How Do You Integrate Complex Numbers into Differential Equations Solutions?

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around integrating complex numbers into the solution of a differential equation, specifically the equation 4x² * y" + 8xy' - 3y = 0, after making the substitution v = ln x. Participants explore how to handle complex roots that arise from the quadratic equation derived from the problem.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Mathematical reasoning, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to substitute and simplify the differential equation but encounters difficulties with complex numbers in the quadratic formula. Some participants suggest using Euler's identity and discuss the implications of complex roots on the solution form.

Discussion Status

Participants are actively engaging with the problem, offering guidance on handling complex numbers and discussing the form of the solution. There is acknowledgment of mistakes in calculations, and various interpretations of the solution involving sine and cosine functions are being explored.

Contextual Notes

There is a mention of constraints related to the logarithmic function, indicating that the solution may only be valid for x > 0. Participants are also checking assumptions about the setup and calculations involved in the problem.

sisigsarap
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I believe that I have worked the problem correctly to the point where I am, however I am not sure how to incorporate complex numbers into my answer?

The problem is :Make the substitution v = ln x to solve 4x^2 * y" + 8xy' - 3y = 0. Where " represents double prime, and ' represents prime.

This is my work so far:
v = ln x dv/dx = 1/x

dy/dx = dy/dv * dv/dx
dy/dx = dy/dv * 1/x

d"y/dx" = d/dx [dy/dv * 1/x] - dy/dv * 1/x^2
= 1/x * d/dx[dy/dv] - dy/dv * 1/x^2
= 1/x^2 * d"y/dv" - dy/dv * 1/x^2

Then plugging into the original equation:

4x^2[t/x^2 * d"y/dv" - dy/dv * 1/x^2] + 8x[dy/dv * 1/x] - 3y = 0
which can be broken down to
4d"y/dv" + 4dy/dv - 3y = 0

Substituting in R, i get 4r^2 + 4r - 3 = 0
This does not readily look factorable to me so I use the quadratic equation.
[-4 +- Square Root of (16 - 48)]/8

Here is where I run into the problem, does that turn into [-2 +- Square root of (8i)] / 4

It has been a while since I have dealt with complex numbers and I do not recall how to manipulate them.

If that is the correct equation, can anyone tell me how to finish the problem?

Thanks,

Josh
 
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Sure,use Euler's identity:
e^{i\theta}\equiv \cos\theta+i\sin\theta

for the cmplex exponential part.

Daniel.
 
So would I be correct in saying that :

y = e^((-1/2)*x)*[(C1Cos((Square root of 2)/2)*X) + (C2Sin((Square root of 2)/2)*X)]

is correct?

Where C1 represents some constant and C2 represents some other constant.
 
Not "x",but "v"...So in terms of "x",u should have some sine & cosine of natural logarithms...

Daniel.
 
sisigsarap said:
The problem is :Make the substitution v = ln x to solve 4x^2 * y" + 8xy' - 3y = 0. Where " represents double prime, and ' represents prime.



4x^2[t/x^2 * d"y/dv" - dy/dv * 1/x^2] + 8x[dy/dv * 1/x] - 3y = 0
which can be broken down to
4d"y/dv" + 4dy/dv - 3y = 0

Substituting in R, i get 4r^2 + 4r - 3 = 0
This does not readily look factorable to me so I use the quadratic equation.
[-4 +- Square Root of (16 - 48)]/8


If that is the correct equation, can anyone tell me how to finish the problem?

Josh

You've made a little mistake, it is 16+48 under the square root. You know, (-b+-sqrt(b^2-4ac))/2a. is the solution of the equation ax^2 + bx +c =0.

ehild
 
Wow! Thanks for the help guys!

And thanks for catching my mistake ehild! I guess that is why I shouldn't work on these problems at the wee hours of the morning.
 
Ups,i didn't follow your calculations...Just commented on the final result.

Daniel.

P.S.So you have a combination of sinh and cosh...
 
This is a Euler equation in the standard form:

ax^my^{(m)}+bx^{(m-1)}y^{(m-1)}+...+ky=0

The general solution is of the form: y(x)=\sum_i^m c_ix^{(m_i)}
where m_i are the roots of the polynomial when x^m is substituted into the ODE.

The polynomial equation for the ODE of the original posts is:

4m^2+4m-3=0

Thus, the solution is seen to be:

y(x)=c_1x^{\frac{1}{2}}+c_2x^{\frac{-3}{2}}

Can you attempt to solve the following:

4x^2y''+8xy'+3y=0

This produces complex roots which necessarily involve terms of the form:
\cos(\ln[u(x)]) and \sin(\ln[v(x)])[/tex] in which u(x) and v(x) are powers of x. Just absorb the imaginary i into the arbritrary constants to get a real-valued function. Although I believe the function is valid only for x&gt;0 because of the logarithm involved. This is what I got:<br /> &lt;br /&gt; y[x]={c_1}\multsp \frac{\cos \big[\ln \big[{x^{\frac{1}{{\sqrt{2}}}}}\big]\big]}{{\sqrt{x}}}+\\&lt;br /&gt; \noalign{\vspace{2.125ex}}&lt;br /&gt; \hspace{2.em} {c_2}\multsp \frac{\sin \big[\ln \big[{x^{\frac{1}{{\sqrt{2}}}}}\big]\big]}{{\sqrt{x}}}&lt;br /&gt;
 
Last edited:

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