A connection between cellularization for groups and spaces via two-complexes

Jose L. Rodriguez, Jerome Scherer

Published 2007-02-21, updated 2007-10-14Version 2

Let $M$ denote a two-dimensional Moore space (so $H_2(M; \Z) = 0$), with fundamental group $G$. The $M$-cellular spaces are those one can build from $M$ by using wedges, push-outs, and telescopes (and hence all pointed homotopy colimits). The question we address here is to characterize the class of $M$-cellular spaces by means of algebraic properties derived from the group $G$. We show that the cellular type of the fundamental group and homological information does not suffice, and one is forced to study a certain universal extension.