Completed power operations for Morava $E$–theory

Abstract

We construct and study an algebraic theory which closely approximates the theory of power operations for Morava $E$–theory, extending previous work of Charles Rezk in a way that takes completions into account. These algebraic structures are made explicit in the case of $K$–theory. Methodologically, we emphasize the utility of flat modules in this context, and prove a general version of Lazard’s flatness criterion for module spectra over associative ring spectra.