Value of Compactly Supported Function outside its Support
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Theorem
Let $f : \R \to \R$ be a continuous real function.
Let $K \subseteq \R$ be a compact subset.
Let $K$ be the support of $f$:
- $\map \supp f = K$.
Then:
- $\forall x \notin K : \map f x = 0$
Proof
We have that:
- $\R = K \cup \paren {\R \setminus K}$.
By definition of the support:
- $x \in \map \supp f \iff \map f x \ne 0$
By Biconditional Equivalent to Biconditional of Negations:
- $\neg \paren {x \in \map \supp f} \iff \neg \paren {\map f x \ne 0}$
That is:
- $x \notin K \iff \map f x = 0$
or
- $x \in \R \setminus K \iff \map f x = 0$
Hence:
- $\forall x \notin K : \map f x = 0$
$\blacksquare$