English

Directions sets: A generalization of ratio sets

Number Theory 2020-12-15 v1

Abstract

For every integer k2k \geq 2 and every ANA \subseteq \mathbb{N}, we define the \emph{kk-directions sets} of AA as Dk(A):={a/a:aAk}D^k(A) := \{{\bf a} / \|{\bf a}\| : {\bf a} \in A^k\} and Dk(A):={a/a:aAk}D^{\underline{k}}(A) := \{{\bf a} / \|{\bf a}\| : {\bf a} \in A^{\underline{k}}\}, where \|\cdot\| is the Euclidean norm and Ak:={aAk:aiaj for all ij}A^{\underline{k}} := \{{\bf a} \in A^k : a_i \neq a_j \text{ for all } i \neq j\}. Via an appropriate homeomorphism, Dk(A)D^k(A) is a generalization of the \emph{ratio set} R(A):={a/b:a,bA}R(A) := \{a / b : a,b \in A\}, which has been studied by many authors. We study Dk(A)D^k(A) and Dk(A)D^{\underline{k}}(A) as subspaces of Sk1:={x[0,1]k:x=1}S^{k-1} := \{{\bf x} \in [0,1]^k : \|{\bf x}\| = 1\}. In~particular, generalizing a result of Bukor and T\'oth, we provide a characterization of the sets XSk1X \subseteq S^{k-1} such that there exists ANA \subseteq \mathbb{N} satisfying Dk(A)=XD^{\underline{k}}(A)^\prime = X, where YY^\prime denotes the set of accumulation points of YY. Moreover, we provide a simple sufficient condition for Dk(A)D^k(A) to be dense in Sk1S^{k-1}. We conclude leaving some questions for further research.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1907.11877,
  title  = {Directions sets: A generalization of ratio sets},
  author = {Paolo Leonetti and Carlo Sanna},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1907.11877},
  year   = {2020}
}

Comments

7 pp. Accepted in Bull. Austr. Math. Soc

R2 v1 2026-06-23T10:32:36.159Z