A biholomorphism of the unit disk to itself. Every such map has the form with . These maps normalize an extremal univalent function in the proof of the Riemann mapping theorem.
Write . The mapping-out function is a conformal map with hydrodynamic normalization at infinity
Equivalently, . The Riemann mapping theorem gives a map onto the half-plane. Since is bounded, infinity has an analytic real-boundary neighborhood. After sending its image to infinity, the Schwarz reflection principle gives a Laurent series there, with and real. A real affine automorphism removes and , giving the stated normalization. Reflection also makes real.
If both have this normalization, is a conformal automorphism of the upper half-plane. Such maps are real Möbius transformations. The expansion forces it to fix infinity, have leading coefficient , and have zero translation. It is therefore the identity. Thus the normalized mapping-out function exists and is unique.
Fix . We prove the Riemann mapping theorem in this case by maximizing a normalized derivative. Choose . Since is a simply connected domain and never vanishes, it has a holomorphic square root . This is injective, and is disjoint from : equality up to sign would first force the original points to coincide. Choose and with . The ball is omitted, so is a bounded univalent function. Scaling and composing with an automorphism of the unit disk produces an injective holomorphic function with and .
Let be the family of all such normalized univalent functions. A Cauchy estimate in a small disk about bounds their derivatives, so is finite and positive. Choose a maximizing sequence in this normal family. Montel theorem gives a subsequence converging uniformly on compact subsets to . Its derivative at is . The maximum modulus principle puts its image in , and Hurwitz's theorem implies that a nonconstant limit of injective holomorphic functions is injective. Thus the maximum is attained.
If is omitted, then . Put . A holomorphic square root of exists, is injective, and takes values in . Compose with and a rotation to normalize it. Writing , the new derivative has magnitude
a contradiction. Therefore maps onto . The Cayley transform between the half-plane and disk now gives
Its inverse is holomorphic by the holomorphic inverse function theorem, so this is a biholomorphism. The proper-subset hypothesis was used to choose ; the whole complex plane cannot be mapped this way, by Liouville theorem.
Write . A compact H-hull is a bounded, relatively closed set for which is a simply connected domain. “Compact” refers to its compact closure in ; boundary points on can be adjoined without changing the remaining domain.
The Riemann mapping theorem and normalization at infinity give a unique mapping-out function of a compact H-hull with hydrodynamic normalization at infinity. By the Schwarz reflection principle outside a large disc, it has the Laurent series
The half-plane capacity is the coefficient
The empty compact H-hull has and half-plane capacity zero. Nonnegativity follows from the Brownian representation of half-plane capacity proved next.
A compact H-hull is a bounded subset , closed relative to the complex upper half-plane, such that is a simply connected domain. The word compact refers to its bounded closure in ; a nonempty hull need not be a compact subset of the open half-plane.
The Riemann mapping theorem and normalization at infinity give a unique mapping-out function of a compact H-hull with as . This hydrodynamic normalization at infinity yields a Laurent series
The coefficient is the half-plane capacity:
The uniformization theorem says that every simply connected Riemann surface is conformally equivalent to exactly one of the Riemann sphere, the complex plane, and the unit disc. A proper simply connected plane domain is noncompact, so it is not the sphere. It cannot be uniformized by the plane: after choosing a point outside the domain, a branch of a square root and then a Möbius transformation would produce a nonconstant bounded entire function, contradicting the Liouville theorem. It is therefore conformally equivalent to the disc, which is the Riemann mapping theorem.
A compact H-hull is a bounded relatively closed set for which is a simply connected domain. The Riemann mapping theorem and hydrodynamic normalization at infinity give a unique mapping-out function of a compact H-hull with
The coefficient is the half-plane capacity .
For and , uniqueness of the normalized map gives
Substituting the expansion of yields
Therefore the scaling and translation of half-plane capacity is