In Milnor's famous book "Topology from the Differential Viewpoint" he proves the following on page 11:
If $f: M\to N$ is a smooth map between manifolds of dimension $m\geq n$ and if $y\in N$ is a regular value, then the set $f^{-1}(y) \subset M$ is a smooth manifold of dimension $m-n$.
Right, so I've read this proof previously in another book (using the rank theorem). I cannot however understand one step he does here.
Proof: Let $x\in f^{-1}(y)$. Since $y$ is a regular value, the derivative $df_x$ must map $TM_x$ onto $TN_y$. The null space $R \subset TM_x$ of $df_x$ will therefore be an $(m-n)$-dimensional vector space. If $M\subset \mathbb{R}^k$, choose a linear map $L : \mathbb{R}^k \to \mathbb{R}^{m-n}$ that is nonsingular on this subspace $R\subset TM_x \subset \mathbb{R}^k$. Now define
$F: M \to N\times\mathbb{R}^{m-n}$
by $F(\xi) = (f(\xi), L(\xi))$. The derivative $dF_x$ is clearly given by the formula $dF_x(v) = (df_x(v), L(v))$. Thus $dF_x$ is nonsingular. Hence $F$ maps some neighborhood $U$ of $x$ diffeomorpically onto a neighborhood $V$ of $(y, L(x))$.
*Note that $f^{-1}(y)$ corresponds, under $F$, to the hyperplane $y\times \mathbb{R}^{m-n}$. *
In fact $F$ maps $f^{-1}(y)\cap U$ diffeomorphically onto $(y\times\mathbb{R}^{m-n})\cap V$. This proves that $f^{-1}(y)$ is a smooth manifold of dimension $m-n$.
So, I do not understand the part between the *'s. I think I'm sort-of missing something obvious ...
