Additive number theory and the Dyson transform

Abstract

In 1942 Mann solved a famous problem, the $\alpha+\beta$ conjecture, about the lower bound of the Shnirel'man density of sums of sets of positive integers. In 1945, Dyson generalized Mann's theorem and obtained a lower bound for the Shnirel'man density of rank $r$ sumsets. His proof introduced the Dyson transform, an important tool in additive number theory. This paper explains the background of Dyson's work, gives Dyson's proof of his theorem, and includes several applications of the Dyson transform, such as Kneser's inequality for sums of finite subsets of an arbitrary additive abelian group.