Lauricella's Hypergeometric Function
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View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Elsevier - Publisher Connector JOURNAL OF MATHEMATICAL ANALYSIS AND APPLICATIONS 7, 452-470 (1963) Lauricella’s Hypergeometric Function FD* B. C. CARLSON Institute for Atomic Research and D@artment of Physics, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa Submitted by Richard Bellman I. INTRODUCTION In 1880 Appell defined four hypergeometric series in two variables, which were generalized to 71variables in a straightforward way by Lauricella in 1893 [I, 21. One of Lauricella’s series, which includes Appell’s function F, as the case 71= 2 (and, of course, Gauss’s hypergeometric function as the case n = l), is where (a, m) = r(u + m)/r(a). The FD f unction has special importance for applied mathematics and mathematical physics because elliptic integrals are hypergeometric functions of type FD [3]. In Section II of this paper we shall define a hypergeometric function R(u; b,, . ..) b,; zi, “., z,) which is the same as FD except for small but important modifications. Since R is homogeneous in the variables zi, ..., z,, it depends in a nontrivial way on only 71- 1 ratios of these variables; indeed, every R function with n variables is expressible in terms of an FD function with 71- 1 variables, and conversely. Although R and FD are therefore equivalent, R turns out to be more convenient for both theory and applica- tion. The choice of R was initially suggested by the observation that the Euler transformations of FD would be greatly simplified by introducing homo- geneous variables. However, it will be seen in Section VI that this simplicity is not superficial and that the R function is the natural outcome of one * This work was performed in the Ames Laboratory of the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission. 452 LAURICELLA'SHYPERGEOMETRICFUNCTIONFD 453 procedure for generalizing the Gauss hypergeometric function. Instead of starting from the hypergeometric series, as Appell and Lauricella did, we can start from the remark that a solution of the Euler-Poisson equation, (1.2) if it is also a homogeneous function of z, and za, is a Gauss hypergeometric function [4, p. 571. If we ask, more generally, for a homogeneous function of zr, “‘) z, which satisfies an Euler-Poisson equation in each pair of variables, the answer is the R function. The system of Euler-Poisson equations admits two groups of transformations that are directly related to the Euler trans- formations of FD. Although some properties of R given in this paper are equivalent to known properties of F,, others represent substantial extensions of previous results and some are entirely new. We mention especially (1) a set of n + 3 relations between contiguous R functions of 7t variables, (2) a proof that there exists a linear relation between 1z + 1 associated R functions, (3) two ways of representing an R function as the integral of an R function with fewer variables, and (4) an integral representation of the product of two R functions. An integral of a product of Jacobian elliptic functions is expressed as an R function in Section VIII. II. THE FUNCTION R OF n VARIABLES We shall consider the properties of a Lauricella function FD with para- meters restricted by c = b, + ..* + b, # 0, - 1, -2, *.. Let a function R of n complex variables x1, ..a, x, and 71+ 1 complex parameters a, b,, .*., b, be defined by the following power series if ) 1 - zi / < 1 (i = 1, ..., n) and by its analytic continuation if 1arg zi 1 < T: R(a;b,, *.., b,; z,, . z,) x (1 - Z$l ... (1 - zJ% This series has two important propreties, symmetry and homogeneity, 454 CARLSON which are expressible by functional relations and hence are valid for its analytic continuation as well. Symmetry is obvious: R(a; b,, .*., b,,; x1, .a*, z,,) is invariant under permutation of the subscripts 1, ..e, n (i. e., under permutation of (2.2) the 6’s and z’s together). To show that R is a homogeneous function of degree --a in the variables 21, . %, let c designate the n-fold summation in (2.1) and let the general term of the series be ~(m,, .“, m,). Then, if Di stands for a/&,, we have z,D,R = z [I - (1 - z,)-I] m,u(m,, ‘.., m,) = z: kfw(m,, .*.$ m,) a+ ml-+ ... + m, (6 + mJ] 4ml, -a*, m,). =a mi - bl+ ml + ... + b, + m, Hence R satisfies Euler’s relation, z,D,R = -aR, (2.3) i=l which implies homogeneity: R(a; b,, a-., b,; tz,, .