Distance Sets of Urysohn Metric Spaces

http://dx.doi.org/10.4153/CJM-2012-022-4
Canad. J. Math. 65(2013), 222-240

  Published:2012-07-03
 Printed: Feb 2013

A metric space $\mathrm{M}=(M;\operatorname{d})$ is {\em homogeneous} if for every isometry $f$ of a finite subspace of $\mathrm{M}$ to a subspace of $\mathrm{M}$ there exists an isometry of $\mathrm{M}$ onto $\mathrm{M}$ extending $f$. The space $\mathrm{M}$ is {\em universal} if it isometrically embeds every finite metric space $\mathrm{F}$ with $\operatorname{dist}(\mathrm{F})\subseteq \operatorname{dist}(\mathrm{M})$. (With $\operatorname{dist}(\mathrm{M})$ being the set of distances between points in $\mathrm{M}$.) A metric space $\boldsymbol{U}$ is an {\em Urysohn} metric space if it is homogeneous, universal, separable and complete. (It is not difficult to deduce that an Urysohn metric space $\boldsymbol{U}$ isometrically embeds every separable metric space $\mathrm{M}$ with $\operatorname{dist}(\mathrm{M})\subseteq \operatorname{dist}(\boldsymbol{U})$.) The main results are: (1) A characterization of the sets $\operatorname{dist}(\boldsymbol{U})$ for Urysohn metric spaces $\boldsymbol{U}$. (2) If $R$ is the distance set of an Urysohn metric space and $\mathrm{M}$ and $\mathrm{N}$ are two metric spaces, of any cardinality with distances in $R$, then they amalgamate disjointly to a metric space with distances in $R$. (3) The completion of every homogeneous, universal, separable metric space $\mathrm{M}$ is homogeneous.