411 REFERENCE · Wiktionary
Riemann sphere
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English
Etymology
Named after German mathematician Bernhard Riemann.
Noun
en topology complex analysis The complex numbers extended with the number ∞; the complex plane (representation of the complex numbers as a Euclidean plane) extended with a single idealised point at infinity and consequently homeomorphic to a sphere in 3-dimensional Euclidean space.
en 2002 Wenhua Zhao Some Generalizations of Genus Zero Two-Dimensional Conformal Field Theory Stephen Berman; Paul Fendley; Yi-Zhi Huang; Kailash Misra; Brian Parshall Recent Developments in Infinite-dimensional Lie Algebras and Conformal Field Theory w:American Mathematical Society https://books.google.com.au/books?id=1GgbCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA306&dq=%22Riemann+sphere%22%7C%22Riemann+spheres%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZ7tnfsPPcAhXIwlQKHWerCDoQ6AEIWDAJ#v=onepage&q=%22Riemann%20sphere%22%7C%22Riemann%20spheres%22&f=false 306 We use (resp. ) to denote the subset (resp. ) in the Riemann sphere .
en topology complex analysis The 2-sphere embedded in Euclidean three-dimensional space and often represented as a unit sphere, regarded as a homeomorphic representation of the extended complex plane and thus the extended complex numbers.
1967 [Prentice-Hall], Richard A. Silverman, Introductory Complex Analysis, Dover, 1972, page 22,
Every circle on the Riemann sphere which does not go through a given point divides into two parts, such that one part contains and the other does not.
en 2002 Yue Kuen Kwok Applied Complex Variables for Scientists and Engineers https://books.google.com.au/books?id=QpbT3mkXjiMC&pg=PA27&dq=%22Riemann+sphere%22%7C%22Riemann+spheres%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZ7tnfsPPcAhXIwlQKHWerCDoQ6AEIPzAE#v=onepage&q=%22Riemann%20sphere%22%7C%22Riemann%20spheres%22&f=false 27 w:Cambridge University Press In order to visualize the point at infinity, we consider the Riemann sphere that has radius and is tangent to the complex plane at the origin (see Figure 1.8). We call the point of contact the south pole (denoted by ) and the point diametrically opposite the north pole (denoted by ). Let be an arbitrary point in the complex plane, represented by the point . We draw the line which intersects the Riemann sphere at the unique point , distinct from . Conversely, to each point on the sphere, other than the north pole , we draw the line which cuts uniquely one point in the complex plane. Clearly, there exists a one-to-one correspondence between points on the Riemann sphere, except , and all the finite points on the complex plane. We assign the north pole as the point at infinity. With such an assignment, we then establish a one-to-one correspondence between all the points on the Riemann sphere and all the points in the extended complex plane. This correspondence is known as the stereographic projection.
en 2003 Philip L. Bowers; Monica K. Hurdal Planar Conformal Mappings of Piecewise Flat Surfaces Hans-Christian Hege; Konrad Polthier Visualization and Mathematics III Springer https://books.google.com.au/books?id=rtCbu5M6eecC&pg=PA6&dq=%22Riemann+sphere%22%7C%22Riemann+spheres%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZ7tnfsPPcAhXIwlQKHWerCDoQ6AEIcDAN#v=onepage&q=%22Riemann%20sphere%22%7C%22Riemann%20spheres%22&f=false 6 We find that many mathematicians, even those who specialize in complex analysis and conformal geometry, are not familiar with the inversive distance between pairs of circles in the Riemann sphere.
Usage notes
A suitable (and often cited) homeomorphism is the one represented geometrically as a stereographic projection. In graphic representations of the projection, the Riemann sphere is an object in Euclidean space, while the projective plane (i.e., the complex plane) is itself a Euclidean representation of the complex numbers.
Synonyms
complex numbers with infinity en extended complex numbers
complex plane with point at infinity en closed complex plane, en extended complex plane
Translations
complex plane with a point at infinity
Dutch: nl Riemann-sfeer m
Italian: it sfera di Riemann f
Polish: pl sfera Riemanna f
Russian: ru сфе́ра Ри́мана f
Euclidean sphere as a representation
Italian: it sfera di Riemann f
Polish: pl sfera Riemanna f
Russian: ru сфе́ра Ри́мана f
See also
en Argand plane
en complex manifold
en complex plane
en complex projective line differently constructed set homeomorphic to the Riemann sphere
en Riemann surface
Further reading
Complex plane
Riemann surface
en eponyms
en Non-Euclidean geometry