[Math] Axiomatic definition of the real numbers and uncountability

axiomslogicreal numbers

There are several approaches in defining the real numbers axiomatically and suppose that we have some set of axioms $A$ which completely characterize rational numbers and which does not mention anything about some representation of rational numbers in any way (representation is here something like decimal representation or representation by continued fractions). Now let us add completeness axiom ($ca$) which states that "every nonempty set $S$ of real numbers which is bounded above has a least upper bound". If we join $ca$ to the set of axioms $A$ then $A$ along with the $ca$ should completely characterize the real numbers.

My question is:

Can we prove that $\mathbb R$ is uncountable by only using axioms from the set $A$ together with the axiom $ca$?

Best Answer

Since the phrasing of the question itself is a bit muddled, let me instead address the version of the question you stated in a comment:

all I wanted to know is if there is a way that only from the axioms for the real numbers we prove uncountability of the real numbers.

The answer is absolutely yes (assuming that by "axioms" you mean an axiomatic description of a structure in an ambient set theory, rather than some kind of self-contained first-order axiomatization). In particular, the real numbers can be completely axiomatized as a complete ordered field: that is, a field $\mathbb{R}$ together with a total ordering compatible with the field structure, such that any nonempty set $S\subset\mathbb{R}$ with an upper bound has a least upper bound.

Let me sketch a proof from these axioms that $\mathbb{R}$ is uncountable. Suppose $\mathbb{R}$ were countable, and $i:\mathbb{R}\to\mathbb{N}$ were an injection. We have elements $0,1\in\mathbb{R}$ with $0<1$. Moreover, the ordered field axioms imply that if $x,y\in\mathbb{R}$ satisfy $x<y$, then there exists an element $z\in\mathbb{R}$ such that $x<z<y$ (namely, $z=(x+y)/2)$. Now define an increasing sequence $(x_n)$ and a decreasing sequence $(y_n)$ such that $x_n<y_n$ for all $n$ by induction. Start with $x_0=0$ and $y_0=1$. Given $x_n$ and $y_n$ with $x_n<y_n$, consider the set of all $z\in\mathbb{R}$ such that $x_n<z<y_n$. This set is nonempty, and so it has a unique element $z$ which minimizes the value $i(z)$. Let $x_{n+1}$ be that value $z$. Similarly, there is a unique $w$ such that $x_{n+1}<w<y_n$ which minimizes the value $i(w)$ among all such $w$. Let $y_{n+1}=w$.

Having constructed these sequences, let $S=\{x_n\}_{n\in\mathbb{N}}$. This is a nonempty subset of $\mathbb{R}$, and it is bounded above (namely, by $y_n$ for any $n$). So there is some $r\in \mathbb{R}$ that is the least upper bound of the set $S$. Note that the numbers $y_n$ are all distinct, so the numbers $i(y_n)$ form an infinite subset of the natural numbers. In particular, there must be some $n$ such that $i(y_{n+1})>i(r)$. But I claim this is impossible. Indeed, $y_{n+1}$ was defined to be the element $w\in\mathbb{R}$ such that $x_{n+1}<w<y_n$ which minimized $i(w)$. But $r$ also satisfies $x_{n+1}<r<y_n$ ($r\geq x_{n+2}>x_{n+1}$ since $r$ is an upper bound of $S$, and $r\leq y_{n+1}<y_n$ since $r$ is the least upper bound of $S$ and $y_{n+1}$ is also an upper bound of $S$). Since $i(r)<i(y_{n+1})$, this contradicts our definition of $y_{n+1}$. This contradiction means that our injection $i$ cannot exist, i.e. $\mathbb{R}$ is uncountable.

For an alternate proof, you can define decimal expansions of real numbers from these axioms (though it takes a bit of work), and then do the usual diagonal argument.