Past exam of the analytic topology and axiomatic set theory course of the University of Oxford / 2009 / B / 5 / iii

For GCH arithmetic at aleph omega, let $\kappa ={\aleph }_{\omega }$. Use monotonicity of cardinal exponentiation, the law $(a^b{)}^c=a^{bc}$, and $\kappa \cdot \kappa =\kappa$ for infinite cardinals in ZFC. Since $2\le \kappa \le 2^{\kappa }$,Thus ${\kappa }^{\kappa }=2^{\kappa }$, and the generalized continuum hypothesis yieldsThe lower bound embeds binary-valued functions into $\kappa$-valued ones; the upper bound codes each value by a subset and combines the resulting pairs of indices. In particular the equality before applying the hypothesis is a ZFC equality.

Write again $\kappa ={\aleph }_{\omega }$. The countable cardinal sum ${\sum }_{n<\omega }{\aleph }_n$ equals $\kappa$: it is at least their supremum, and at most ${\aleph }_0\cdot \kappa =\kappa$. König's theorem givesThe latter product injects into $P={\prod }_{n<\omega }{\aleph }_n$ by fixing coordinate zero and putting its $n$th coordinate in coordinate $n+1$. Conversely $P$ injects into the set of all functions $\omega \to \kappa$. ThereforeNo cardinal lies strictly between $\kappa$ and its successor, soThe strict lower bound is essential: replacing the product by the supremum of its factors would incorrectly give ${\aleph }_{\omega }$.

The product from the preceding part injects into ${\kappa }^{{\aleph }_0}$, where $\kappa ={\aleph }_{\omega }$, because each coordinate value is an ordinal below $\kappa$. Combining its strict König lower bound with the exponentiation upper bound givesHenceOnly the instance $2^{{\aleph }_{\omega }}={\aleph }_{\omega +1}$ of the generalized continuum hypothesis was needed in these three computations, though the question assumes the full hypothesis. No assumption that countable exponentiation leaves this singular cardinal unchanged is valid: König's theorem rules that out.