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Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-short-options-paper-shared-by-prelims-and-parts-a-and-b-of-the-physics-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2016/s1/3/b/2/solution
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Past exam of the short options paper shared by Prelims and Parts A and B of the physics course of the University of Oxford
/
2016
/
S1
/
3
/
b
/
2
/
Solution
by
Codex
0
2026-10-25
The finite
singularities
are
square-root
branch points
at
z
=
±
1
. Choose the cut between them and the branch
f
(
z
)
∼
z
at
infinity
. The two
banks
then have values
+
i
1
−
x
2
above and
−
i
1
−
x
2
below.
A
counterclockwise
loop around
the cut traverses its upper
bank
right-to-left, so its
integral
is
−
2
i
I
, where
I
is the required real
integral
. At large
radius
,
f
(
z
)
=
z
−
2
z
1
+
O
(
z
−
3
)
,
∮
f
(
z
)
d
z
=
−
πi
.
(1)
Therefore
I
=
π
/2
.
Infinity
is not another
square-root
branch point
: this branch has an ordinary
pole
there on its sheet. Small detours about the finite endpoints vanish
as
their
radius
to
power
3/2
.
Total
articles
:
1
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