Kneser's Theorem in $σ$-finite Abelian groups

Pierre-Yves Bienvenu, François Hennecart

Published 2019-11-18Version 1

Let $G$ be a $\sigma$-finite abelian group, i.e. $G=\bigcup_{n\geq 1} G_n$ where $(G_n)_{n\geq 1}$ is a non decreasing sequence of finite subgroups. For any $A\subset G$, let $\underline{\mathrm{d}}(A):=\liminf_{n\to\infty}\frac{|A\cap G_n|}{|G_n|}$ be its lower asymptotic density. We show that for any subsets $A$ and $B$ of $G$, whenever $\underline{\mathrm{d}}(A+B)< \underline{\mathrm{d}}(A)+\underline{\mathrm{d}}(B)$, the sumset $A+B$ must be periodic, that is, a union of translates of a subgroup $H\leq G$ of finite index. This is exactly analogous to Kneser's theorem regarding the density of infinite sets of integers. We prove this theorem by appealing to another theorem of Kneser, namely the one regarding finite sumsets in an abelian group. Further, we show similar statements for the upper asymptotic and Banach densities.