Mathematics Atlas

How Proof Is Made
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Theorem

Vaught's Theorem

Logic and Foundations

Vaught's Theorem states that a complete first-order theory with only infinite models can never have exactly two countable models up to isomorphism, though it may have exactly one, or three, or more, or infinitely many. Named for Robert Lawson Vaught, it is a classical result of model theory illustrating that the number of countable models a theory admits is constrained in subtle, non-obvious ways, a question the related Vaught conjecture pursues further for uncountably many models.

Facts
Statement
The number of countable models of a complete theory cannot be 2. 1
Sources
1. Vaught's conjecture (Wikipedia)
Vaught's theorem
Quote, Vaught's theorem
Vaught proved that the number of countable models of a complete theory cannot be 2.
View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.