d_n scales like 1/n because of the way it's defined. We could alternatively define D(c), for every positive real number c, as the greatest density (in R^2) of any subset of cZ x cZ, no two points of which are closer than distance 1. D(c) would be a discontinuous function, and I'm not convinced it would be literally increasing, but it should definitely show an overall upward trend as the grid-spacing c approaches 0. (Or am I confused?) Jim On Wednesday, March 13, 2013, Andy Latto <andy.latto@pobox.com> wrote:
On Tue, Mar 12, 2013 at 5:32 PM, James Propp <jamespropp@gmail.com> wrote:
Let d_n be the greatest density achieved by any subset of Z^2, no two points of which are closer in Euclidean distance than sqrt(n). What is known about d_n? Is it known to be always rational? I can use a compactness argument to show that the supremum density is achieved (that's why I felt free to write "the greatest density" above) but I can't prove that it's achieved by a doubly-periodic set (which would imply rational density).
I get n d_n approx 2/sqrt(3) for large n using a back-of-the-envelope calculation, but I may have mis-programmed the envelope, especially since it's not an envelope but rather a bag for a pizza-slice-to-go --- a medium with no track-record as a calculation-aid.
Wait, shouldn't d_n increase with n, not decrease? As n goes to infinity, you should be able to closely approximate a hexagonal close-packing.
Andy
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