English

$\Sigma_n$-correct Forcing Axioms

Logic 2024-05-17 v1

Abstract

I introduce a new family of axioms extending ZFC set theory, the Σn\Sigma_n-correct forcing axioms. These assert roughly that whenever a forcing name a˙\dot{a} can be forced by a poset in some forcing class Γ\Gamma to have some Σn\Sigma_n property ϕ\phi which is provably preserved by all further forcing in Γ\Gamma, then a˙\dot{a} reflects to some small name such that there is already in VV a filter which interprets that small name so that ϕ\phi holds. Σ1\Sigma_1-correct forcing axioms turn out to be equivalent to classical forcing axioms, while Σ2\Sigma_2-correct forcing axioms for Σ2\Sigma_2-definable forcing classes are consistent relative to a supercompact cardinal (and in fact hold in the standard model of a classical forcing axiom constructed as an extension of a model with a supercompact), Σ3\Sigma_3-correct forcing axioms are consistent relative to an extendible cardinal, and more generally Σn\Sigma_n-correct forcing axioms are consistent relative to a hierarchy of large cardinals generalizing supercompactness and extendibility whose supremum is the first-order version of Vopenka's Principle. By analogy to classical forcing axioms, there is also a hierarchy of Σn\Sigma_n-correct bounded forcing axioms which are consistent relative to appropriate large cardinals. At the two lowest levels of this hierarchy, outright equiconsistency results are easy to obtain. Beyond these consistency results, I also study when Σn\Sigma_n-correct forcing axioms are preserved by forcing, how they relate to previously studied axioms and to each other, and some of their mathematical implications.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2405.09674,
  title  = {$\Sigma_n$-correct Forcing Axioms},
  author = {Ben Goodman},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2405.09674},
  year   = {2024}
}

Comments

PhD dissertation, 145 pages

R2 v1 2026-06-28T16:28:46.763Z