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In the book of real mathematical analysis written by Pugh, there is a sentence about these two and condensation: Thus, S limits at p, clusters at p, or condenses at p according to whether each Mr(p)(r neighborhood) contains some, infinitely many, or uncountably many points of S.

Can anyone explain why? Or a counterexample that a point which is a limit point but not a cluster point will be great.

jack
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1 Answers1

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Terminology differs here, which might confuse you if see other answers online. But I'll follow Pugh here. We seem to be working in a metric space here, and using the notation $M_r(p)$ for an open ball of radius $r>0$ around $p$.

So whenever $S \subseteq X$, where $(X,d)$ is the metric space, then $p \in X$ is called a limit point of $S$ when for all $r>0$, $S \cap M_r(p) \neq \emptyset$; $p$ is called a cluster point of $S$ when for all $r > 0$ the set $S \cap M_r(p)$ is infinite, and $S$ condenses at $p$ (people also say that $p$ is a condensation point of $S$, which is more analogous to the previous names) whenever for all $r>0$ the set $S \cap M_r(p)$ is uncountable.

Note that if $p \in S$, then $M_r(p) \cap S$ will allways contain $p$ at least. So using this definition we see that all points of $S$ are themselves limit points of $S$, but there can be more, e.g. if $S = \{\frac{1}{n} \mid n \in \mathbb{N}^+\}$ (as a subset of the real numbers in the standard metric), then all points of $S$ are limit points of $S$, but $0 \notin S$ is too (and these are all the limit points of $S$). Now note that $1 \in S$ is not a cluster point of $S$, as $M_{\frac{1}{2}}(1)$ only intersects $S$ in $\{1\}$ and nowhere else. The same can be said for the other points $p$ of $S$: there exists some $r>0$ such that $S \cap M_r(p) = \{p\}$. Such a point is called an isolated point of $S$.

Now, in a metric space we have the following facts:

(1) if $p \in S$ is not an isolated point of $S$, then it is a cluster point of $S$.

Proof: suppose that $p \in S$ is not a cluster point of $S$. Then there is some $r>0$ such that $M_r(p) \cap S$ is finite, and so equals some set $\{p, p_1,\ldots,p_n\}$. Then $s = \min(r, d(p, p_1), \ldots, d(p, p_n)) > 0$ is well-defined (as a finite minimum of numbers > 0) and $M_{s}(p) \cap S = \{p\}$, as is easy to see. So $p$ is an isolated point of $S$. So all points of $S$ (which are all limit points of $S$) neatly divide into isolated points and cluster points of $S$.

(2) if $p \notin S$ is a limit point of $S$, then $p$ is a also a cluster point of $S$.

Proof: this is essentially the same argument. Suppose $p$ were not a cluster point, then for some $r>0$ we have $S \cap M_r(p) = \{p_1,\ldots,p_n\}$, where all $p_i \neq p$ (the set is not empty, as $p$ is a limit point by assumption). Defining $s = \min(d(p_1,p),\ldots,d(p_n,p))$, we see that again $s > 0$ and $M_s(p) \cap S = \emptyset$, contradiction.

So all limit points $p$ of $S$ are cluster points, except when $p \in S$ and $p$ is an isolated point of $S$. Another example where this occurs is for finite sets $S$ (no cluster points, and all points of the finite set are limit points and isolated points) and a set like $S = [0,1] \cup \{2\}$, where $2$ is a limit point, but isolated, so not a cluster point, and where all other points of $S$ are even condensation points of $S$.

Henno Brandsma
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  • but I recall the definition of limit point as every open neighborhood contains at least one point that is not itself(so says the wikipedia.) So is it because Pugh defines limit point differently? – jack Jan 11 '15 at 19:10
  • @LeonWong Yes, that's why I wrote that definitions differ. Other people call points of $\overline{A}$ "adherence points". And cluster points (defined as in Pugh) are then called "limit points", and cluster points are then something a sequence has, not a set. It's confusing. One should always ask what a poster (or book, or paper) means by terms like limit point. – Henno Brandsma Jan 11 '15 at 19:12