Discrete space

In topology, a discrete space is a particularly simple example of a topological space or similar structure,
one in which the points form a discontinuous sequence, meaning they are isolated from each other in a
certain sense. The discrete topology is the finest topology that can be given on a set. Every subset is open in
the discrete topology so that in particular, every singleton subset is an open set in the discrete topology.

Contents
Definitions
Properties
Examples and uses
Indiscrete spaces
See also
References

Definitions
Given a set :

the discrete topology on is defined by letting every subset of be open (and hence also
closed), and is a discrete topological space if it is equipped with its discrete topology;
the discrete uniformity on is defined by letting every superset of the diagonal
in be an entourage, and is a discrete uniform space if it is
equipped with its discrete uniformity.
the discrete metric on is defined by

for any In this case is called a discrete metric space or a space of

isolated points.
a discrete subspace of some given topological space refers to a topological
subspace of (a subset of together with the subspace topology that induces
on it) whose topology is equal to the discrete topology. For example, if has its usual
Euclidean topology then (endowed with the subspace topology) is a
discrete subspace of but is not.
a set is discrete in a metric space for if for every there exists some
(depending on ) such that for all ; such a set consists of
isolated points. A set is uniformly discrete in the metric space for if there
exists such that for any two distinct
A metric space is said to be uniformly discrete if there exists a packing radius such that, for
any one has either or [1] The topology underlying a metric space can be
discrete, without the metric being uniformly discrete: for example the usual metric on the set

Proof that a discrete space is not necessarily uniformly discrete

Let consider this set using the usual metric

on the real numbers. Then, is a discrete space, since for each point we
can surround it with the open interval where
The intersection is therefore
trivially the singleton Since the intersection of an open set of the real numbers and
is open for the induced topology, it follows that is open so singletons are open and
is a discrete space.

However, cannot be uniformly discrete. To see why, suppose there exists an such
that whenever It suffices to show that there are at least two points
and in that are closer to each other than Since the distance between adjacent points
and is we need to find an that satisfies this inequality:

Since there is always an bigger than any given real number, it follows that there will
always be at least two points in that are closer to each other than any positive therefore
is not uniformly discrete.

Properties
The underlying uniformity on a discrete metric space is the discrete uniformity, and the underlying topology
on a discrete uniform space is the discrete topology. Thus, the different notions of discrete space are
compatible with one another. On the other hand, the underlying topology of a non-discrete uniform or
metric space can be discrete; an example is the metric space (with metric inherited
from the real line and given by ). This is not the discrete metric; also, this space is not
complete and hence not discrete as a uniform space. Nevertheless, it is discrete as a topological space. We
say that is topologically discrete but not uniformly discrete or metrically discrete.

Additionally:

The topological dimension of a discrete space is equal to 0.

 A topological space is discrete if and only if its singletons are open, which is the case if and
only if it doesn't contain any accumulation points.
The singletons form a basis for the discrete topology.
A uniform space is discrete if and only if the diagonal is an entourage.
Every discrete topological space satisfies each of the separation axioms; in particular, every
discrete space is Hausdorff, that is, separated.
A discrete space is compact if and only if it is finite.
Every discrete uniform or metric space is complete.
Combining the above two facts, every discrete uniform or metric space is totally bounded if
and only if it is finite.
Every discrete metric space is bounded.
Every discrete space is first-countable; it is moreover second-countable if and only if it is
countable.
Every discrete space is totally disconnected.
Every non-empty discrete space is second category.
Any two discrete spaces with the same cardinality are homeomorphic.
Every discrete space is metrizable (by the discrete metric).
A finite space is metrizable only if it is discrete.
If is a topological space and is a set carrying the discrete topology, then is evenly
covered by (the projection map is the desired covering)
The subspace topology on the integers as a subspace of the real line is the discrete
topology.
A discrete space is separable if and only if it is countable.
Any topological subspace of (with its usual Euclidean topology) that is discrete is
necessarily countable.[2]

Any function from a discrete topological space to another topological space is continuous, and any function
from a discrete uniform space to another uniform space is uniformly continuous. That is, the discrete space
is free on the set in the category of topological spaces and continuous maps or in the category of
uniform spaces and uniformly continuous maps. These facts are examples of a much broader phenomenon,
in which discrete structures are usually free on sets.

