Exact sequence of sheaves Created 2026-10-05 Updated 2026-10-06
An exact sequence of sheaves of abelian groups is a sequence of sheaf homomorphisms for which the image of each map equals the kernel of the next. Exactness can be checked on every stalk of a sheaf. Exactness of the associated sequences of sections on every open set is a stronger condition: a surjective sheaf homomorphism need only admit lifts locally.
Germ of a sheaf section Created 2026-09-28 Updated 2026-10-06
The germ of a section is its image in the stalk of a sheaf . It is zero exactly when restricts to zero on some neighbourhood of .
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2016 iii Paper 118 4 c Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-06
Treat as the trivial group if is not abelian. The restriction maps satisfy the presheaf identities. To verify the sheaf gluing axiom, take an open cover of . If , every section group is trivial. If , at least one contains . Every two such opens have an overlap containing , so compatibility forces all their sections to have the same value . Opens not containing have their unique trivial section. The value is exactly the unique glued section. Thus the stated presheaf is a skyscraper sheaf, including for nonabelian groups.
For the stalk of a sheaf, take the direct limit over neighbourhoods of . If some neighbourhood of omits , neighbourhoods inside are cofinal and all their groups are trivial. If every neighbourhood of contains , every group in the system is and every transition map is the identity. Consequently, on the arbitrary topological space in the question,Membership in this closure means exactly that every neighbourhood of contains . In particular . If is a closed point, the closure is just and the familiar point-supported answer results. The separation assumption is not present in the printed question, so it cannot be imposed silently.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 113 1 Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
The tensor product of sheaves is the sheafification of the presheafwith restriction maps induced by those of , , and the structure sheaf of a scheme. Sending the germ of to gives a canonical mapIt is surjective because a finite sum of tensors of germs has representatives on one common neighborhood. It is injective because an equality in a tensor product of modules is witnessed by finitely many additive and balancing relations; all their germs, including the scalars in , can be represented and their equalities made valid on a common smaller neighborhood. Equivalently, a filtered colimit of modules commutes with these tensor products. Since sheafification preserves the stalk of a sheaf, this proves the asserted isomorphism.
For the pullback of a sheaf of modules, first form the inverse image sheaf : sheafify . The morphism of sheaves of rings then definesExactness of a sequence of sheaf of modules morphisms is checked on every stalk of a sheaf. Applying the right exactness of the tensor product of modules to the stalk sequence over gives the exact stalk sequence of the pullbacks. Thus preserves sequences ending in zero, as required.
A quasi-coherent sheaf is a sheaf of modules locally of the form for a module over the coordinate ring of an affine neighborhood. On an affine variety with ring , this associated sheaf is characterized on principal opens by , using localization of a module. Suppose and is affine, with ring . The induced algebra map gives a canonical mapAt a point , both sides identify with : on the right use and associativity of the tensor product of modules. The map is therefore an isomorphism on every stalk of a sheaf, hence an isomorphism of sheaves. Such cover , proving that the pullback is a quasi-coherent sheaf.
Finally, on an affine open with ring , the presheaf defining has, on , the valueConsequently , so is a quasi-coherent sheaf. The algebra map for is the composite . Restriction of functions and the tensor-product construction give a canonical sheaf morphism . At , it is the associativity isomorphismIt is therefore a sheaf of modules isomorphism. In particular,
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2021 iii Paper 113 4 a Solution 2026-09-28
If the germ of a sheaf section is zero, then by the definition of a stalk of a sheaf there is a neighbourhood of on which . Every point of also has zero germ. Thus the complement of is open, so the support of a sheaf section is closed.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2021 iii Paper 113 4 b Solution 2026-09-28
The kernel of the restriction mapconsists exactly of sections whose germs vanish outside , namely . This proves exactness. If is a flasque sheaf, the restriction map is surjective by definition.
Now let be exact. The global section functor is left exact, so a section of mapping to zero lifts uniquely to a global section of . Its germs outside vanish because is injective at each stalk of a sheaf. It therefore lies in , proving exactness of the supported-section sequence.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2025 iii Paper 113 1 a Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
Take , , and let be the skyscraper sheaf with value a nonzero abelian group at . Cover by and . The presheaf gives and . A nonzero section on and the zero section on agree on the overlap, whose skyscraper sections vanish, but cannot be glued on . Thus need not be a sheaf.
Sheafification preserves stalks. If , neighborhoods contained in are cofinal, so . If , no neighborhood of lies in , so every term defining the presheaf stalk is zero. Therefore
Sheaf of abelian groups Created 2026-10-05 Updated 2026-10-14
A sheaf of abelian groups is a sheaf of sets whose sections on each open set form an abelian group and whose restriction maps are group homomorphisms. Its stalk of a sheaf is the corresponding group of germs. Kernels are computed on sections, whereas cokernels are obtained by sheafification of the sectionwise cokernel. An exact sequence can therefore be checked on stalks.