Paper 1, Section II, G

Algebraic Topology
Part II, 2012

Define the notions of covering projection and of locally path-connected space. Show that a locally path-connected space is path-connected if it is connected.

Suppose f:YXf: Y \rightarrow X and g:ZXg: Z \rightarrow X are continuous maps, the space YY is connected and locally path-connected and that gg is a covering projection. Suppose also that we are given base-points x0,y0,z0x_{0}, y_{0}, z_{0} satisfying f(y0)=x0=g(z0)f\left(y_{0}\right)=x_{0}=g\left(z_{0}\right). Show that there is a continuous f~:YZ\tilde{f}: Y \rightarrow Z satisfying f~(y0)=z0\tilde{f}\left(y_{0}\right)=z_{0} and gf~=fg \tilde{f}=f if and only if the image of f:Π1(Y,y0)Π1(X,x0)f_{*}: \Pi_{1}\left(Y, y_{0}\right) \rightarrow \Pi_{1}\left(X, x_{0}\right) is contained in that of g:Π1(Z,z0)Π1(X,x0)g_{*}: \Pi_{1}\left(Z, z_{0}\right) \rightarrow \Pi_{1}\left(X, x_{0}\right). [You may assume the path-lifting and homotopy-lifting properties of covering projections.]

Now suppose XX is locally path-connected, and both f:YXf: Y \rightarrow X and g:ZXg: Z \rightarrow X are covering projections with connected domains. Show that YY and ZZ are homeomorphic as spaces over XX if and only if the images of their fundamental groups under ff_{*} and gg_{*} are conjugate subgroups of Π1(X,x0)\Pi_{1}\left(X, x_{0}\right).