Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2004/iii/paper-59/2/d/solution

For each Fourier mode the equation is . Set . Direct differentiation removes the first derivative and gives
For , the inverse-square term is negligible, and the positive incoming-frequency branch has . Therefore
The momentum constraint then gives
where . Thus the scalar perturbation has precisely the required behavior. Conversely, the two constraints imply the potential equation in part (c); reconstructing by the momentum constraint therefore satisfies the energy constraint too. This checks compatibility beyond simply comparing powers of .

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