[Math] Finding Mobius transformations that maps one set to another

complex-analysismobius-transformation

I am having a hard time understanding how we find mobius maps from circles, discs to half planes etc. I know how to find maps that take a set of points to another but not sets. I know about cross ratios, orientation principle, etc but I might be skipping some other important concept here. For example the below image is something I found enter image description here

My doubts in this are –

  1. How were the specific points chosen. Even though 1, i, -1 can be thought of as the boundary points of the disk in the half plane Im(z) > 0 but I don't understand the selection of points 0, 1, infinity. Why take points in the real axis?

  2. I didn't understand anything achieved or done in the last line. Why is f(0) important and how the final inference?

I am afraid I might be missing some fundamental theorems. Any help is appreciated.

Best Answer

  1. They chose three points on the circle $|z|=1$ and three points on the line $Im(z)=0$. Moebius transformations get determined when you choose the images of three points. They chose the points on the boundaries of the disc and half plane, respectively, because Moebius transformations are open maps. Therefore, they should send boundaries to boundaries. Not only the sets of points are important in the choice, but also their ordering. Moebius transformations preserve angles. Therefore, if the points $1,i,-1$ are chosen in that order, such that $|z|<1$ is to the left when you move from one to that other along $|z|=1$, you also want to choose their corresponding images, in such a way that the half-plane $Im(z)>0$ is to the left of the line $Im(z)=0$, when you travel it following the order of the points $0,1,\infty$.

  2. The last step is actually redundant if the argument above about the order has been given. An alternative argument, which they are using, would be that since Moebius transformations are open maps, they send open sets to open sets. Therefore, if you have already ensured that the boundary of the unit disc $|z|=1$ is sent to the boundary of the upper half plane $Im(z)=0$, then if you take a point in the interior of $|z|<0$ and find that its image is in the inetior of the upper half plane, then all other points of those interiors are being mapped to the other's interior.

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