the comparison is an isomorphism of categories even though the monad is not idempotent.