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LemmaStatement: AI-adaptedProof: AI-adaptedprecheck passaudited 2026-08-26
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For a Lebesgue measurable set and every positive ε there is an open superset whose difference from it has outer measure below ε

Statement

Let n≥1 and assume the Axiom of Countable Choice (The Axiom of Countable Choice (ACω)). For every Lebesgue measurable E⊆Rn and every real ε>0 there is an open set U with

E⊆Uandλn∗(U∖E)<ε.

No finiteness hypothesis on λn(E) is imposed; the excess is measured by the outer measure of the difference, not by a difference of measures, which is what lets the statement hold when λn(E)=+∞.

Facts & Assumptions

Given: A natural number n≥1, the Axiom of Countable Choice, a Lebesgue measurable set E, and a real ε>0.

[L1]

Assuming countable choice, λn∗(E)=inf⁡{λn(U):U⊆Rn open and E⊆U} for every subset E (Assuming countable choice, the Lebesgue outer measure of an arbitrary subset of Rn is the infimum of the measures of the open sets containing it).

[L2]

Assuming countable choice, L(Rn) is a sigma-algebra, λn is a complete measure on it, and λn is the restriction of λn∗ (Assuming countable choice, L(Rn) is a sigma-algebra containing every elementary set and λn is a complete measure extending elementary volume).

[L3]

Assuming countable choice, λn∗ is an outer measure on Rn, hence monotone and countably subadditive (Assuming countable choice, Lebesgue outer measure is an outer measure that restricts to elementary volume, Outer measures).

[L4]

Assuming countable choice, every Borel subset of Rn is Lebesgue measurable (Assuming countable choice, every Borel subset of Rn is Lebesgue measurable).

[L5]

Every bounded subset E⊆Rn has λn∗(E)<+∞ (Lebesgue measure is sigma-finite, and every metrically bounded subset of Rn has finite outer measure).

[L6]

Every set R with R∘⊆R⊆R‾ is Lebesgue measurable with λn(R)=∏i<n(bi−ai) (A box in Rn with parameters ai≤bi is Lebesgue measurable of measure ∏i<n(bi−ai), whichever of its faces are included), and (u,v]n:=B(u,v) (Half-open boxes in Rn and their volume).

[F1]

Let μ be a measure and let A⊆B be measurable with μ(A)<+∞; then μ(B)=μ(A)+μ(B∖A) (Measure of a set difference when the smaller set has finite measure).

[F3]

If ∣r∣<1 then ∑k=0∞rk=1/(1−r); in particular ∑k=0∞2−k=2 (For ∣r∣<1, ∑k≥0rk=1/(1−r), and for ∣r∣≥1 the series diverges).

[F4]

The nonnegative extended sum of a sequence in [0,+∞] is ∑k=0∞ak:=sup⁡n∈Nsn, the supremum of its nondecreasing partial sums (Series in the nonnegative extended real line).

[F5]

For sequences of reals, ∑k<nλak=λ∑k<nak, and if ak≤bk whenever 0≤k<n then ∑k<nak≤∑k<nbk (Laws of finite sums and finite products, claims 2 and 4; Finite sums and finite products, by recursion).

[F6]

The Axiom of Countable Choice says that for every family (Xn)n∈N of nonempty sets indexed by N there is a function f with domain N such that f(n)∈Xn for every n∈N (The Axiom of Countable Choice (ACω)).

Proof

technique · direct
1.1L1L2L4F1

Suppose first λn(E)<+∞ and let η be a positive real. Outer regularity supplies an open U⊇E with λn(U)<λn(E)+η; both E and U are measurable, so the difference formula gives λn(U)=λn(E)+λn(U∖E) and hence λn∗(U∖E)=λn(U∖E)<η.

1.2L2L5L6

For k∈N put Sk:=E∩((−(k+1),k+1]n∖(−k,k]n); each Sk is Lebesgue measurable, being an intersection and difference of measurable sets, is bounded and therefore of finite measure, and ⋃k∈NSk=E because the cubes (−k,k]n increase to Rn.

2.1step 1.1step 1.2F2F6

By step 1.1 applied to each Sk with η:=ε2−k−2, the family of open V⊇Sk with λn∗(V∖Sk)<ε2−k−2 is nonempty for every k, so countable choice selects such a Uk for every k; the union U:=⋃kUk is open and contains E.

3.1step 1.2step 2.1L3F3F4F5∎

Since Sk⊆E, one has U∖E⊆⋃k(Uk∖Sk), so countable subadditivity gives λn∗(U∖E)≤∑k=0∞ε2−k−2, whose partial sums are ε2−2∑k<N2−k≤ε/2, so the sum is at most ε/2<ε.

Depends on

Used by

Dependency tree · two levels

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Sources