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Concept
Fixed-point theorem
Summary
In mathematics, a fixed-point theorem is a result saying that a function F will have at least one fixed point (a point x for which F(x) = x), under some conditions on F that can be stated in general terms.
The Banach fixed-point theorem (1922) gives a general criterion guaranteeing that, if it is satisfied, the procedure of iterating a function yields a fixed point.
By contrast, the Brouwer fixed-point theorem (1911) is a non-constructive result: it says that any continuous function from the closed unit ball in n-dimensional Euclidean space to itself must have a fixed point, but it doesn't describe how to find the fixed point (See also Sperner's lemma).
For example, the cosine function is continuous in [−1,1] and maps it into [−1, 1], and thus must have a fixed point. This is clear when examining a sketched graph of the cosine function; the fixed point occurs where the cosine curve y = cos(x) intersects the line y = x. Numerically, the fixed point (known as the Dottie number) is approximately x = 0.73908513321516 (thus x = cos(x) for this value of x).
The Lefschetz fixed-point theorem (and the Nielsen fixed-point theorem) from algebraic topology is notable because it gives, in some sense, a way to count fixed points.
There are a number of generalisations to Banach fixed-point theorem and further; these are applied in PDE theory. See fixed-point theorems in infinite-dimensional spaces.
The collage theorem in fractal compression proves that, for many images, there exists a relatively small description of a function that, when iteratively applied to any starting image, rapidly converges on the desired image.
The Knaster–Tarski theorem states that any order-preserving function on a complete lattice has a fixed point, and indeed a smallest fixed point. See also Bourbaki–Witt theorem.
The theorem has applications in abstract interpretation, a form of static program analysis.
A common theme in lambda calculus is to find fixed points of given lambda expressions.
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