On mixing in infinite measure spaces

Summary Two concepts of mixing for null-preserving transformations are introduced, both coinciding with (strong) mixing if there is a finite invariant measure. The authors believe to offer the correct answer to the old problem of defining mixing in infinite measure spaces. A sequence of sets is called semiremotely trivial if every subsequence contains a further subsequence with trivial remote -algebra (=tail -field). A transformation T is called mixing if (T ^–n A) is semiremotely trivial for every set A of finite measure; completely mixing if this is true for every measurable A. Thus defined mixing is exactly the condition needed to generalize certain theorems holding in finite measure case. For invertible non-singular transformations complete mixing implies the existence of a finite equivalent invariant mixing measure. If no such measure exists, complete mixing implies that for any two probability measures ₁,₂, in total variation norm.Research of this author is supported by the National Science Foundation (U.S.A.) under grant GP 7693.