Basic Hypergeometric Series And Applications

The theory of partitions, founded by Euler, has led in a natural way to the idea of basic hypergeometric series, also known as Eulerian series. These series were first studied systematically by Heine, but many early results are attributed to Euler, Gauss, and Jacobi. Today, research in $q$-hypergeometric series is very active, and there are now major interactions with Lie algebras, combinatorics, special functions, and number theory. However, the theory has been developed to such an extent and with such a profusion of powerful and general results that the subject can appear quite formidable to the uninitiated. By providing a simple approach to basic hypergeometric series, this book provides an excellent elementary introduction to the subject. The starting point is a simple function of several variables satisfying a number of $q$-difference equations.The author presents an elementary method for using these equations to obtain transformations of the original function. A bilateral series, formed from this function, is summed as an infinite product, thereby providing an elegant and fruitful result which goes back to Ramanujan. By exploiting a special case, the author is able to evaluate the coefficients of several classes of infinite products in terms of divisor sums. He also touches on general transformation theory for basic series in many variables and the basic multinomial, which is a generalization of a finite sum. These developments lead naturally to the arithmetic domains of partition theory, theorems of Liouville type, and sums of squares.Contact is also made with the mock theta-functions of Ramanujan, which are linked to the rank of partitions. The author gives a number of examples of modular functions with multiplicative coefficients, along with the beginnings of an elementary constructive approach to the field of modular equations. Requiring only an undergraduate background in mathematics, this book provides a rapid entry into the field. Students of partitions, basic series, theta-functions, and modular equations, as well as research mathematicians interested in an elementary approach to these areas, will find this book useful and enlightening. Because of the simplicity of its approach and its accessibility, this work may prove useful as a textbook.

Significant revision of classic reference in special functions.

The theory of partitions, founded by Euler, has led in a natural way to the idea of basic hypergeometric series, also known as Eulerian series. These series were first studied systematically by Heine, but many early results are attributed to Euler, Gauss, and Jacobi. This book provides a simple approach to basic hypergeometric series.

Good,No Highlights,No Markup,all pages are intact, Slight Shelfwear,may have the corners slightly dented, may have slight color changes/slightly damaged spine.

This revised and expanded new edition will continue to meet the needs for an authoritative, up-to-date, self contained, and comprehensive account of the rapidly growing field of basic hypergeometric series, or q-series. Simplicity, clarity, deductive proofs, thoughtfully designed exercises, and useful appendices are among its strengths. The first five chapters cover basic hypergeometric series and integrals, whilst the next five are devoted to applications in various areas including Askey-Wilson integrals and orthogonal polynomials, partitions in number theory, multiple series, orthogonal polynomials in several variables, and generating functions. Chapters 9-11 are new for the second edition, the final chapter containing a simplified version of the main elements of the theta and elliptic hypergeometric series as a natural extension of the single-base q-series. Some sections and exercises have been added to reflect recent developments, and the Bibliography has been revised to maintain its comprehensiveness.

Mathematics is playing an ever more important role in the physical and biological sciences, provoking a blurring of boundaries between scientific disciplines and a resurgence of interest in the modern as well as the clas sical techniques of applied mathematics. This renewal of interest, both in research and teaching, has led to the establishment of the series: Texts in Applied Mathematics (TAM). The development of new courses is a natural consequence of a high level of excitement on the research frontier as newer techniques, such as numerical and symbolic computer systems, dynamical systems, and chaos, mix with and reinforce the traditional methods of applied mathematics. Thus, the purpose of this textbook series is to meet the current and future needs of these advances and encourage the teaching of new courses. TAM will publish textbooks suitable for use in advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate courses, and will complement the Applied Mathe matical Sciences (AMS) series, which will focus on advanced textbooks and research level monographs. Preface A wide range of problems exists in classical and quantum physics, engi neering, and applied mathematics in which special functions arise. The procedure followed in most texts on these topics (e. g. , quantum mechanics, electrodynamics, modern physics, classical mechanics, etc. ) is to formu late the problem as a differential equation that is related to one of several special differential equations (Hermite's, Bessel's, Laguerre's, Legendre's, etc. ).

The subject of $q$-series can be said to begin with Euler and his pentagonal number theorem. In fact, $q$-series are sometimes called Eulerian series. Contributions were made by Gauss, Jacobi, and Cauchy, but the first attempt at a systematic development, especially from the point of view of studying series with the products in the summands, was made by E. Heine in 1847. In the latter part of the nineteenth and in the early part of the twentieth centuries, two Englishmathematicians, L. J. Rogers and F. H. Jackson, made fundamental contributions. In 1940, G. H. Hardy described what we now call Ramanujan's famous $ 1\psi 1$ summation theorem as ``a remarkable formula with many parameters.'' This is now one of the fundamental theorems of the subject. Despite humble beginnings,the subject of $q$-series has flourished in the past three decades, particularly with its applications to combinatorics, number theory, and physics. During the year 2000, the University of Illinois embraced The Millennial Year in Number Theory. One of the events that year was the conference $q$-Series with Applications to Combinatorics, Number Theory, and Physics. This event gathered mathematicians from the world over to lecture and discuss their research. This volume presents nineteen of thepapers presented at the conference. The excellent lectures that are included chart pathways into the future and survey the numerous applications of $q$-series to combinatorics, number theory, and physics.