For every integer , the Riemann zeta function satisfies . One proof applies meromorphic continuation of a Mellin transform from an asymptotic expansion to , whose transform is the Bose integral , and divides residues by the residues of the Gamma function. The formula includes .
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 137 1 Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
The Mellin transform iswhere this integral converges. Rapid decay at infinity makes the integral over an entire function of , but alone gives no control near zero. With the additional expansion, the integral initially converges absolutely for .
For , expand . Absolute convergence justifies termwise integration, using the Gamma integral, and gives the scaled Bose integral
There is a missing hypothesis in the general continuation claim: one needs . The original PDF, like the TeX, only says that the sequence increases. Under the intended additional hypothesis, split the integral at one and subtract terms of the asymptotic expansion:Continuity of at zero makes it bounded on . The last integral is holomorphic on : on every compact subset, its integrand and all its derivatives are dominated by an integrable power of times a power of . The expressions for successive agree on their common initial domain and hence everywhere they overlap by the identity theorem. As , these half-planes cover . Taking with isolates the term , while all other terms are holomorphic near . Thus the corrected claim isThis is meromorphic continuation of a Mellin transform from an asymptotic expansion.
To show why the correction matters, set , , andwhere is continuous, equals one for and vanishes for . On , the remainder after division by is a uniformly convergent series of nonnegative powers of , so it extends continuously to zero with value . Away from zero, define by the required remainder quotient; it is continuous on the rest of as well. Thus all the printed hypotheses hold. Its Mellin transform equalsThe series continues meromorphically on and has genuine poles at , accumulating at . A meromorphic function on cannot have such an accumulation of poles. This is the accumulating asymptotic exponents obstruct Mellin continuation counterexample.
For the Gamma function, the Gamma function recurrence givesAt the numerator is and the product of the nonzero denominator factors is . Therefore the residues of the Gamma function are
The generating function of the Bernoulli numbers gives the convergent expansion near zeroThe subtraction proof above applies to this expansion, including its zero coefficients, which give no pole. At , for , the residue of its transform is , while the residue of is . Their quotient defines a holomorphic continuation of the Riemann zeta function at this point, including when the first residue is zero. Dividing gives the Bernoulli formula for zeta values at nonpositive integers:In particular the generating-series convention is , so the formula includes .