The finite basis problem for endomorphism semirings of finite chains

Abstract

For every semilattice $\mathcal{S}=(S,+)$, the set $\mathrm{End}(\mathcal{S})$ of its endomorphisms forms a semiring under point-wise addition and composition. We prove that the semiring of all endomorphisms of the 3-element chain has no finite identity basis. This, combined with earlier results by Dolinka (The finite basis problem for endomorphism semirings of finite semilattices with zero, Algebra Universalis 61, 441-448 (2009)), gives a complete solution to the finite basis problem for semirings of the form $\mathrm{End}(\mathcal{S})$ where $\mathcal{S}$ is a finite chain.

24 pages, 9 figures. Version 2 fixes a problem in the main construction from Section 5 and includes several minor improvements