Categorical Algebra of Atomic Monoids: Presentability, Regularity, and Pretorsion Theories

Abstract

We study the category $\mathsf{AtoMon}$ of atomic monoids and atom-preserving homomorphisms. We prove that $\mathsf{AtoMon}$ is locally finitely presentable by exhibiting a strong generator consisting of compact objects. We show that $\mathsf{AtoMon}$ admits (regular epi, mono)-factorizations but that it is not a regular category: we construct a regular epimorphism which is not pullback-stable. We also establish adjunctions for the group of units and explicitly construct the ``cofree atomic monoid'' over an arbitrary monoid. Finally, we exhibit a way to lift torsion theories of $\mathsf{Grp}$ to pretorsion theories of $\mathsf{AtoMon}$ and extend this construction to a more general setting.