Special functions

Author(s)

• Andrews, George E.
• Askey, Richard
• Roy, Ranjan

Bibliographic Information

Special functions

George E. Andrews, Richard Askey, Ranjan Roy

（Encyclopedia of mathematics and its applications / edited by G.-C. Rota, v. 71）

Cambridge University Press, 1999

• : hardcover

Note

Bibliography: p. 641-653

Includes indexes

Description and Table of Contents

Description

Special functions, natural generalizations of the elementary functions, have been studied for centuries. The greatest mathematicians, among them Euler, Gauss, Legendre, Eisenstein, Riemann, and Ramanujan, have laid the foundations for this beautiful and useful area of mathematics. This treatise presents an overview of special functions, focusing primarily on hypergeometric functions and the associated hypergeometric series, including Bessel functions and classical orthogonal polynomials, using the basic building block of the gamma function. In addition to relatively new work on gamma and beta functions, such as Selberg's multidimensional integrals, many important but relatively unknown nineteenth century results are included. Other topics include q-extensions of beta integrals and of hypergeometric series, Bailey chains, spherical harmonics, and applications to combinatorial problems. The authors provide organizing ideas, motivation, and historical background for the study and application of some important special functions. This clearly expressed and readable work can serve as a learning tool and lasting reference for students and researchers in special functions, mathematical physics, differential equations, mathematical computing, number theory, and combinatorics.

Table of Contents

• 1. The Gamma and Beta functions
• 2. The hypergeometric functions
• 3. Hypergeometric transformations and identities
• 4. Bessel functions and confluent hypergeometric functions
• 5. Orthogonal polynomials
• 6. Special orthogonal transformations
• 7. Topics in orthogonal polynomials
• 8. The Selberg integral and its applications
• 9. Spherical harmonics
• 10. Introduction to q-series
• 11. Partitions
• 12. Bailey chains
• Appendix 1. Infinite products
• Appendix 2. Summability and fractional integration
• Appendix 3. Asymptotic expansions
• Appendix 4. Euler-Maclaurin summation formula
• Appendix 5. Lagrange inversion formula
• Appendix 6. Series solutions of differential equations.

by "Nielsen BookData"

Details

• NCID: BA40205013
• ISBN:
  • 0521623219
• LCCN: 98025757
• Country Code: uk
• Title Language Code: eng
• Text Language Code: eng
• Place of Publication: Cambridge, UK ; New York
• Pages/Volumes: xvi, 664 p.
• Size: 25 cm
• Classification:
  • LCC : QA351
  • DC21 : 515/.5
• Subject Headings:
  • LCSH : Functions, Special
• Parent Bibliography ID:
  • BA00064663