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anthony:)
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Homework Statement
The equation [tex]t^2y'' + 4ty' -4y = 0[/tex]
has a solution of [tex]y(t) = t[/tex].
Find a second, linearly independent solution.
2. The attempt at a solution
Ok so I just applied the Cauchy Euler equation method to find a general solution of
[tex]y = c1*t^-4 + c2*t[/tex]
Where c1 and c2 are constants.
The problem stated that t was already a solution so I'm assuming that [tex]t^-4[/tex] is the other solution.
To determine whether they were linearly independent, I found the Wronkian which was
[tex]-5t^-4[/tex]
I know that two solutions of a DE are linearly independent if the wronkian is non-zero for all points where the solution space is defined, but in this case, the wronskian is only zero if t> 0 or t < 0. But it will be zero if t=0.
The problem does not include a range for t...
So basically, my question is : Could [tex]t^-4[/tex] be a second linearly independent solution of the DE?
Thank you.
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