From b090363af28c577bbf9da60d03c82056036588aa Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Prefetch Date: Mon, 1 Nov 2021 21:29:02 +0100 Subject: Expand knowledge base --- .../know/concept/cauchy-principal-value/index.pdc | 58 ++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 58 insertions(+) create mode 100644 content/know/concept/cauchy-principal-value/index.pdc (limited to 'content/know/concept/cauchy-principal-value') diff --git a/content/know/concept/cauchy-principal-value/index.pdc b/content/know/concept/cauchy-principal-value/index.pdc new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3b59e2b --- /dev/null +++ b/content/know/concept/cauchy-principal-value/index.pdc @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +--- +title: "Cauchy principal value" +firstLetter: "C" +publishDate: 2021-11-01 +categories: +- Mathematics + +date: 2021-11-01T12:54:50+01:00 +draft: false +markup: pandoc +--- + +# Cauchy principal value + +The **Cauchy principal value** $\mathcal{P}$, +or just **principal value**, +is a method for integrating problematic functions, +i.e. functions with singularities, +whose integrals would otherwise diverge. + +Consider a function $f(x)$ with a singularity at some finite $x = b$, +which is hampering attempts at integrating it. +To resolve this, we define the Cauchy principal value $\mathcal{P}$ as follows: + +$$\begin{aligned} + \boxed{ + \mathcal{P} \int_a^c f(x) \dd{x} + = \lim_{\varepsilon \to 0^{+}} \!\bigg( \int_a^{b - \varepsilon} f(x) \dd{x} + \int_{b + \varepsilon}^c f(x) \dd{x} \bigg) + } +\end{aligned}$$ + +If $f(x)$ instead has a singularity at postive infinity $+\infty$, +then we define $\mathcal{P}$ as follows: + +$$\begin{aligned} + \boxed{ + \mathcal{P} \int_{a}^\infty f(x) \dd{x} + = \lim_{c \to \infty} \!\bigg( \int_{a}^c f(x) \dd{x} \bigg) + } +\end{aligned}$$ + +And analogously for $-\infty$. +If $f(x)$ has singularities both at $+\infty$ and at $b$, +then we simply combine the two previous cases, +such that $\mathcal{P}$ is given by: + +$$\begin{aligned} + \mathcal{P} \int_{a}^\infty f(x) \:dx + = \lim_{c \to \infty} \lim_{\varepsilon \to 0^{+}} + \!\bigg( \int_{a}^{b - \varepsilon} f(x) \:dx + \int_{b + \varepsilon}^{c} f(x) \:dx \bigg) +\end{aligned}$$ + +And so on, until all problematic singularities have been dealt with. + +In some situations, for example involving +the [Sokhotski-Plemelj theorem](/know/concept/sokhotski-plemelj-theorem/), +the symbol $\mathcal{P}$ is written without an integral, +in which case the calculations are implicitly integrated. -- cgit v1.2.3