📝Functor

Functor is a structure-preserving mapping from category CC to category DD. CC and DD can be different or the same category. (Also note that category DD might have different composition—e.g., Kleisli category)

The mapping should map objects to objects, and arrows to arrows.

\begin{tikzcd} a \arrow[loop, "id_a", swap] \arrow[d, "f", swap] \arrow[ddr, "g \circ f"] & & F a \arrow[loop, "F id_a = id_{F a}", swap] \arrow[d, "F f", swap] \arrow[ddr, "F (g \circ f) = F g \, \circ \, F f"] \\ b \arrow[dr, "g", swap] & & F b \arrow[dr, "F g", swap] \\ & c & & F c \end{tikzcd}

Functors can collapse some arrows (into one), but cannot break connections.

Functor is not a morphism—it is a mapping (a function) between one category and another. (Morphisms are arrows between two objects in the same category.)

If mapping of all hom-sets is injective, the functor is faithful. If mapping of all hom-sets is surjective, the functor is full. If bijective—the functor is fully faithful.

Note that this only applies to hom-sets, objects can still be collapsed.

A constant functor (ΔC\Delta_C) is a functor that maps every object into a single object.

The dual of a functor is a functor itself.

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