Generalized Hermitian Algebras

We refer to the real Jordan Banach algebra of bounded Hermitian operators on a Hilbert space as a Hermitian algebra. In this paper we define and launch a study of a class of generalized Hermitian (GH) algebras. Among the examples of GH-algebras are ordered special Jordan algebras, JW-algebras, and AJW-algebras, but unlike these more restricted cases, a GH-algebra is not necessarily a Banach space and its lattice of projections is not necessarily complete. In this paper we develop the basic theory of GH-algebras, identify their unit intervals as effect algebras, and observe that their projection lattices are sigma-complete orthomodular lattices. We show that GH-algebras are spectral order-unit spaces and that they admit a substantial spectral theory. The second author was supported by Research and Development Support Agency under the contract No. APVV-0071-06, grant VEGA 2/0032/09 and Center of Excellence SAS, CEPI I/2/2005.