Integration of dirac delta composed of function of integration variable

Click For Summary

Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around an integral involving the Dirac delta function as presented in Chandrasekhar's work. The integral in question is related to a product of sine functions and involves parameters that are not yielding expected results, raising concerns about the validity of the equations presented.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to understand the steps leading to a specific result involving the Dirac delta function and questions their own understanding of simplifying such expressions. Other participants express confusion over the results and suggest that there may be inconsistencies in units and potential typos in the original text.

Discussion Status

Participants are actively engaging with the problem, sharing their interpretations and results. There is a recognition of potential errors in the original equations, and some guidance is being offered regarding the units and the setup of the problem.

Contextual Notes

There are indications of missing information regarding the probability distribution defined earlier in the text, which may affect the integration process and the expected outcomes.

kmdouglass
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Hi all,
I'm working through Chandrasekhar's http://prola.aps.org/abstract/RMP/v15/i1/p1_1" and can not understand the steps to progress through Eq. (66) in Chapter 1. The integral is:

\prod^{N}_{j=1} \frac{1}{l^{3}_{j}|\rho|}\int^{\infty}_{0} sin(|\rho|r_{j})r_{j}\delta (r^{2}_{j}-l^{2}_{j})dr_{j} = \prod^{N}_{j=1} \frac{sin(|\rho|l_{j})}{|\rho|l_{j}}

Could anyone show the steps on how this result was obtained? I am aware of how to simplify a dirac delta that is composed of a function, but it does not lead me to the above result. Thanks.

-kmd
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Physics news on Phys.org
Weird, I didn't get that one either. I got

\prod^{N}_{j=1} \frac{sin(|\rho|l_{j})}{2|\rho|l_{j}^3}
 
phsopher said:
Weird, I didn't get that one either. I got

\prod^{N}_{j=1} \frac{sin(|\rho|l_{j})}{2|\rho|l_{j}^3}
That seems more reasonable. In the equation posted by the OP, the units are inconsistent between the two sides, so it can't be right.
 
Yes, you are right about the units. And someone else aside from myself got phsopher's result as well.

A few equations back, the author defines the probability distribution that he is using, and if I integrate over all angles and radial distances, I don't get unity. I think there are significant typos in this section. Thanks for the help.

kmd
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
3K
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
Replies
7
Views
2K
  • · Replies 30 ·
2
Replies
30
Views
2K
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
4K
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
2K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Replies
1
Views
2K
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K