Coarse median algebras: the intrinsic geometry of coarse median spaces and their intervals

This paper establishes a new combinatorial framework for the study of coarse median spaces, bridging the worlds of asymptotic geometry, algebra and combinatorics. We introduce a simple and entirely algebraic notion of coarse median algebra which simultaneously generalises the concepts of bounded geometry coarse median spaces and classical discrete median algebras. We study the coarse median universe from the perspective of intervals, with a particular focus on cardinality as a proxy for distance. In particular we prove that the metric on a quasi-geodesic coarse median space of bounded geometry can be constructed up to quasi-isometry using only the coarse median operator. Finally we develop a concept of rank for coarse median algebras in terms of the geometry of intervals and show that the notion of finite rank coarse median algebra provides a natural higher dimensional analogue of Gromov’s concept of $$\delta $$ δ -hyperbolicity.