Velvet Star Monitor

Standout celebrity highlights with iconic style.

updates

Finding Bessel function $J_{1/2}$ using power series method.

Writer Matthew Barrera
$\begingroup$

The Bessel function $J_{1/2}$ is a solution of the differential equation:

$$x^2 y '' + xy' +(x^2 - (1/2)^2)y = 0 $$

I am looking to find $J_{1/2}$ using a power series method, but letting $y = \sum_{n=0}^\infty a_n x^n$ gives $a_0 = a_1 = 0$ and $a_n = \frac{a_{n-2}}{n^2 - 1/4}$ which gives all coefficients equal to $0$, which is not desirable.

How do I find the correct power series expansion of $J_{1/2}?$

$\endgroup$ 2

1 Answer

$\begingroup$

If you instead want to use the differential equation, let $$ u(x)=\sqrt{x}y(x). $$ If I did the calculations correctly (you confirm), the differential equation transforms to $$ x^{3/2}(u''(x)+u(x))=0. $$ Please try to take it from here.

$\endgroup$ 1

Your Answer

Sign up or log in

Sign up using Google Sign up using Facebook Sign up using Email and Password

Post as a guest

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy