Alphabeta Math
LemmaStatement: AI-adaptedProof: AI-generatedSession-authored (Fable 5 assisted)precheck passverified 2026-08-05 (gpt-5.6-sol-codex-subscription)
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Disjoint union, cartesian product, function space and power set respect equinumerosity, and for ordinals α,β\alpha, \beta the sets αβ\alpha \sqcup \beta and α×β\alpha \times \beta carry explicit well-orders, so their cardinalities exist in ZF

Statement

For sets AA and BB write

AB:=({0}×A)({1}×B),BA:={h:h is a function BA},A \sqcup B := (\{0\} \times A) \cup (\{1\} \times B), \qquad {}^{B}A := \{\, h : h \text{ is a function } B \to A \,\},

so ABA \sqcup B is the disjoint union, made disjoint by tagging, and BA{}^{B}A is the set of all functions from BB to AA. Work in ZF. Then:

(a) Representative independence. If AAA \approx A' and BBB \approx B' (Equinumerous sets, ABA \approx B and ABA \preceq B) then

ABAB,A×BA×B,BABA.A \sqcup B \approx A' \sqcup B', \qquad A \times B \approx A' \times B', \qquad {}^{B}A \approx {}^{B'}A'.

(b) Power sets. If ABA \approx B then P(A)P(B)\mathcal{P}(A) \approx \mathcal{P}(B).

(c) Two operations are choice-free. For ordinals α\alpha and β\beta (Ordinal (von Neumann)) the sets αβ\alpha \sqcup \beta and α×β\alpha \times \beta carry explicitly defined well-orders (Well-order and well-ordered set), so each is equinumerous with an ordinal and each has a cardinality αβ\lvert \alpha \sqcup \beta \rvert, α×β\lvert \alpha \times \beta \rvert in ZF (A set equinumerous with some ordinal has a least such ordinal, that ordinal is a cardinal, and equinumerous sets get the same one; no choice principle is used).

(d) The third is not. Nothing here well-orders βα{}^{\beta}\alpha, and no argument on this page does. Assuming the Axiom of Choice (The Axiom of Choice) every set is well-orderable (The well-ordering theorem) and βα{}^{\beta}\alpha has a cardinality like any other set; that is where cardinal exponentiation gets its hypothesis.

Facts & Assumptions

Given: Sets A,A,B,BA, A', B, B' and ordinals α,β\alpha, \beta, in ZF. No choice principle is assumed except where the Axiom of Choice is named.

[L1]

A set is well-orderable if and only if it is equinumerous with an ordinal; it then has a least such ordinal X\lvert X \rvert, which is a cardinal, and equinumerous sets receive the same one (A set equinumerous with some ordinal has a least such ordinal, that ordinal is a cardinal, and equinumerous sets get the same one; no choice principle is used, Cardinal (initial ordinal) and cardinality).

[L2]

A well-order is a relation that is irreflexive, transitive, trichotomous, and such that every nonempty subset has a least element (Well-order and well-ordered set).

[L3]

Every set of ordinals is well ordered by \in, and every nonempty set of ordinals has an \in-least element (Trichotomy and well-ordering of the ordinals).

[L4]

A composition of bijections is a bijection, the inverse of a bijection is a bijection, and a function with a two-sided inverse is a bijection (Injection, surjection, bijection).

[L5]

\approx means that a bijection exists, and it is reflexive, symmetric and transitive (Equinumerous sets, ABA \approx B and ABA \preceq B).

[L6]

Every element of an ordinal is an ordinal and αα\alpha \notin \alpha (Basic closure properties of ordinals, Ordinal (von Neumann)).

[L7]

Assuming the Axiom of Choice, every set carries a well-order (The Axiom of Choice, The well-ordering theorem).

Proof

technique · direct
1.1

Fix bijections f:AAf : A \to A' and g:BBg : B \to B'; these exist by [L5], and everything below is built from them, so nothing is chosen beyond one bijection for each of the two hypotheses.

L5given
1.2

The map σ:ABAB\sigma : A \sqcup B \to A' \sqcup B' with σ(0,a)=(0,f(a))\sigma(0,a) = (0, f(a)) and σ(1,b)=(1,g(b))\sigma(1,b) = (1, g(b)) has the two-sided inverse built the same way from f1f^{-1} and g1g^{-1}, hence is a bijection.

L4L5
1.3

The map π:A×BA×B\pi : A \times B \to A' \times B', π(a,b)=(f(a),g(b))\pi(a,b) = (f(a), g(b)), has the two-sided inverse (a,b)(f1(a),g1(b))(a',b') \mapsto (f^{-1}(a'), g^{-1}(b')), hence is a bijection.

L4L5
1.4

The map Φ:BABA\Phi : {}^{B}A \to {}^{B'}A', Φ(h)=fhg1\Phi(h) = f \circ h \circ g^{-1}, lands in BA{}^{B'}A' and has the two-sided inverse Ψ(h)=f1hg\Psi(h') = f^{-1} \circ h' \circ g, since Ψ(Φ(h))=f1fhg1g=h\Psi(\Phi(h)) = f^{-1} \circ f \circ h \circ g^{-1} \circ g = h and symmetrically; so it is a bijection and claim (a) holds.

L4L5
1.5

Claim (b): if f:ABf : A \to B is a bijection then Sf[S]S \mapsto f[S] maps P(A)\mathcal{P}(A) to P(B)\mathcal{P}(B) with two-sided inverse Tf1[T]T \mapsto f^{-1}[T], hence is a bijection.

L4L5
1.6

On αβ\alpha \sqcup \beta define (i,ξ)(j,η)(i,\xi) \prec (j,\eta) to hold when iji \in j, or i=ji = j and ξη\xi \in \eta; this is irreflexive, transitive and trichotomous by [L6] and [L3], and a nonempty SαβS \subseteq \alpha \sqcup \beta has a \prec-least element, namely (0,ξ0)(0,\xi_0) with ξ0\xi_0 the \in-least ξ\xi having (0,ξ)S(0,\xi) \in S when such a ξ\xi exists, and (1,η0)(1,\eta_0) with η0\eta_0 the \in-least such η\eta otherwise.

L2L3L6
1.7

On α×β\alpha \times \beta define (ξ,η)(ξ,η)(\xi,\eta) \lhd (\xi',\eta') to hold when ξξ\xi \in \xi', or ξ=ξ\xi = \xi' and ηη\eta \in \eta'; the same three properties hold by [L3] and [L6], and a nonempty Sα×βS \subseteq \alpha \times \beta has \lhd-least element (ξ0,η0)(\xi_0, \eta_0) where ξ0\xi_0 is the \in-least first coordinate occurring in SS and η0\eta_0 is the \in-least η\eta with (ξ0,η)S(\xi_0,\eta) \in S; both are least elements of nonempty sets of ordinals, so neither is chosen.

L2L3L6
1.8

Assuming the Axiom of Choice, βα{}^{\beta}\alpha carries a well-order by [L7] and therefore has a cardinality by [L1]; this is claim (d), and no step above supplies such a well-order in ZF.

L1L7
2.1

By [L1] applied to the well-orders of steps 1.6 and 1.7, each of αβ\alpha \sqcup \beta and α×β\alpha \times \beta is equinumerous with an ordinal and so has a cardinality in ZF, which is claim (c).

step 1.6step 1.7L1
3.1

Together: \sqcup, ×\times, the function space and the power set all respect \approx, the first two have ZF cardinalities on ordinal arguments, and the function space is given one by the Axiom of Choice.

step 1.4step 1.5step 1.8step 2.1

Remarks

Why the disjoint union is tagged. ABA \cup B is not an invariant of AAA \approx A' and BBB \approx B': taking A=A=B={0}A = A' = B = \{0\} and B={1}B' = \{1\} gives AB={0}A \cup B = \{0\} and AB={0,1}A' \cup B' = \{0,1\}, which are not equinumerous. Tagging with 00 and 11 makes the two blocks disjoint whatever the sets were, and claim (a) is then true as stated. This is why the operation defined on this page is \sqcup and never \cup.

The lexicographic order is not the order used for Hessenberg's theorem. Step 1.7 well-orders α×β\alpha \times \beta, which is everything claim (c) asks for. Its order type is in general much larger than α\alpha: the lexicographic order on ω×ω\omega \times \omega has order type ωω\omega \cdot \omega. The proof that κ×κ=κ\lvert \kappa \times \kappa \rvert = \kappa for infinite κ\kappa uses a different, cleverer well-order and is Hessenberg: κκ=κ\kappa \otimes \kappa = \kappa for every infinite cardinal κ\kappa, proved in ZF from the canonical well-order of κ×κ\kappa \times \kappa.

Where the asymmetry between \otimes and exponentiation comes from. A product of two well-ordered sets is well-ordered by an order written down from the two given ones. A set of functions between well-ordered sets has no such canonical order: the obvious candidates need a choice at each argument. That is not a defect of this proof but the reason general cardinal exponentiation is stated with the Axiom of Choice on this page; the exponential unit laws (Commutativity, associativity, distributivity and monotonicity of \oplus and \otimes, the unit laws, the two exponent laws, and κλ\kappa \le \lambda if and only if κ\kappa injects into λ\lambda) and the finite case (Every natural number and ω\omega are cardinals, every infinite cardinal is a limit ordinal, and on the natural numbers the cardinal operations are the published finite counting operations, with A\lvert A \rvert in the finite sense equal to A\lvert A \rvert in the cardinal sense) are choice-free, because the function sets they count carry a canonical well-order.

Depends on

Used by

Dependency tree · next 3 levels

Direct dependencies and their dependencies through the next three levels: 63 results over 23 levels. An arrow runs from a result to what uses it, and this result sits at the bottom with a heavier outline. Click the chart to enlarge it.

Sources