Abelian categories of modules over a (lax) monoidal functor

Abstract

Crane and Yetter (Deformations of (bi)tensor categories, Cahier de Topologie et Géometrie Differentielle Catégorique, 1998) introduced a deformation theory for monoidal categories. The related deformation theory for monoidal functors introduced by Yetter (in: E. Getzler, M. Kapranov (Eds.), Higher Category Theory, American Mathematical Society Contemporary Mathematics, Vol. 230, American Mathematical Society, Providence, RI, 1998, pp. 117–134.) is a proper generalization of Gerstenhaber's deformation theory for associative algebras (Ann. Math. 78(2) (1963) 267; 79(1) (1964) 59; in: M. Hazewinkel, M. Gerstenhaber (Eds.), Deformation Theory of Algebras and Structure and Applications, Kluwer, Dordrecht, 1988, pp. 11–264). In the present paper we solidify the analogy between lax monoidal functors and associative algebras by showing that under suitable conditions, categories of functors with an action of a lax monoidal functor are abelian categories. The deformation complex of a monoidal functor is generalized to an analogue of the Hochschild complex with coefficients in a bimodule, and the deformation complex of a monoidal natural transformation is shown to be a special case. It is shown further that the cohomology of a monoidal functor F with coefficients in an F,F-bimodule is given by right derived functors.