Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 January 2019
We characterize the class of RFD $C^{\ast }$-algebras as those containing a dense subset of elements that attain their norm under a finite-dimensional representation. We show further that this subset is the whole space precisely when every irreducible representation of the $C^{\ast }$-algebra is finite-dimensional, which is equivalent to the $C^{\ast }$-algebra having no simple infinite-dimensional AF subquotient. We apply techniques from this proof to show the existence of elements in more general classes of $C^{\ast }$-algebras whose norms in finite-dimensional representations fit certain prescribed properties.
The research of author T. S. was supported by the Polish National Science Centre grant under the contract number DEC-2012/06/A/ST1/00256 and by the Eric Nordgren Research Fellowship Fund at the University of New Hampshire.