Special Functions and Orthogonal Polynomials by Richard Beals... - 9781107106987

Special Functions and Orthogonal PolynomialsAuthor(s): Richard Beals, Roderick Wong\nFormat: Hardback\nPublisher: Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom\nImprint: Cambridge University Press\nISBN-13: 9781107106987, 978-1107106987\nSynopsis\nThe subject of special functions is often presented as a collection of disparate results, rarely organized in a coherent way. This book emphasizes general principles that unify and demarcate the subjects of study. The authors' main goals are to provide clear motivation, efficient proofs, and original references for all of the principal results. The book covers standard material, but also much more. It shows how much of the subject can be traced back to two equations - the hypergeometric equation and confluent hypergeometric equation - and it details the ways in which these equations are canonical and special. There is extended coverage of orthogonal polynomials, including connections to approximation theory, continued fractions, and the moment.