A-hat form 2026-10-14
For the vector-bundle curvature matrix of a metric connection on a vector bundle on a real oriented vector bundle, the A-hat form is the even differential form defined by the displayed finite-degree power series, with square root having constant term one. The expression is independent of the choice of orthonormal frame. Equivalently, for formal paired curvature Chern roots , it is . The Bianchi identity makes it closed, and changing the connection changes it by an exact differential form via Chern-Weil connection transgression. Its degree-four part is , where is the first Pontryagin class form.
Airy disk derivation 2026-10-14
Write and wavenumber . The pupil Fourier transform, normalized by pupil area, gives the Fraunhofer diffraction wave amplitude. In pupil polar coordinates,The angular average is because . The Bessel function of the first kind identity then reduces the radial integral to . Taking the squared magnitude yields the Airy disk light intensity profile.[ref]
The apparent division by zero is removable. The power seriesgives and . At the centre, every pupil contribution has the same wave phase, so their normalized sum is one. The first dark ring instead corresponds to with , rather than to the removable zero of at the origin.
Airy power-series fundamental pair Created 2026-10-05 Updated 2026-10-14
For the Airy ordinary differential equation , a power series obeys and . Setting its first two coefficients to or givesEmpty products are one. The ratio test proves convergence on the whole complex plane. Termwise differentiation verifies the equation, and the initial normalization gives Wronskian one. By the Abel identity, the Wronskian remains one everywhere, so these solutions span the whole solution space.
Analytic continuation Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
An analytic continuation extends a holomorphic function beyond its original domain without changing its existing values. Formally, if are domains and is holomorphic on , a holomorphic function on with is an analytic continuation. More locally, holomorphic functions on overlapping open sets continue one another when they agree on the overlap, allowing a chain of patches along a path. The identity theorem for holomorphic functions forces agreement throughout a connected overlap once they agree on a nonempty open set in it. It also makes an extension to a fixed connected domain unique. [ref]
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/18-04-complex-variables-with-applications-spring-2018/af8c9c78c3915aaf3fd1695f8d32a3b3_MIT18_04S18_topic13.pdf. Orloff, MIT 18.04 Topic 13, section 13.2 and Theorem 13.2
The geometric series illustrates why a formula can reach farther than the power series that first represents it. For , its partial sum isWhen , , so the series converges to . The rational function is holomorphic on and agrees there with the sum on the unit disc. It therefore continues to every point except its simple pole at . In particular,Thus analytic continuation gives a value at without making the original geometric series converge there. Its radius of convergence remains : on the terms do not even tend to zero.
The original geometric series converges only inside the unit circle, while its rational continuation exists everywhere except the pole at 1
. Details. The pole at limits the original Taylor series, although most points of its convergence circle are regular for . Recentring at gives another genuinely convergent power series,At this yields , even though the original powers of grow. This is the useful idea: overlapping local descriptions can represent one holomorphic function on a larger region.
Uniqueness on a connected overlap does not imply that every path leads to the same terminal germ of a holomorphic function. Continuing a complex logarithm around changes its value by , giving monodromy; the return patch can carry a different branch of a multivalued function. If two patches have a disconnected overlap, agreement on one component imposes no agreement on the others. [ref]
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/18-04-complex-variables-with-applications-spring-2018/af8c9c78c3915aaf3fd1695f8d32a3b3_MIT18_04S18_topic13.pdf. Orloff, section 13.2.1, Example 13.4
Continuation using the rational function is single-valued: any path avoiding gives the same terminal germ of a holomorphic function, even if it winds around the pole. Analyticity Created 2026-10-18 Updated 2026-10-20
Analyticity at a point means that a function agrees in a neighbourhood of that point with a convergent power series. This is stronger than merely having derivatives of every order: the Taylor series of a smooth function can fail to recover its values. For a real variable this property defines a real analytic function. For a complex variable it is equivalent to being a holomorphic function on a neighbourhood of the point.
Analytic Wiener algebra 2026-10-14
The analytic Wiener algebra consists of the power series with , identified with their values on the unit circle. The norm is . Discrete convolution gives multiplication and a submultiplicative norm; completeness follows from the absolutely summable sequence space. Each series converges uniformly on the closed unit disk and is holomorphic in its interior.
