Rings, The Union of Prime Ideals

The Union of Prime Ideals

Let P1 P2 … Pn be a set of prime ideals in a commutative ring.  Let H be a set, closed under addition and multiplication, such that H is contained in the union of the prime ideals.  We aren't talking about the ideal generated by the prime ideals, just their union, as sets.  We will show that H is contained in one of the prime ideals.

If there are only two ideals, they don't even have to be prime.  If H contains x from P1-P2 and y from P2-P1, H must contain x+y, which is not contained in either ideal.  Yet all the members of H come from some ideal, hence H belongs to one of the two ideals.

For more than two ideals we need primality.  Proceed by induction on the number of prime ideals.

Suppose we have a minimal counter example; the smallest number of prime ideals that refutes this theorem.  If H is contained in some of the prime ideals, but not all, it is contained in one of them by induction.  Thus a piece of H is in every prime ideal, and outside of the others.

Let xi be an element in H that comes from Pi, and is not present in the other prime ideals.  For each i, let yi be the product of xj, where j is not equal to i.  In other words, yi is the product of the other x values.  Let z be the sum of yi.  For every prime ideal Pi, all the terms of z are contained in Pi, except for yi.  Thus z is in Pi iff yi is in Pi.  Now z is in H by closure, so let it lie in the ith prime ideal.  Thus yi is in Pi, and yi is a product, and represents the product of principal ideals in our commutative ring.  Thus some xj from that product is in Pi, and that is a contradiction.  Therefore the set H is always contained in one of the prime ideals.