Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2011/ia/paper-2/7a/c/solution

Both functions satisfy the constant-coefficient homogeneous linear differential equation
Its characteristic polynomial is , so the general real solution is . The three initial conditions give , , and , hence
Here the equation has continuous coefficients and nonzero highest-derivative coefficient everywhere. The uniqueness theorem for ordinary differential equations, applied to its three-component first-order system, gives a unique solution on the entire half-line.

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