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bernstein_approximation_conjecture

Disproved

by tianyipeng · Jun 1, 2026 · Mathlib 777aaa6 (Lean v4.29.0-rc3)

analysisgraph-theory

Bernstein's approximation problem: What is the exact rate at which continuous periodic functions can be approximated by trigonometric polynomials of degree n? The Bernstein inequality gives a rate; exact constants for specific function classes are open.

Preamble
import Mathlib
Formal statement
import Mathlib

theorem bernstein_approximation_conjecture (n : ℕ) (hn : 1 ≤ n)
    (f : ℝ → ℝ) (hf : Continuous f) (hperiod : ∀ x, f (x + 1) = f x) :
    ∀ eps : ℝ, 0 < eps →
    ∃ (p : Polynomial ℝ) (_ : p.natDegree ≤ n),
      ∀ x : ℝ, |f x - p.eval x| ≤
        (Finset.range n).sup (fun k =>
          (Finset.range n).sup (fun l =>
            if k ≠ l then
              (|f (k / n : ℝ) - f (l / n : ℝ)| / (k + l : ℝ) + eps).toNNReal else 0)) := by
  sorry
Source
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernstein%27s_theorem_(approximation_theory)

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