16.2 Polars

Definition 16.2.1 (Real Polar).label Let $\dpn{E, F}{\lambda}$ be a duality over $K \in \RC$ and $A \subset E$, then

\[A^{\circ} = \bracsn{y \in F| \text{Re}\dpn{x, y}{\lambda} \le 1 \forall x \in A}\]

is the real polar of $A$.

Definition 16.2.2 (Absolute Polar).label Let $\dpn{E, F}{\lambda}$ be a duality over $K \in \RC$ and $A \subset E$, then

\[A^{\square} = \bracsn{y \in F|\ |\dpn{x, y}{\lambda}| \le 1 \forall x \in A}\]

is the absolute polar of $A$.

Proposition 16.2.3.label Let $\dpn{E, F}{\lambda}$ be a duality over $K \in \RC$, then:

  1. (1)

    $\emptyset^{\circ} = F$ and $E^{\circ} = \bracs{0}$.

  2. (2)

    For any $\alpha \in K \setminus \bracs{0}$ and $A \subset E$, $(\alpha A)^{\circ} = \alpha^{-1}\cdot A^{\circ}$.

  3. (3)

    For any $\seqi{A}\subset E$, $\paren{\bigcup_{i \in I}A_i}^{\circ} = \bigcap_{i \in I}A_{i}^{\circ}$.

  4. (4)

    For any $A \subset B \subset E$, $A^{\circ} \supset B^{\circ}$.

  5. (5)

    For any saturated ideal $\sigma \subset \mathfrak{B}(E, \sigma(E, F))$, $\bracs{S^\circ|S \in \sigma}$ is a fundamental system of neighbourhoods at $0$ for the $\sigma$-uniform topology on $F$.

Proof. (2): For any $\lambda \in K \setminus \bracs{0}$ and $A \subset E$,

\begin{align*}(\lambda A)^{\circ}&= \bracs{y \in F|\text{Re}\dpn{x, y}{\lambda} \le 1 \forall x \in \alpha A}\\&= \bracs{y \in F|\text{Re}\dpn{x, y}{\lambda} \le 1 \forall x \in \alpha A}\\&= \bracs{y \in F|\text{Re}\dpn{x, \alpha y}{\lambda} \le 1 \forall x \in A}\\&= \bracs{y \in F|\text{Re}\dpn{\alpha x, y}{\lambda} \le 1 \forall x \in A}\\&= \bracs{\alpha^{-1} y \in F|\text{Re}\dpn{x, y}{\lambda} \le 1 \forall x \in A}\\&= \alpha^{-1}\cdot A^{\circ}\end{align*}

(5): Let $S \in \sigma$, then

\[(\aconv(S))^{\circ} = \bracs{y \in F|\ |\dpn{x, y}{\lambda}| \le 1 \forall x \in A}\subset S^{\circ}\]

Since $\sigma$ is saturated, $\bracs{S^\circ|S \in \sigma}$ is a fundamental system of neighbourhoods at $0$ for the $\sigma$-uniform topology.$\square$

Proposition 16.2.4 ([IV.1.4, SW99]).label Let $\dpn{E, F}{\lambda}$ be a duality over $K \in \RC$ and $A \subset E$, then

  1. (1)

    $A^{\circ}$ is a $\sigma(F, E)$-closed convex subset of $F$ containing $0$.

  2. (2)

    If $A$ is circled, then so is $A^{\circ}$.

  3. (3)

    If $A$ is a subspace of $E$, then

    \[A^{\circ} = A^{\perp} = \bracs{y \in F| \dpn{x, y}{E} = 0 \forall x \in A}\]

    and $A^{\circ}$ is a subspace of $F$.

Proof. (1): For each $x \in E$,

\[\bracs{x}^{\circ} = \bracs{y \in F|\text{Re}\dpn{x, y}{\lambda} \le 1}\]

is the sublevel set of a continuous $\real$-linear functional, so it is $\sigma(F, E)$-closed and convex. Since $A^{\circ} = \bigcap_{x \in A}\bracs{x}^{\circ}$, $A$ is also $\sigma(F, E)$-closed and convex.

(2): If $A$ is circled, then by Proposition 16.2.3,

\[A^{\circ} = \bigcap_{\substack{\alpha \in K \\ |\alpha| \ge 1}}\alpha A^{\circ}\]

For any $y \in A^{\circ}$ and $\alpha \in K \setminus \bracs{0}$ with $|\alpha| \le 1$. Since $y \in \alpha^{-1}A^{\circ}$, $\alpha y \in A^{\circ}$, so $A^{\circ}$ is circled.$\square$

Proposition 16.2.5.label Let $E$ be a TVS over $K \in \RC$, $\dpn{E, E^*}{E}$ be the canonical duality, and $A \subset E^{*}$, then the following are equivalent

  1. (1)

    $A$ is equicontinuous.

  2. (2)

    $A^{\circ} \in \cn_{E}(0)$.

Proof. By Proposition 10.13.1, $A$ is equicontinuous if and only if

\[\bigcap_{\phi \in A}\phi^{-1}(B_{K}(0, 1)) \in \cn_{E}(0)\]

(1) $\Rightarrow$ (2): $A^{\circ} \supset \bigcap_{\phi \in A}\phi^{-1}(B_{K}(0, 1))$.

(2) $\Rightarrow$ (1): Since $A^{\circ} \in \cn_{E}(0)$, there exists $V \in \cn_{E}(0)$ circled with $V \subset A^{\circ}$, so $V \subset \bigcap_{\phi \in A}\phi^{-1}(B_{K}(0, 1))$, and $\bigcap_{\phi \in A}\phi^{-1}(B_{K}(0, 1)) \in \cn_{E}(0)$.$\square$

Theorem 16.2.6 (Bipolar Theorem).label Let $\dpn{E, F}{\lambda}$ be a duality over $K \in \RC$. For each $A \subset F$,

\[A^{\circ\circ}= \ol{\conv}(A \cup \bracs{0})\]

with respect to the $\sigma(E, F)$-topology.

Proof, [IV.1.5, SW99]. By Proposition 16.2.4, $A^{\circ \circ}$ is a $\sigma(E, F)$-closed, convex set that contains $0$. Since $A^{\circ \circ}\supset A$, it is sufficient to show that $A^{\circ\circ}\subset \ol{\conv}(A \cup \bracs{0})$.

Let $x_{0} \in E \setminus \ol{\conv}(A \cup \bracs{0})$, then by the [Hahn-Banach Theorem]theorem:hahn-banach-geometric-2, there exists $\phi: E \to \real$ such that:

  1. (1)

    $\phi$ is $\sigma(E, F)$-continuous.

  2. (2)

    $\phi(\ol{\conv}(A \cup \bracs{0})) \subset (-\infty, 1)$ and $\phi(x_{0}) > 1$.

If $K = \real$, let $\Phi = \phi$. If $K = \complex$, then by Proposition 10.4.1, the mapping $\Phi(x) = \phi(x) - i\phi(ix)$ is a $\sigma(E; F)$-continuous $K$-linear map on $E$ such that $\text{Re}(\Phi) = \phi$. By Lemma 16.1.3, there exists $y \in F$ such that $\dpn{x, y}{\lambda}= \Phi(x)$ for all $x \in E$. In which case, for any $x \in E$,

\[\text{Re}\dpn{x, y}{\lambda}= \text{Re}\Phi(x) = \phi(x)\]

Therefore $y \in A^{\circ}$, but $\text{Re}\dpn{x_0, y}{\lambda}> 1$, so $x_{0} \not\in A^{\circ\circ}$.$\square$