Darboux sums of the Dirichlet function
Statement
Let with if is rational and if is irrational. For a partition compute the lower sum and the upper sum . Determine and , and decide whether is Riemann integrable.
Hint
Both rationals and irrationals are dense. What are the infimum and the supremum of on any subinterval of positive length?
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Solution
Definitions. For a partition , let and . Then
Values. Each subinterval has positive length and so contains a rational (where ) and an irrational (where ). Hence and for all , and
Conclusion. and . They differ, so is not Riemann integrable.
Remark. No refinement of the partition helps: the function oscillates fully on every tiny interval. This example motivated Lebesgue's theory, in which this function has integral , since the rationals have measure zero.