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TheoremStatement: AI-adaptedProof: AI-adaptedprecheck passjudge pass (openai/gpt-5.4)audited 2026-07-25
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  • AI-adapted: a semantically identical restatement of literature-sourced material, modulo indexing, notation, and boundary cases adopted by the library.
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Square roots exist: a unique a≥0 with (a)2=a; the positives are {x2:x≠0}

Statement

Let F be a complete ordered field (Complete ordered field (least-upper-bound property)). Then every a∈F with a≥0 has a unique s∈F with s≥0 and s2=a; we write s=a. Consequently the positive elements of F are exactly the nonzero squares: x>0 if and only if x=y2 for some y≠0.

Facts & Assumptions

Given: A complete ordered field F (Complete ordered field (least-upper-bound property)), that is, an ordered field (Ordered field) with the least-upper-bound property, and an element a∈F with a≥0.

[L1]

Every nonempty subset of F that is bounded above has a least upper bound in F (Complete ordered field (least-upper-bound property)).

[L2]

Sign and scaling rules: a product of positives is positive, and for c>0 one has x<y  ⟺  cx<cy (Sign rules for products and monotonicity of multiplication).

[L3]

Squaring is strictly monotone on the nonnegatives: if 0≤x<y then x2<y2; in particular squaring is injective on {x:x≥0} (Squaring is monotone on the nonnegatives).

[L4]

A nonzero square is positive: if y≠0 then y2>0 (Squares of nonzero elements are positive).

[L5]

Multiplying inequalities of positives: if 0<x<y and 0<u<v then xu<yv (Multiplying inequalities of positives).

Proof

technique · contradiction
1.1

If a=0, then s=0 satisfies s≥0 and s2=0=a, so existence holds; assume henceforth a>0.

givenalgebra
1.2

Uniqueness holds once a root exists: if u,v≥0 satisfy u2=v2, then strict monotonicity of squaring on nonnegatives [L3] rules out both u<v and u>v, forcing u=v; so at most one s≥0 has s2=a.

L3given
1.3

Define S={t∈F:t≥0 and t2≤a}; then 0∈S because 0≥0 and 02=0≤a, so S≠∅.

givenalgebra
1.4

The element 1+a is an upper bound of S: since a>0 we have 1+a>1, so any t>1+a has t>1 and t>0, whence t2=t⋅t>1⋅t=t>1+a>a, giving t∉S.

givenL2
2.1

By completeness [L1], s:=sup⁡S exists in F; and since 0∈S we have s≥0.

L1step 1.3step 1.4
3.1

Assume, for contradiction, that s2≠a; by trichotomy either s2<a or s2>a.

assume-contrastep 2.1
4.1

(Case s2<a.) Choose h with 0<h<1 and h<a−s22s+1, possible since a−s2>0 and 2s+1≥1>0; then h2=h⋅h<h⋅1=h and h(2s+1)<a−s2, so (s+h)2=s2+2sh+h2<s2+2sh+h=s2+h(2s+1)<a, whence s+h∈S with s+h>s, contradicting that s is an upper bound of S.

assume-case lowstep 3.1step 2.1L2L5choose
4.2

(Case s2>a.) Here s>0 since s2>a≥0; choose h with 0<h<s and h<s2−a2s, so 2sh<s2−a and (s−h)2=s2−2sh+h2≥s2−2sh>a, hence every t∈S has t2≤a<(s−h)2 with t≥0 and s−h>0, so t<s−h by [L3]; thus s−h is an upper bound of S with s−h<s, contradicting that s is the least upper bound.

assume-case highstep 3.1step 2.1L3choose
5.1

Both cases of the disjunction in step 3.1 give a contradiction, so the assumption fails and s2=a: a unique (by step 1.2) s=a≥0 with s2=a exists, and applying this to any x>0 writes x=(x)2 with x≠0 while conversely any nonzero square is positive by [L4], so the positive elements of F are exactly the nonzero squares.

step 4.1step 4.2step 3.1step 1.2L4casesdischarge-contradiction∎

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