Real Analysis – Difference Between the Limit of a Sequence and a Limit Point of a Set

convergence-divergenceepsilon-deltareal-analysissequences-and-series

I always thought they were the same thing. The limit of a sequence is a point such that every neighborhood around it contains infinitely many terms of the sequence. The limit point of a set is a point such that every neighborhood around it contains infinitely many points of the set. So is the limit of a sequence also a limit point of a set that contains it? what's the difference?

Best Answer

Let's work in the real line, for concreteness. Consider a sequence $(x_n)_{n \geq 1}$. A limit point of the sequence is a limit point of the set $\{x_n \mid n\geq 1\}$. When you say the limit point, it means that the set $\{x_n \mid n\geq 1\}$ has only one limit point, say, $L$. And this $L$ is the element who satisfies the definition we all know and love: $$\forall \ \epsilon > 0, \ \exists \ n_0 \geq 1, {\rm s.t.} \ n > n_0 \implies |x_n - L| < \epsilon.$$

If the set $\{x_n \mid n\geq 1\}$ has more than one limit point, then the sequence $(x_n)_{n \geq 1}$ does not converge.