Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2019 ib Paper 4 9H b Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-29
By independence of the two simple random walks, linearity of expectation, and symmetry of their transition probabilities,The Chapman-Kolmogorov equation identifies the inner sum as , soA simple random walk on the integer line can return to only at an even time. Since it is recurrent at , part (a) givesTherefore .
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2021 ia Paper 2 10E b i Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
Let be the probability that the simple symmetric random walk starting at hits zero before . The first-step recurrence isThe recurrence says that is affine, and the boundary values determine it:
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2021 ib Paper 4 7H Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
For the simple random walk on the integer line, a return to the origin is possible only at an even time. At time , exactly of the increments must be , so the return probability isThe supplied factorial bounds, equivalently the order estimate in the Stirling formula, giveConsequently diverges. By the recurrence criterion by return probabilities, the origin is a recurrent state; translation invariance then makes the whole walk recurrent.
For three independent walks, the probability that all three are at the origin at time isThis P-series is convergent, so the first of the Borel-Cantelli lemmas says that simultaneous returns occur only finitely often with probability one. Therefore the requested probability is
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2024 ia Paper 2 11F i Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
Let count the steps. ThenConsequentlyand has probability zero at integers of the other parity. This is the finite-time law of a simple random walk on the integer line.