Rouche's theorem

This article gives the statement, and possibly proof, of a basic fact in complex analysis.
View a complete list of basic facts in complex analysis

Statement

Let $U\subset \mathbb {C}$ be an open subset, and let $f,g$ be holomorphic functions on $U$. Suppose $V$ is a subset of $U$ such that the boundary of $V$ lies completely inside $U$, and is piecewise $C^{1}$. Further, suppose we have:

$|g(z)|<|f(z)|\ \forall \ z\in \partial V$

Then, $f$ and $f+g$ have the same number of zeros (counted with multiplicity) in $V$.

Facts used

• Homotopy invariance formulation of Cauchy's theorem
• Argument principle