On Two Properties of Operator Algebras: Logmodularity of Subalgebras, Embeddability into R^w

This dissertation is devoted to several questions that arise in operator algebra theory. In the first part of the work we study the dilations of homomorphisms of subalgebras to the algebras that contain them. We consider the question whether a contractive homomorphism of a logmodular algebra into B(H) is completely contractive, where B(H) denotes the algebra of all bounded operators on a Hilbert space H. We show that every logmodular subalgebra of Mn(C) is unitary equivalent to an algebra of block upper triangular matrices, which was conjectured by V. Paulsen and M. Raghupathi. In particular, this shows that every unital contractive representation of a logmodular subalgebra of Mn(C) is automatically completely contractive.

In the second part of the dissertation we investigate certain matrices composed of mixed, second?order moments of unitaries. The unitaries are taken from C??algebras with moments taken with respect to traces, or, alternatively, from matrix algebras with the usual trace. These sets are of interest in light of a theorem of E. Kirchberg about Connes' embedding problem and provide a new approach to it.

Finally, we give a modification of I. Klep and M. Schweighofer?s algebraic reformulation of Connes' embedding problem by considering the ?-algebra of the countably generated free group. This allows us to consider only quadratic polynomials in unitary generators instead of arbitrary polynomials in self-adjoint generators.