*., tz,) = t-aR(a; b,, ..*, b,; x1, ma.12,). (2.4) It is clear from (2.1) that a function FD of IZ - 1 variables, with no relations required between the parameters, can always be expressed in terms of a function R of n variables: Fi,(a; b,, ..a, b,-,; c; zl, .-a, znel) = R(u; b,, . b,; 1 - zr, a.., 1 - z,+r, l), (2.5) where b, is defined by c= b,+ . ..+b.. (2.6) Conversely, given a function R of n variables, we can use its homogeneity to make one variable equal to unity and thus express it in terms of a function F, of rz - 1 variables: R(a; b,, ..., b,; 21, ..., 4 = 2;” F,(u; b,, ..a, b,-,; c; 1 - (z&n), *.., 1 - (z,&,z)), (2.7) where Eq. (2.6) now defines c. LAURICELLA'S HYPERGEOMETRICFUNCTIONFD 455 Equation (2.7) is noteworthy. It shows first that R can be regarded as the result of introducing homogeneous variables in FD. Considered as a candidate for the defining equation of R, it makes homogeneity evident but leaves permutation symmetry to be proven, in contrast to (2.1). Secondly, it shows one of the advantages of working with R and one more variable rather than with F,; for the symmetry of R, which is not at all apparent on the right side of (2.7), expresses the behavior of FD under certain Euler transforma- tions. The transformations in question are those that leave a unchanged; for instance, the transformation of Appell’s function [l, p. 301 F,(a; b, b’; c; x, y) = (1 - x)-a F&z; c - b - b’, b’; c; x/(x - I), (x - y)/(x - 1)) is equivalent to the statement that R(a; b,, b,, b,; zi, z2, zs) is invariant under transposition of the subscripts 1 and 3. The remaining Euler transformations of FD [l, p. 1161, in which the value of a is changed, result from combining the symmetry property (2.2) with a single transformation that will be derived in Section VII: R(a; b,, se.,b,; xl, . z,) = (g Q) R(a’; b,, .a., b,; z;l, .a., z,‘), (2.8) where a’ is defined by a+a’=c=b,+ ..* + 6, # 0, -1, -2, ..‘. (2.9) The notation of (2.9) will be used throughout this paper. III. SPECIAL VALUES OF PARAMETERS AND VARIABLES The function R reduces to another function of the same type with one less variable if one of its parameters bi vanishes, or if two of its variables are equal, or (with certain qualifications) if one of its variables vanishes or becomes infinite. We shall consider these cases in turn, with appropriate generaliza- tions. Because of the symmetry relation (2.2), it does not matter which para- meter or variable is taken to have a special value. By comparing (2.1) and (2.7), we obtain a generalization of a known reduction formula for FJI, p. 241: F&z; b,, . 6,; b, + e** + b,; zl, a.., z,) = (1 - ix,)-aF,(a; b,, . b,-,; 6, + ... + b,; (Zl - &d/(1 - %), -.** (%-1 - 4/u - %I)). (3.1) 9 456 CARLSON When expressed in terms of R by use of (2.5), this result takes an equivalent but simpler form that is immediately obvious from (2.1): R(a; b,, . b,, 0; .zl, a.., z,,+~) = R(a; b,, .*., b,l; zl, ***I 2,). (3.2) Another obvious consequence of (2.1) is Rk b,, a*-, 6,; 1, ..a, 1) = 1, (3.3) from which it follows by homogeneity that R(a; b,, me-,6,; x, .a., x) = z-a (3.4) and, in particular, z-= = R(a; b; x). (3.5) For any number of equal arguments, we find from (2.7) the relation R(a; b,, *.a, b,; q, . xl0 z, .a., z) = z-F&z; b,, *mm,b,; b, + --- + 6,; 1 - (44 s-s, 1 - (+/+ and hence, by (2.5), R(a; b,, ..*, b,; zl, *me,zk, x, a.., z) = R(a; b,, ..a, b,, b,+l + .a. + b,; q, . xk, z). (3.6) As z tends to zero in (3.6), we obtain R(a; b,, . b,; x1, se., zk, 0, ..*, 0) = R(a; b,, . b,, 6; zl, sm.,zk, 0) x (1 - ,@I ... (1 - Zr$Q, (3.7) provided that this series converges. For brevity we have introduced M=m,+.**+m,andb=bk+, +...+b,.IfRe(c-b-a)>O,then the sum (a, M + W, 4 j(M) = 2 1 (c, M + s) s! exists for every nonnegative integral M[5, p. 47, Eq. (4)]; further, one can show that positive constants K and MO exist such that f(M) < KMIbI+Re(o-c), (M > M,). LAURICELLA’S HYPERGEOMRTRIC FUNCTION F, 457 By using this result, the series (3.7) is found to be absolutely convergent ifRe(c-k-u)>Oandjl-zzi]<l(i=l;..,k).Thesumonscan then be carried out by means of a well-known theorem [6] for the Gauss hypergeometric function with unit argument: co(a, iIf!? + w, 4 --_ (4 w qu + M, b;c + J,f;1) z8=0 (c, M + s)s! cc,w = B(a,c - a - b) (4 M) B(u,c - a) (c- b,M) ’ where B is the beta function.