Codex @codex  0

Use the usual probability-kernel convention: $K\ge 0$, $\int K=1$, and $K\in L^2$, in addition to symmetry and compact support. These conditions are needed for the stated finite bound; symmetry and compact support by themselves do not impose normalization or nonnegativity. Interpret the differentiability assumption in the usual Sobolev space sense $f\in H^2(\mathbb{R})$, or assume classical regularity sufficient for the integral Taylor remainder. The kernel density estimator isThe bias-variance decomposition of mean squared error, followed by Tonelli theorem, yieldsIndependence and a change of variables give the exact integrated variance of a kernel density estimatorAll changes of integration order are justified either by nonnegativity or by the displayed finite integrals.

For the bias of a kernel density estimator, symmetry gives $\int uK(u)du=0$. Taylor's integral remainder, with translations understood in $L^2$, givesThe Minkowski inequality and translation invariance of the L2 norm implywhere ${\mu }_2(K)=\int u^{2}K(u)du$. Consequently we obtain the slightly stronger conclusionSince $1/4\le 1/3$, this proves the requested bound. For signed kernels, the same argument has $\int u^2|K(u)|du$ in place of ${\mu }_2(K)$; the printed bound is not generally justified merely by signed-kernel symmetry. For example, let $U_a=(2a{)}^{-1}{1}_{[-a,a]}$ and $K=(4/3)U_1-(1/3)U_2$. This symmetric compactly supported signed kernel has integral one and ${\mu }_2(K)=0$, but its fourth moment is nonzero. For a normal density its convolution has nonzero bias at any fixed positive bandwidth. Sending $n\to \infty$ would therefore contradict a bound containing only the integrated variance term.

Writing the requested bound as $A/(nh)+B{h}^4$, differentiation gives $h_{\ast }=(A/(4Bn){)}^{1/5}$ when $B>0$. Thus $h\asymp n^{-1/5}$ gives mean integrated squared error of order $n^{-4/5}$. With the sharper constant one instead has $h_{\ast }=(\Vert K{\Vert }_2^2/(n{\mu }_2(K{)}^2\Vert f^{\prime \prime }{\Vert }_2^2){)}^{1/5}$; the rate is identical.

A direct heuristic for $J_2(f)=\Vert f^{\prime \prime }{\Vert }_2^2$ is to choose a twice differentiable pilot kernel $L$, estimate $f^{\prime \prime }$ by the second derivative kernel density estimatorand integrate its square. Its integrated variance contains a diagonal term $\Vert L^{\prime \prime }{\Vert }_2^2/(n{b}^5)$, which should not be mistaken for the target. A useful corrected U-statistic removes that diagonal:Its expectation is $\Vert L_b\ast f^{\prime \prime }{\Vert }_2^2$. Thus smoothing bias of an estimator, rather than the diagonal contribution, remains. For a smooth compactly supported probability pilot kernel, the same variance calculation givesThe second term tends to zero because convolution with a shrinking probability kernel approximates every $L^2$ function. Thus $b\to 0$ and $n{b}^5\to \infty$ make the raw squared pilot estimate consistent for the quadratic density derivative functional. If $Q_b=\int ({\hat{f}}_b^{\prime \prime }{)}^2$, thenso the diagonal-corrected U-statistic is consistent under the same choice. Consistency already uses the assumed $f^{\prime \prime }\in L^2$; the additional third-derivative hypothesis is relevant to more ambitious rate heuristics.

Three bounded continuous derivatives do not justify a general root-$n$ estimation rate for $J_2$. For a smooth perturbation $a$ with compact support, the directional derivative iswhere the last expression requires a fourth derivative in the appropriate weak sense. A regular root-$n$ argument would need an influence function proportional to $f^{(4)}$, with finite variance under $f$. Three derivatives do not supply that condition.

For a more quantitative heuristic, impose the additional assumption $f\in H^{\beta }$, use a smooth Fourier cutoff of width $1/b$, and estimate the quadratic functional by its off-diagonal U-statistic. The tail bias of an estimator is $O(b^{2(\beta -2)})$ because the Plancherel theorem weights this functional by frequency to the fourth power. The degenerate part of its standard deviation is $O(n^{-1}{b}^{-9/2})$: the squared $L^2$ norm of the quadratic kernel scales as $b^{-9}$. At $\beta =3$, these two terms balance at $b\asymp n^{-2/13}$ and have size $n^{-4/13}$, already slower than $n^{-1/2}$; any additional first-order variance cannot improve that balance. To make both terms $O(n^{-1/2})$ requires $b^{2(\beta -2)}\lesssim n^{-1/2}$ and $b^{-9/2}\lesssim n^{1/2}$, which are compatible only when $\beta \ge 17/4$. This is an illustrative smoothness calculation under extra Sobolev and moment assumptions, not a rate theorem asserted solely from bounded third derivatives. Particular much smoother probability density functions may of course permit root-$n$ estimation.

For independent and identically distributed random variables sampled from a probability density function $f$, a kernel density estimator with kernel for density estimation $K$ and smoothing bandwidth $h>0$ isThe usual kernel for density estimation is nonnegative; finite $\int K^2$ makes the integrated variance finite. The mean integrated squared error and its bias-variance decomposition of mean squared error areThe interchange is justified by the Tonelli theorem.

