Past exam of the metric spaces and complex analysis course of the University of Oxford / 2023 / 3 / b

A sufficient condition is that $U$ is a connected space. Suppose, towards a contradiction, that $|f|$ is the same constant $R$ throughout $U$. If $R=0$, then $f=0$, contradicting $f(a)\ne f(b)$.

If $R>0$, differentiate $u^2+v^2=R^2$ in $x$ and $y$, and use the Cauchy-Riemann equations from part (a). They giveThe coefficient matrix for $(u_x,v_x)$ has determinant $-(u^2+v^2)=-R^2\ne 0$. Hence $u_x=v_x=0$, so $f^{\prime }=0$ everywhere. A holomorphic function with zero complex derivative is locally constant: within a small disc, differentiate along a straight segment. Local constancy and connectedness imply constancy on $U$, again a contradiction.

Consequently,This is the constant-modulus holomorphic function principle. The extra hypothesis matters: on two disjoint open discs, define $f=1$ on one and $f=-1$ on the other. It is holomorphic and nonconstant, yet $|f|=1$ everywhere.