Definable sets in ordered structures. I

Abstract

This paper introduces and begins the study of a well-behaved class of linearly ordered structures, the <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="script upper O"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"> <mml:mi class="MJX-tex-caligraphic" mathvariant="script">O</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">\mathcal {O}</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>-minimal structures. The definition of this class and the corresponding class of theories, the strongly <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="script upper O"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"> <mml:mi class="MJX-tex-caligraphic" mathvariant="script">O</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">\mathcal {O}</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>-minimal theories, is made in analogy with the notions from stability theory of minimal structures and strongly minimal theories. Theorems 2.1 and 2.3, respectively, provide characterizations of <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="script upper O"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"> <mml:mi class="MJX-tex-caligraphic" mathvariant="script">O</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">\mathcal {O}</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>-minimal ordered groups and rings. Several other simple results are collected in <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="section-sign 3"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">§</mml:mi> <mml:mn>3</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">\S 3</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>. The primary tool in the analysis of <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="script upper O"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"> <mml:mi class="MJX-tex-caligraphic" mathvariant="script">O</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">\mathcal {O}</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>-minimal structures is a strong analogue of "forking symmetry," given by Theorem 4.2. This result states that any (parametrically) definable unary function in an <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="script upper O"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"> <mml:mi class="MJX-tex-caligraphic" mathvariant="script">O</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">\mathcal {O}</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>-minimal structure is piecewise either constant or an order-preserving or reversing bijection of intervals. The results that follow include the existence and uniqueness of prime models over sets (Theorem 5.1) and a characterization of all <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="normal alef 0"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"> <mml:msub> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">ℵ</mml:mi> <mml:mn>0</mml:mn> </mml:msub> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">{\aleph _0}</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>-categorical <inline-formula content-type="math/mathml"> <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" alttext="script upper O"> <mml:semantics> <mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"> <mml:mi class="MJX-tex-caligraphic" mathvariant="script">O</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:annotation encoding="application/x-tex">\mathcal {O}</mml:annotation> </mml:semantics> </mml:math> </inline-formula>-minimal structures (Theorem 6.1).