In topology and related branches of mathematics, total-boundedness is a generalization of compactness for circumstances in which a set is not necessarily closed. A totally bounded set can be covered by finitely many subsets of every fixed “size” (where the meaning of “size” depends on the structure of the ambient space).

The term precompact (or pre-compact) is sometimes used with the same meaning, but precompact is also used to mean relatively compact. These definitions coincide for subsets of a complete metric space, but not in general.

In metric spaces

[[File:Unit square totally bounded space.png|thumb|alt=A unit square can be covered by finitely many discs of radius ε < 1/2, 1/3, 1/4|[0, 1]<sup>2</sup> is a totally bounded space because for every ε > 0, the unit square can be covered by finitely many open discs of radius ε.]]

A metric space <math> (M,d) </math> is totally bounded if and only if for every real number <math>\varepsilon > 0</math>, there exists a finite collection of open balls of radius <math>\varepsilon</math> whose centers lie in M and whose union contains&nbsp;. Equivalently, the metric space M is totally bounded if and only if for every <math> \varepsilon >0</math>, there exists a finite cover such that the radius of each element of the cover is at most <math>\varepsilon</math>. This is equivalent to the existence of a finite ε-net. A metric space is totally bounded iff every sequence admits a Cauchy subsequence; in complete metric spaces, a set is compact if and only if it is closed and totally bounded.

Each totally bounded space is bounded (as the union of finitely many bounded sets is bounded). The reverse is true for subsets of Euclidean space (with the subspace topology), but not in general. For example, an infinite set equipped with the discrete metric is bounded but not totally bounded: every discrete ball of radius <math>\varepsilon = 1/2</math> or less is a singleton, and no finite union of singletons can cover an infinite set.

Uniform (topological) spaces

A metric appears in the definition of total boundedness only to ensure that each element of the finite cover is of comparable size, and can be weakened to that of a uniform structure. A subset of a uniform space is totally bounded if and only if, for any entourage , there exists a finite cover of by subsets of each of whose Cartesian squares is a subset of . (In other words, replaces the "size" , and a subset is of size if its Cartesian square is a subset of .)

The definition can be extended still further, to any category of spaces with a notion of compactness and Cauchy completion: a space is totally bounded if and only if its (Cauchy) completion is compact.

Examples and elementary properties

  • In a metric space, every compact set is totally bounded.
  • Every totally bounded set is bounded.
  • A subset of the real line, or more generally of finite-dimensional Euclidean space, is totally bounded if and only if it is bounded.
  • More generally, if a metric space has the Heine-Borel property, then a subset is bounded if and only if it is totally bounded.
  • The unit ball in a Hilbert space, or more generally in a Banach space, is totally bounded (in the norm topology) if and only if the space has finite dimension.
  • Equicontinuous bounded functions on a compact set are precompact in the uniform topology; this is the Arzelà–Ascoli theorem.
  • A metric space is separable if and only if it is homeomorphic to a totally bounded metric space.
  • The closure of a totally bounded subset is again totally bounded.

Comparison with compact sets

In metric spaces, a set is compact if and only if it is complete and totally bounded; <!-- Theorem 11 in the cited paper; i.e. total boundedness of closure -->

This definition has the appealing property that, in a locally convex space endowed with the weak topology, the precompact sets are exactly the bounded sets.

For separable Banach spaces, there is a nice characterization of the precompact sets (in the norm topology) in terms of weakly convergent sequences of functionals: if <math>X</math> is a separable Banach space, then <math>S \subseteq X</math> is precompact if and only if every weakly convergent sequence of functionals converges uniformly on <math>S.</math>

Interaction with convexity

<ul>

<li>The balanced hull of a totally bounded subset of a topological vector space is again totally bounded.</li>

<li>The Minkowski sum of two compact (totally bounded) sets is compact (resp. totally bounded).</li>

<li>In a locally convex (Hausdorff) space, the convex hull and the disked hull of a totally bounded set <math>K</math> is totally bounded if and only if <math>K</math> is complete.</li>

</ul>

See also

  • Compact space
  • Locally compact space
  • Measure of non-compactness
  • Orthocompact space
  • Paracompact space
  • Relatively compact subspace

References

Bibliography