Past exam of the probability, measure and martingales course of the University of Oxford / 2023 / 2 / a

The sigma-algebra generated by a random variable $X$ is the smallest sigma-algebra on $\Omega$ making $X$ a measurable function into $(\mathbb{R},\mathcal{B}(\mathbb{R}))$. Equivalently, it is the intersection of all sigma-algebras containing the inverse images $X^{-1}(C)$ of Borel sets $C$.

Let $\mathcal{D}=\{X^{-1}(C):C\in \mathcal{B}(\mathbb{R})\}$. This collection is already a sigma-algebra: $X^{-1}(\mathbb{R})=\Omega$,The right-hand sets are in $\mathcal{D}$, since the Borel sigma-algebra is closed under the indicated operations. Any sigma-algebra making $X$ measurable must contain every member of $\mathcal{D}$. Conversely $\mathcal{D}$ makes $X$ measurable by definition. HenceThis equality holds exactly as a collection of sets, without completing the sigma-algebra.

We prove the Doob-Dynkin lemma here by simple function approximation. Choose $C<\infty$ such that $|Z|\le C$ everywhere, and letEach $Z_m$ is a finite-valued $\sigma (X)$-measurable function and $Z_m\to Z$ pointwise. Write its level sets as $A_{m,j}$, with associated values $z_{m,j}$. By part (i), choose Borel sets $D_{m,j}$ with $A_{m,j}=X^{-1}(D_{m,j})$. Define the Borel measurable functionsAlthough the chosen $D_{m,j}$ need not partition all of $\mathbb{R}$, their inverse images do partition $\Omega$, so $g_m(X)=Z_m$ exactly.

Apply scalar clipping to each $g_m$ with bounds $[-C-1,C+1]$, preserving this equality, and define $g(x)={\mathrm{limsup}}_m{g}_m(x)$. A bounded limit superior of Borel measurable functions is a finite Borel measurable function. At every $\omega \in \Omega$ the limit of a sequence exists and givesThus the factorization is exact for a bounded, exactly $\sigma (X)$-measurable function. If hypotheses are instead given only up to null sets, the corresponding conclusion is a factorization holding almost surely after choosing a representative.