 Finite total progeny law for binary offspring

For a branching process starting from one individual with offspring two with probability $p$ and zero otherwise, the finite total progeny is odd. Exploring individuals gives an active queue beginning at one, with increments $+1$ or $-1$. A first hit of zero at time $2j+1$ requires $j$ positive and $j+1$ negative increments and no earlier empty queue. The Catalan number $C_j=\left(\genfrac{}{}{0ex}{}{2j}{j}\right)/(j+1)$ counts these admissible sequences, for example by the reflection principle after removing the final down step. Independence then gives the displayed mass formula.

If $p\ne 1/2$, $b=4p(1-p)<1$ and $C_j\le 4^j$, so $\mathbb{P}(K=2j+1)\le (1-p)b^j$. Choosing $c=\min \{-\log (1-p),-\frac{1}{2}\log b\}>0$ bounds every finite mass by $e^{-c(2j+1)}$. This does not exclude an atom at infinity. In the supercritical case that atom has mass $(2p-1)/p$. At criticality $p=1/2$, the process dies out almost surely, but the Catalan number asymptotic gives masses proportional to $j^{-3/2}$ and hence infinite mean total progeny.