Area formula for a univalent power series 2026-10-25
For an injective holomorphic function on the unit disc, its real Jacobian determinant is . Change of variables gives image area . Angular orthogonality removes cross terms of the differentiated power series; integrating radially gives the title formula. For , uniform convergence on a slightly larger closed disk justifies termwise operations. Injectivity is essential for this to be image area rather than multiplicity of a parametrized surface integral.
ARMA(1,1) causal and inverse coefficients 2026-10-14
For and , the autoregressive moving-average model has and the displayed coefficients for . These follow by multiplying the two geometric power series. If , all later coefficients vanish and the filtered process is white noise. Thus root restrictions on an uncancelled nonminimal representation are sufficient but need not be necessary for the process after common factor cancellation in an ARMA model.
ARMA coefficient recursions 2026-10-14
For an autoregressive moving-average model, set and . If both have no zeros on the closed unit disc, the causal and inverse filters have absolutely summable coefficients and . Comparing power series coefficients gives and , where , for , and all out-of-range coefficients vanish. The backshift operator then gives the corresponding time-series filters.
Asymptotic power series Created 2026-10-13 Updated 2026-10-14
An asymptotic power series uses powers as its asymptotic sequence. Near a finite point , the condition in the title applies along the specified domain for every fixed ; at infinity, inverse powers are convenient. It need not be a convergent power series. Its coefficients record the successive limiting responses, as the integral example below demonstrates.
The finite-order Taylor theorem supplies an asymptotic power series for a smooth function near a point, but smoothness does not imply that its Taylor series converges to the function. Define for and for . Every right-hand derivative is an exponential function times a polynomial in , tending to zero as . Consequently is a smooth function with every derivative zero at the origin. Its all-zero Taylor series misses to the right. Zero and also have the same all-zero asymptotic power series on that side, despite being different functions. An asymptotic expansion can determine all its own coefficients without determining the represented function uniquely.
Bernoulli number Created 2026-10-05 Updated 2026-10-13
The Bernoulli numbers are a sequence of rational numbers that turns integer power sums into exact polynomials. The same numbers describe corrections when a discrete summation is compared with an integral. For example, the sum of squares is : the leading term is an integral, while the last two terms repair the difference between area and sampled values.
We use throughout. The defining exponential generating function isHere is the exponential function and is a factorial; in particular, the coefficient of is , rather than . At the quotient has limiting value one. The identity can be read algebraically as a formal power series, or as a convergent series for .[ref]
NIST Digital Library of Mathematical Functions. Karl Dilcher, Chapter 24, §24.2(i), equation 24.2.1: defining generating function and convergence domain
To compute the numbers, multiply by and compare coefficients. The resulting recurrence relation, with binomial coefficients, isThus , , and give , , and . Continuing givesThe recurrence relation agrees with equation 24.5.3 after replacing its index by .[ref]
NIST Digital Library of Mathematical Functions. Karl Dilcher, Chapter 24, §24.5(i), equation 24.5.3; first values also in Table 24.2.1
Why do so many values vanish? Put . Direct substitution gives , so is an even function. Its odd power series coefficients vanish: for every positive integer . The exception matters. The alternative convention obtained from has and exactly the same other values. A formula copied between conventions must also retain its summation endpoints.
Historically, integer power sums were studied before the modern Bernoulli number notation. A historical study examines formulas published in 1631 and distinguishes those separate formulas from encoding all exponents using one sequence of constants. This is a useful motivation for the generating function, without assigning all discovery to a single moment. [ref]
Johann Faulhaber and sums of powers by Donald E. Knuth. Donald E. Knuth, Johann Faulhaber and sums of powers, 1992 preprint, pp. 2 and 14: the 1631 power-sum formulas and the uniform Bernoulli-number formula
Bessel functions of order one half 2026-10-20
For , the Bessel differential equation of order has independent solutions and . Substituting reduces it to . The normalization of the Bessel function of the first kind gives the displayed formulas for orders and . The Frobenius method obtains the same pair from exponents and : their even-coefficient series reduce to the sine and cosine power series. In the negative-exponent recurrence, the free coefficient at the next exponent can add the positive-exponent solution, an example of an undetermined coefficient at Frobenius resonance.
