Algebraic structure → Ring theory Ring theory |
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In functional analysis, a branch of mathematics, an operator algebra is an algebra of continuous linear operators on a topological vector space, with the multiplication given by the composition of mappings.
The results obtained in the study of operator algebras are often phrased in algebraic terms, while the techniques used are often highly analytic.[1] Although the study of operator algebras is usually classified as a branch of functional analysis, it has direct applications to representation theory, differential geometry, quantum statistical mechanics, quantum information, and quantum field theory.