Every finite set of integers is an asymptotic approximate group

Melvyn B. Nathanson

Published 2015-11-20Version 1

A set $A$ is an $(r,\ell)$-approximate group in the additive abelian group $G$ if $A$ is a nonempty subset of $G$ and there exists a subset $X$ of $G$ such that $|X| \leq \ell$ and $rA \subseteq X+A$. The set $A$ is an asymptotic $(r,\ell)$-approximate group if the sumset $hA$ is an $(r,\ell)$-approximate group for all sufficiently large integers $h$. It is proved that every finite set of integers is an asymptotic $(r,r+1)$-approximate group for every integer $r \geq 2$.