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In mathematics, specifically in measure theory, a Borel measure on a
topological space In mathematics, a topological space is, roughly speaking, a geometrical space in which closeness is defined but cannot necessarily be measured by a numeric distance. More specifically, a topological space is a set whose elements are called po ...
is a measure that is defined on all open sets (and thus on all Borel sets). Some authors require additional restrictions on the measure, as described below.


Formal definition

Let X be a
locally compact In topology and related branches of mathematics, a topological space is called locally compact if, roughly speaking, each small portion of the space looks like a small portion of a compact space. More precisely, it is a topological space in which e ...
Hausdorff space In topology and related branches of mathematics, a Hausdorff space ( , ), separated space or T2 space is a topological space where, for any two distinct points, there exist neighbourhoods of each which are disjoint from each other. Of the many ...
, and let \mathfrak(X) be the smallest σ-algebra that contains the
open set In mathematics, open sets are a generalization of open intervals in the real line. In a metric space (a set along with a distance defined between any two points), open sets are the sets that, with every point , contain all points that a ...
s of X; this is known as the σ-algebra of
Borel set In mathematics, a Borel set is any set in a topological space that can be formed from open sets (or, equivalently, from closed sets) through the operations of countable union, countable intersection, and relative complement. Borel sets are name ...
s. A Borel measure is any measure \mu defined on the σ-algebra of Borel sets. A few authors require in addition that \mu is locally finite, meaning that \mu(C)<\infty for every
compact set In mathematics, specifically general topology, compactness is a property that seeks to generalize the notion of a closed and bounded subset of Euclidean space by making precise the idea of a space having no "punctures" or "missing endpoints", ...
C. If a Borel measure \mu is both
inner regular In mathematics, an inner regular measure is one for which the measure of a set can be approximated from within by compact subsets. Definition Let (''X'', ''T'') be a Hausdorff topological space and let Σ be a σ-algebra on ''X'' that ...
and
outer regular In mathematics (specifically in measure theory), a Radon measure, named after Johann Radon, is a measure on the σ-algebra of Borel sets of a Hausdorff topological space ''X'' that is finite on all compact sets, outer regular on all Borel ...
, it is called a regular Borel measure. If \mu is both inner regular, outer regular, and locally finite, it is called a
Radon measure In mathematics (specifically in measure theory), a Radon measure, named after Johann Radon, is a measure on the σ-algebra of Borel sets of a Hausdorff topological space ''X'' that is finite on all compact sets, outer regular on all B ...
.


On the real line

The
real line In elementary mathematics, a number line is a picture of a graduated straight line that serves as visual representation of the real numbers. Every point of a number line is assumed to correspond to a real number, and every real number to a po ...
\mathbb R with its
usual topology In mathematics, the real coordinate space of dimension , denoted ( ) or is the set of the -tuples of real numbers, that is the set of all sequences of real numbers. With component-wise addition and scalar multiplication, it is a real vector ...
is a locally compact Hausdorff space, hence we can define a Borel measure on it. In this case, \mathfrak(\mathbb R) is the smallest σ-algebra that contains the open intervals of \mathbb R. While there are many Borel measures ''μ'', the choice of Borel measure that assigns \mu((a,b])=b-a for every half-open interval (a,b] is sometimes called "the" Borel measure on \mathbb R. This measure turns out to be the restriction to the Borel σ-algebra of the
Lebesgue measure In measure theory, a branch of mathematics, the Lebesgue measure, named after French mathematician Henri Lebesgue, is the standard way of assigning a measure to subsets of ''n''-dimensional Euclidean space. For ''n'' = 1, 2, or 3, it coincides ...
\lambda, which is a
complete measure In mathematics, a complete measure (or, more precisely, a complete measure space) is a measure space in which every subset of every null set is measurable (having measure zero). More formally, a measure space (''X'', Σ, ''μ'') is comp ...
and is defined on the Lebesgue σ-algebra. The Lebesgue σ-algebra is actually the ''completion'' of the Borel σ-algebra, which means that it is the smallest σ-algebra that contains all the Borel sets and has a
complete measure In mathematics, a complete measure (or, more precisely, a complete measure space) is a measure space in which every subset of every null set is measurable (having measure zero). More formally, a measure space (''X'', Σ, ''μ'') is comp ...
on it. Also, the Borel measure and the Lebesgue measure coincide on the Borel sets (i.e., \lambda(E)=\mu(E) for every Borel measurable set, where \mu is the Borel measure described above).


Product spaces

If ''X'' and ''Y'' are
second-countable In topology, a second-countable space, also called a completely separable space, is a topological space whose topology has a countable base. More explicitly, a topological space T is second-countable if there exists some countable collection \mat ...
, Hausdorff topological spaces, then the set of Borel subsets B(X\times Y) of their product coincides with the product of the sets B(X)\times B(Y) of Borel subsets of ''X'' and ''Y''. That is, the Borel
functor In mathematics, specifically category theory, a functor is a mapping between categories. Functors were first considered in algebraic topology, where algebraic objects (such as the fundamental group) are associated to topological spaces, an ...
: \mathbf\colon\mathbf_\to\mathbf from the category of second-countable Hausdorff spaces to the category of measurable spaces preserves finite products.


Applications


Lebesgue–Stieltjes integral

The Lebesgue–Stieltjes integral is the ordinary
Lebesgue integral In mathematics, the integral of a non-negative function of a single variable can be regarded, in the simplest case, as the area between the graph of that function and the -axis. The Lebesgue integral, named after French mathematician Henri Le ...
with respect to a measure known as the Lebesgue–Stieltjes measure, which may be associated to any function of
bounded variation In mathematical analysis, a function of bounded variation, also known as ' function, is a real number, real-valued function (mathematics), function whose total variation is bounded (finite): the graph of a function having this property is well beh ...
on the real line. The Lebesgue–Stieltjes measure is a regular Borel measure, and conversely every regular Borel measure on the real line is of this kind.


Laplace transform

One can define the
Laplace transform In mathematics, the Laplace transform, named after its discoverer Pierre-Simon Laplace (), is an integral transform that converts a function of a real variable (usually t, in the ''time domain'') to a function of a complex variable s (in the ...
of a finite Borel measure μ on the
real line In elementary mathematics, a number line is a picture of a graduated straight line that serves as visual representation of the real numbers. Every point of a number line is assumed to correspond to a real number, and every real number to a po ...
by the
Lebesgue integral In mathematics, the integral of a non-negative function of a single variable can be regarded, in the simplest case, as the area between the graph of that function and the -axis. The Lebesgue integral, named after French mathematician Henri Le ...
: (\mathcal\mu)(s) = \int_ e^\,d\mu(t). An important special case is where μ is a
probability measure In mathematics, a probability measure is a real-valued function defined on a set of events in a probability space that satisfies measure properties such as ''countable additivity''. The difference between a probability measure and the more g ...
or, even more specifically, the Dirac delta function. In
operational calculus Operational calculus, also known as operational analysis, is a technique by which problems in analysis, in particular differential equations, are transformed into algebraic problems, usually the problem of solving a polynomial equation. History T ...
, the Laplace transform of a measure is often treated as though the measure came from a distribution function ''f''. In that case, to avoid potential confusion, one often writes : (\mathcalf)(s) = \int_^\infty e^f(t)\,dt where the lower limit of 0 is shorthand notation for : \lim_\int_^\infty. This limit emphasizes that any point mass located at 0 is entirely captured by the Laplace transform. Although with the
Lebesgue integral In mathematics, the integral of a non-negative function of a single variable can be regarded, in the simplest case, as the area between the graph of that function and the -axis. The Lebesgue integral, named after French mathematician Henri Le ...
, it is not necessary to take such a limit, it does appear more naturally in connection with the
Laplace–Stieltjes transform The Laplace–Stieltjes transform, named for Pierre-Simon Laplace and Thomas Joannes Stieltjes, is an integral transform similar to the Laplace transform. For real-valued functions, it is the Laplace transform of a Stieltjes measure, however it is ...
.


Hausdorff dimension and Frostman's lemma

Given a Borel measure μ on a metric space ''X'' such that μ(''X'') > 0 and μ(''B''(''x'', ''r'')) ≤ ''rs'' holds for some constant ''s'' > 0 and for every ball ''B''(''x'', ''r'') in ''X'', then the
Hausdorff dimension In mathematics, Hausdorff dimension is a measure of ''roughness'', or more specifically, fractal dimension, that was first introduced in 1918 by mathematician Felix Hausdorff. For instance, the Hausdorff dimension of a single point is zero, o ...
dimHaus(''X'') ≥ ''s''. A partial converse is provided by the
Frostman lemma In mathematics, and more specifically, in the theory of fractal dimensions, Frostman's lemma provides a convenient tool for estimating the Hausdorff dimension of sets. Lemma: Let ''A'' be a Borel subset of R''n'', and let ''s'' > 0. T ...
: Lemma: Let ''A'' be a Borel subset of R''n'', and let ''s'' > 0. Then the following are equivalent: *''H''''s''(''A'') > 0, where ''H''''s'' denotes the ''s''-dimensional
Hausdorff measure In mathematics, Hausdorff measure is a generalization of the traditional notions of area and volume to non-integer dimensions, specifically fractals and their Hausdorff dimensions. It is a type of outer measure, named for Felix Hausdorff, that a ...
. *There is an (unsigned) Borel measure ''μ'' satisfying ''μ''(''A'') > 0, and such that ::\mu(B(x,r))\le r^s :holds for all ''x'' ∈ R''n'' and ''r'' > 0.


Cramér–Wold theorem

The Cramér–Wold theorem in measure theory states that a Borel
probability measure In mathematics, a probability measure is a real-valued function defined on a set of events in a probability space that satisfies measure properties such as ''countable additivity''. The difference between a probability measure and the more g ...
on \mathbb R^k is uniquely determined by the totality of its one-dimensional projections.K. Stromberg, 1994. ''Probability Theory for Analysts''. Chapman and Hall. It is used as a method for proving joint convergence results. The theorem is named after
Harald Cramér Harald Cramér (; 25 September 1893 – 5 October 1985) was a Swedish mathematician, actuary, and statistician, specializing in mathematical statistics and probabilistic number theory. John Kingman described him as "one of the giants of stati ...
and Herman Ole Andreas Wold.


References


Further reading

*
Gaussian measure In mathematics, Gaussian measure is a Borel measure on finite-dimensional Euclidean space R''n'', closely related to the normal distribution in statistics. There is also a generalization to infinite-dimensional spaces. Gaussian measures are named ...
, a finite-dimensional Borel measure * . * * * * Wiener's lemma related


External links


Borel measure
a
Encyclopedia of Mathematics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Borel Measure Measures (measure theory)