The subject of C*-algebras received a dramatic revitalization in the 1970s by the introduction of topological methods through the work of Brown, Douglas, and Fillmore on extensions of C*-algebras and Elliott's use of $K$-theory to provide a useful classification of AF algebras. These results were the beginning of a marvelous new set of tools for analyzing concrete C*-algebras. This book is an introductory graduate level text which presents the basics of the subject through a detailed analysis of several important classes of C*-algebras. The development of operator algebras in the last twenty years has been based on a careful study of these special classes. While there are many books on C*-algebras and operator algebras available, this is the first one to attempt to explain the real examples that researchers use to test their hypotheses. Topics include AF algebras, Bunce–Deddens and Cuntz algebras, the Toeplitz algebra, irrational rotation algebras, group C*-algebras, discrete crossed products, abelian C*-algebras (spectral theory and approximate unitary equivalence) and extensions. It also introduces many modern concepts and results in the subject such as real rank zero algebras, topological stable rank, quasidiagonality, and various new constructions. These notes were compiled during the author's participation in the special year on C*-algebras at The Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Sciences during the 1994–1995 academic year. The field of C*-algebras touches upon many other areas of mathematics such as group representations, dynamical systems, physics, $K$-theory, and topology. The variety of examples offered in this text expose the student to many of these connections. Graduate students with a solid course in functional analysis should be able to read this book. This should prepare them to read much of the current literature. This book is reasonably self-contained, and the author has provided results from other areas when necessary.

This book is directed towards graduate students that wish to start from the basic theory of C*-algebras and advance to an overview of some of the most spectacular results concerning the structure of nuclear C*-algebras. The text is divided into three parts. First, elementary notions, classical theorems and constructions are developed. Then, essential examples in the theory, such as crossed products and the class of quasidiagonal C*-algebras, are examined, and finally, the Elliott invariant, the Cuntz semigroup, and the Jiang-Su algebra are defined. It is shown how these objects have played a fundamental role in understanding the fine structure of nuclear C*-algebras. To help understanding the theory, plenty of examples, treated in detail, are included. This volume will also be valuable to researchers in the area as a reference guide. It contains an extensive reference list to guide readers that wish to travel further.

From the reviews: "This book is an excellent and comprehensive survey of the theory of von Neumann algebras. It includes all the fundamental results of the subject, and is a valuable reference for both the beginner and the expert." Mathematical Reviews

This book constitutes a first- or second-year graduate course in operator theory. It is a field that has great importance for other areas of mathematics and physics, such as algebraic topology, differential geometry, and quantum mechanics. It assumes a basic knowledge in functional analysis but no prior acquaintance with operator theory is required.

to the Encyclopaedia Subseries on Operator Algebras and Non-Commutative Geometry The theory of von Neumann algebras was initiated in a series of papers by Murray and von Neumann in the 1930's and 1940's. A von Neumann algebra is a self-adjoint unital subalgebra M of the algebra of bounded operators of a Hilbert space which is closed in the weak operator topology. According to von Neumann's bicommutant theorem, M is closed in the weak operator topology if and only if it is equal to the commutant of its commutant. Afactor is a von Neumann algebra with trivial centre and the work of Murray and von Neumann contained a reduction of all von Neumann algebras to factors and a classification of factors into types I, II and III. C* -algebras are self-adjoint operator algebras on Hilbert space which are closed in the norm topology. Their study was begun in the work of Gelfand and Naimark who showed that such algebras can be characterized abstractly as involutive Banach algebras, satisfying an algebraic relation connecting the norm and the involution. They also obtained the fundamental result that a commutative unital C* -algebra is isomorphic to the algebra of complex valued continuous functions on a compact space - its spectrum. Since then the subject of operator algebras has evolved into a huge mathematical endeavour interacting with almost every branch of mathematics and several areas of theoretical physics.

$\textrm{C}*$-approximation theory has provided the foundation for many of the most important conceptual breakthroughs and applications of operator algebras. This book systematically studies (most of) the numerous types of approximation properties that have been important in recent years: nuclearity, exactness, quasidiagonality, local reflexivity, and others. Moreover, it contains user-friendly proofs, insofar as that is possible, of many fundamental results that were previously quite hard to extract from the literature. Indeed, perhaps the most important novelty of the first ten chapters is an earnest attempt to explain some fundamental, but difficult and technical, results as painlessly as possible. The latter half of the book presents related topics and applications--written with researchers and advanced, well-trained students in mind. The authors have tried to meet the needs both of students wishing to learn the basics of an important area of research as well as researchers who desire a fairly comprehensive reference for the theory and applications of $\textrm{C}*$-approximation theory.

This book offers a comprehensive introduction to the general theory of C*-algebras and von Neumann algebras. Beginning with the basics, the theory is developed through such topics as tensor products, nuclearity and exactness, crossed products, K-theory, and quasidiagonality. The presentation carefully and precisely explains the main features of each part of the theory of operator algebras; most important arguments are at least outlined and many are presented in full detail.