With metric spaces, things are more complicated, because there are several categories of metric spaces,
depending on what is chosen for the morphisms. Certainly the discrete metric space is free when the
morphisms are all uniformly continuous maps or all continuous maps, but this says nothing interesting
about the metric structure, only the uniform or topological structure. Categories more relevant to the metric
structure can be found by limiting the morphisms to Lipschitz continuous maps or to short maps; however,
these categories don't have free objects (on more than one element). However, the discrete metric space is
free in the category of bounded metric spaces and Lipschitz continuous maps, and it is free in the category
of metric spaces bounded by 1 and short maps. That is, any function from a discrete metric space to another
bounded metric space is Lipschitz continuous, and any function from a discrete metric space to another
metric space bounded by 1 is short.

Going the other direction, a function from a topological space to a discrete space is continuous if
and only if it is locally constant in the sense that every point in has a neighborhood on which is
constant.

Every ultrafilter on a non-empty set can be associated with a topology on with the
property that every non-empty proper subset of is either an open subset or else a closed subset, but
never both. Said differently, every subset is open or closed but (in contrast to the discrete topology) the only
subsets that are both open and closed (i.e. clopen) are and . In comparison, every subset of is open
and closed in the discrete topology.

Examples and uses

A discrete structure is often used as the "default structure" on a set that doesn't carry any other natural
topology, uniformity, or metric; discrete structures can often be used as "extreme" examples to test
particular suppositions. For example, any group can be considered as a topological group by giving it the
discrete topology, implying that theorems about topological groups apply to all groups. Indeed, analysts
may refer to the ordinary, non-topological groups studied by algebraists as "discrete groups" . In some
cases, this can be usefully applied, for example in combination with Pontryagin duality. A 0-dimensional
manifold (or differentiable or analytic manifold) is nothing but a discrete and countable topological space
(an uncountable discrete space is not second-countable). We can therefore view any discrete countable
group as a 0-dimensional Lie group.

A product of countably infinite copies of the discrete space of natural numbers is homeomorphic to the
space of irrational numbers, with the homeomorphism given by the continued fraction expansion. A product
of countably infinite copies of the discrete space is homeomorphic to the Cantor set; and in fact
uniformly homeomorphic to the Cantor set if we use the product uniformity on the product. Such a
homeomorphism is given by using ternary notation of numbers. (See Cantor space.) Every fiber of a locally
injective function is necessarily a discrete subspace of its domain.

In the foundations of mathematics, the study of compactness properties of products of is central to

the topological approach to the ultrafilter lemma (equivalently, the Boolean prime ideal theorem), which is a
weak form of the axiom of choice.

Indiscrete spaces
In some ways, the opposite of the discrete topology is the trivial topology (also called the indiscrete
topology), which has the fewest possible open sets (just the empty set and the space itself). Where the
discrete topology is initial or free, the indiscrete topology is final or cofree: every function from a
topological space to an indiscrete space is continuous, etc.

See also
Cylinder set
List of topologies
Taxicab geometry

References
1. Pleasants, Peter A.B. (2000). "Designer quasicrystals: Cut-and-project sets with pre-
assigned properties". In Baake, Michael (ed.). Directions in mathematical quasicrystals.
CRM Monograph Series. Vol. 13. Providence, RI: American Mathematical Society. pp. 95–
141. ISBN 0-8218-2629-8. Zbl 0982.52018 (https://zbmath.org/?format=complete&q=an:098
2.52018).
2. Wilansky 2008, p. 35.

Steen, Lynn Arthur; Seebach, J. Arthur Jr. (1978). Counterexamples in Topology (2nd ed.).
Berlin, New York: Springer-Verlag. ISBN 3-540-90312-7. MR 0507446 (https://mathscinet.a
 ms.org/mathscinet-getitem?mr=0507446). Zbl 0386.54001 (https://zbmath.org/?format=comp
lete&q=an:0386.54001).
Wilansky, Albert (17 October 2008) [1970]. Topology for Analysis. Mineola, New York: Dover
Publications, Inc. ISBN 978-0-486-46903-4. OCLC 227923899 (https://www.worldcat.org/ocl
c/227923899).

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Discrete_space&oldid=1097596591"

This page was last edited on 11 July 2022, at 16:13 (UTC).

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0; additional terms may apply. By
using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the
Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.