Morse–Sard theorem

Sard's theorem, also known as Sard's lemma or the Morse–Sard theorem, is a result in mathematical analysis which asserts that the set of critical values (that is, the image of the set of critical points) of a smooth function f from one Euclidean space or manifold to another is a null set, i.e., it has Lebesgue measure 0. This makes the set of critical values "small" in the sense of a generic property. The theorem is named for Anthony Morse and Arthur Sard.

More explicitly (Sternberg (1964, Theorem II.3.1); Sard (1942)), let

be ${\displaystyle C^{k}}$, (that is, ${\displaystyle k}$ times continuously differentiable), where ${\displaystyle k\geq \max\{n-m+1,1\}}$. Let ${\displaystyle X}$ denote the critical set of ${\displaystyle f,}$ which is the set of points ${\displaystyle x\in \mathbb {R} ^{n}}$ at which the Jacobian matrix of ${\displaystyle f}$ has rank ${\displaystyle <m}$. Then the image ${\displaystyle f(X)}$ has Lebesgue measure 0 in ${\displaystyle \mathbb {R} ^{m}}$.

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