Binomial series Created 2026-09-29 Updated 2026-10-31
For a complex number , set and for . The displayed power series represents on the unit disc, using the branch of the complex logarithm with value zero at . It terminates for a nonnegative integer . Otherwise the ratio test gives absolute convergence for . Termwise differentiation gives and , which determine that holomorphic function. With and argument , its coefficients are the normalized central binomial coefficients.
Boundary convergence of a power series Created 2026-10-14 Updated 2026-10-18
Knowing the radius of convergence does not settle convergence on its boundary. The three power seriesall have radius one, but behave differently on .
The same radius of convergence permits three different behaviours on the unit circle
. Green denotes absolute convergence, orange conditional convergence, and red divergence. All three series converge absolutely in the open unit disk. On its boundary, the geometric series diverges everywhere; the series converges conditionally except at ; the series converges absolutely everywhere. Details.For the geometric series, boundary terms all have complex modulus one, violating the term test for divergence. For the second series, absolute values give the divergent harmonic series at every boundary point. At the series itself is harmonic and diverges. At any other point on the unit circle, its geometric partial sums obeyThe Dirichlet test with the decreasing sequence therefore gives conditional convergence. In particular, gives the negative of the alternating harmonic series, with sum . For the third series, the convergent p-series bounds the absolute values at every boundary point, giving absolute convergence by the comparison test for series.
At , the rational function is well defined and equals , yet its geometric series diverges there. A formula for a function and a particular series representation can have different domains. Likewise, applying termwise differentiation of a power series preserves the radius but need not preserve the boundary convergence.
If the terms of a power series at a nonzero point are bounded by , then . A convergent geometric series and the comparison test for series give absolute convergence at every point strictly inside that circle. Consequently terms at every point outside the radius of convergence must be unbounded. This conclusion is stronger than merely saying that those terms fail to tend to zero.
Bounds for the principal logarithm near one 2026-10-14
The power series proves this estimate. There is no global bound , since the logarithm diverges as . The different estimate is valid wherever , and is sufficient for growth bounds on canonical products.
Cauchy-Hadamard theorem Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
For the power series , the Cauchy-Hadamard theorem giveswith when the limit superior is zero, and when it is infinite. Away from the centre, the root test explains the formula: the limit superior of the term roots at displacement is , interpreted as zero for and infinite for . Values below one give absolute convergence; values above one imply that the terms fail to tend to zero. A value of one leaves the boundary question open. At the centre the series converges regardless of .
For and , the coefficient roots alternate between one and zero, so their ordinary limit does not exist. Their limit superior is nevertheless one, giving for inside the unit disk. A ratio of consecutive coefficients would be undefined at the zero coefficients; the root-limsup formula handles the gap directly.
In the first part of his 1892 study of functions given by Taylor series, Jacques Hadamard introduced an upper-limit formulation for sequences and used coefficient roots to determine the radius of convergence. Sections 4–6 separate finite positive, zero, and infinite root-growth cases; the later parts study singularities and continuation. See Hadamard, Essai sur l'étude des fonctions données par leur développement de Taylor, Journal de mathématiques pures et appliquées, fourth series 8 (1892), pp. 107–109. This original text explains the coefficient-growth question without implying that the study of power series began there.
Central-commutator differentiation rule 2026-10-20
If commutes with , then . A convergent power series therefore gives on a common domain where termwise operations are justified. For unbounded linear operators, the domain condition is essential.
Every algebra character of the analytic Wiener algebra is evaluation at a unique point of the closed unit disk. Indeed, for , continuity and multiplicativity give , and . Conversely, this formula defines a continuous algebra character for every such . The evaluation correspondence is a homeomorphism for the Gelfand topology, since the power series are uniformly convergent on the closed unit disk.
Coefficient Created 2026-10-06 Updated 2026-10-14
A scalar multiplying a specified term in a linear combination, polynomial or power series. When the term family has linear independence, the coefficients are unique; uniqueness of finite Laurent polynomial coefficients follows after multiplying by a sufficiently large power to obtain an ordinary polynomial.

