"Sandwich theorem" redirects here.

For the result in measure theory, see Ham sandwich

theorem.

In calculus, the squeeze theorem (known also as the pinching theorem, the sandwich
theorem, the sandwich rule and sometimes the squeeze lemma) is a theorem regarding
the limit of a function.

The squeeze theorem is a technical result which is very important in proofs in calculus
and mathematical analysis. It is typically used to confirm the limit of a function via
comparison with two other functions whose limits are known or easily computed. It was
first used geometrically by the mathematicians Archimedes and Eudoxus in an effort to
compute π, and was formulated in modern terms by Gauss.

In Italy, Russia and France, the squeeze theorem is also known as the two carabinieri
theorem, two militsioner theorem or two gendarmes theorem. The story is that if two
police officers are holding a prisoner between them, and both the officers are going to the
cell, the prisoner must also be going to the cell.

Contents
[hide]

 1 Statement
 2 Example
 3 Proof
 4 References
 5 External links

[edit] Statement
The squeeze theorem is formally stated as follows.

Let I be an interval containing the point a. Let f, g, and h be functions defined on I,

except possibly at a itself. Suppose that for every x in I not equal to a, we have:

and also suppose that:

Then
  The functions g(x) and h(x) are said to be lower and upper bounds (respectively) of f(x).
 Here a is not required to lie in the interior of I. Indeed, if a is an endpoint of I, then the
above limits are left- or right-hand limits.
 A similar statement holds for infinite intervals: for example, if I = (0, ∞), then the
conclusion holds, taking the limits as x → ∞.

Proof. From the above hypotheses we have, taking the limit inferior and superior:

so all the inequalities are indeed equalities and the thesis immediately follows.

[edit] Example

An example of a squeezed function,

The limit , cannot be ascertained through the limit law

, because does not exist.

However, we know from the definition of the Sine function that

Then it follows that

Since , by the Squeeze Theorem, must also
be 0.

[edit] Proof
The main idea behind this proof is to consider the relative differences between the
functions f, g, and h. This has the effect of making the lower bound identically 0, and all
the functions non-negative. This greatly simplifies the details of the proof. The general
case then follows algebraically.

To begin the proof, assume all the hypotheses and notation as given in the statement of
the theorem above. We first prove the special case where g(x) = 0 for all x and L = 0. In
this case:

Let ε > 0 be any fixed positive number. By the definition of the limit of a function, there
is a δ > 0 such that:

For any x in the interval I not equal to a

so that:

We conclude that:

This proves that:

This completes the proof for the special case. Now, we prove the general theorem by
letting g and L be arbitrary. For any x in I not equal to a, we have:
Subtracting g(x) from each expression:

As and , so that:

The special case now shows that We conclude that: