Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2004/iii/paper-76/2/ii/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2004 iii Paper 76 2 ii Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-14
For positive integer and any positive integer , the finite geometric series identitygives an exact decomposition along the indented contour. The polynomial terms have no pole and may be returned to the positive real axis; their Gamma function integrals areEquivalently, expansion about the endpoint in the Laplace transform integral gives the same coefficients. The resulting formal asymptotic expansion isThe ratio of consecutive terms is , so the infinite series is factorially divergent. It should be truncated, not treated as a convergent sum; the pole prescription controls the contribution beyond its algebraic orders. Although the source initially calls an integer, the ordinary lower endpoint integral requires , as is already implicit in the large-positive- limit of part (i).
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