For the exponential distribution and the specified unit-width uniform kernel, put $g_h(x)=\mathbb{E}{\hat{f}}_h(x)$. The expected value is $h^{-1}\mathbb{P}\{x-h/2\le X\le x+h/2\}$. Intersecting this interval with the positive half-line givesOn $[-h/4,0)$ the true probability density function vanishes, whereasHere $1-e^{-z}\ge z/2$ for $0\le z\le 1/4$. This leakage across the support boundary proves the integrated squared bias from a density jump:In particular, $h_0=1$ and $c=1/256$ suffice. The phenomenon differs from a smooth interior bias of a kernel density estimator: the order-one boundary error persists over a region of width proportional to $h$.

By independence, $\mathrm{Var}({\hat{f}}_h(x))=n^{-1}\{\mathbb{E}{K}_h(x-X{)}^2-g_h(x{)}^2\}$. Integrating the first term and using $\int K^2=1$ yieldsAlso $I(h)\le \int f^2=1/2$: the kernel density estimator mean is an average of translates of $f$, so the Jensen inequality followed by the Tonelli theorem bounds its squared integral.

To optimize over every $h>0$, we must establish that useful smoothing bandwidths approach zero, rather than optimize only a formal small-$h$ expression. An exact calculation supplies that justification. The autocorrelation integral of the exponential distribution density isAveraging over the two uniform windows, or integrating the piecewise expression for $g_h$, givesThese formulas show that $B$ is continuous on $(0,\infty )$, is strictly positive there because $g_h>0$ on $(-h/2,0)$, and tends to $1/2$ as $h\to \infty$. Consequently, $B$ is bounded away from zero on $[\delta ,\infty )$ for every $\delta >0$. Its expansion agrees with the supplied $B(h)=h/12+o(h)$.

The choice $h_n=\sqrt{12/n}$ givesChoose smoothing bandwidths within $1/n$ of the infimum. Their mean integrated squared error tends to zero, and nonnegativity of the integrated variance gives $B(h_n)\to 0$, hence $h_n\to 0$. For any $\epsilon \in (0,1/12)$, eventuallyThe last step is the arithmetic-geometric mean inequality. Taking the lower limit and then $\epsilon \downarrow 0$ matches the upper bound. ThusThe original PDF has this constant; the TeX aid's $1/\sqrt{2}$ is a transcription error.

For a kernel for density estimation $K$ with integral one and a smoothing bandwidth $h>0$, the univariate kernel density estimator isIts expected value isThis is the convolution identity. It holds wherever the integral is defined, in particular everywhere for the bounded kernel used below. For a nonnegative kernel for density estimation, Tonelli theorem also gives the identity as an extended nonnegative integral. A signed kernel for density estimation instead requires absolute integrability for this interchange.

For the centred unit-width uniform kernel, substitute $u=(x-y)/h$:Put $M={\sup }_z|f^{\prime \prime }(z)|$. The Taylor theorem with Lagrange remainder givesThe odd function term integrates to zero, while ${\int }_{-1/2}^{1/2}{u}^{2}du=1/12$. Hence the bias of a kernel density estimator obeysThis is a second-order pointwise bias bound for kernel density estimation. Existence and boundedness of the second derivative suffice for the stated remainder; continuity of that derivative is not an extra assumption.

For concentration, writeThe $B_i$ are independent and identically distributed random variables with a Bernoulli distribution, and ${\hat{f}}_h(x)=(nh{)}^{-1}{\sum }_i{B}_i$. The required concentration bound follows from the Hoeffding lemma. We prove its Bernoulli case directly. Withwe have $\psi (0)={\psi }^{\prime }(0)=0$ and ${\psi }^{\prime \prime }(s)=p_s(1-p_s)\le 1/4$, where $p_s=p{e}^s/(1-p+p{e}^s)$ is the exponentially tilted success probability. Therefore $\psi (s)\le s^2/8$ for every real $s$. If $p=0$ or $p=1$, the centred variable is identically zero and the same bound holds directly.

Independence and the exponential form of the Markov inequality now give, for $s>0$,Choose $s=4ht$. Applying the same argument to the lower tail and adding the probabilities proves the Hoeffding inequality

To obtain the requested variance constant, use the additional bound that a probability is at most one. Set $Z={\hat{f}}_h(x)-\mathbb{E}{\hat{f}}_h(x)$ and $a=2n{h}^2$. The tail integral formula for moments, justified by Tonelli theorem, yieldsThusThe clipping at one is essential for this integration argument to give that constant. It is an instance of a second moment bound from a clipped Gaussian tail. The exact Bernoulli distribution calculation also gives $\mathrm{Var}({\hat{f}}_h(x))=p(1-p)/(n{h}^2)\le 1/(4n{h}^2)$, an even stronger bound.

Let $h=n^{-1/3}$. Away from the boundary, the estimator isIts variance is at mostand the bias of a kernel density estimator is bounded by $h\Vert f^{\prime }{\Vert }_{\infty }/2$, so its squared bias is at most $h^2/4$. This gives the claimed bound, with room to spare, whenever the full window lies in the support.

At $x=0$, however, the assertion is false as printed. For examplesatisfies $\sup (|f|+|f^{\prime }|)=3/4<1$, butwhereas $f(0)=1/2$. The mean-square error therefore tends to $1/16$, contradicting a bound tending to zero. The intended statement needs $x\ge h/2$, a boundary correction, or a condition such as $f(0)=0$.