Barrier in better-quasi-order theory ($B\subseteq [A{]}^{<\omega }$)

A barrier on an infinite $A\subseteq \mathbb{N}$ is a family of nonempty finite increasing sequences, viewed as finite subsets, no one contained properly in another, such that every infinite subset of $A$ has a member of the family as an initial segment. Write $s◃t$ if there is a finite increasing sequence $u$ of which $s$ is an initial segment and of which $t$ is an initial segment after its first term is deleted. This shift relation underlies the good-array definition of better-quasi-ordering.

Every finite coloring of a barrier in better-quasi-order theory has an infinite restriction on which all barrier members have the same color. It extends finite-dimensional Ramsey's theorem from fixed-length subsets to variable-length initial segments. A proof proceeds by well-founded induction on the initial-segment tree and a fusion construction selecting successively nested infinite tails. It implies that every finite set with the equality order is a better-quasi-ordering. The barrier/front partition proof is given in Section 3.2 of arxiv.org/pdf/1604.05866 .