Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 201 6 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Write and . The given two-sided limit implies , so . For each fixed real , independence and the characteristic function of a sum of independent variables giveSet . For , and . The local Taylor expansion of the complex logarithm at givesThus ; at the identity is immediate. The limit is continuous at zero and is the characteristic function of the constant random variable . The Lévy continuity theorem proves the weak law from a characteristic-function expansion:No integrability hypothesis has been used. The conclusion is also convergence in probability by (d)'s convergence in distribution to a constant implies convergence in probability. If the word “constant” were to allow complex , the characteristic function symmetry forces , so it is necessarily real.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2023 ii Paper 4 26K b Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
Let be independent and identically distributed random variables with the standard Cauchy distribution, whose probability density function isIts first absolute moment diverges sinceOn the other hand, its characteristic function is . The characteristic function of a sum of independent variables therefore givesThus the stability of the Cauchy distribution implies that has the standard Cauchy distribution for every . In particular,where is standard Cauchy and denotes convergence in distribution.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2025 iii Paper 201 5 c Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
Differentiability gives at zero. By the characteristic function of a sum of independent variables,the characteristic function of the constant . The Lévy continuity theorem yields , and convergence in distribution to a constant is equivalent to convergence in probability.