MHB How Does the Limit of the Integral Relate to the Sinc Integral?

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    2016
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The discussion centers on proving the limit of an integral involving the sinc function. The specific limit to prove is that as n approaches infinity, the integral from 0 to π/(2n) of sin(2nx)/sin(x) converges to the integral from 0 to π of sin(x)/x. Despite the challenge, no participants provided solutions, highlighting the complexity of the problem. The original poster shared their own solution, inviting others to engage with the mathematical concepts involved. The thread emphasizes the relationship between the limit of the integral and the sinc integral, showcasing advanced calculus techniques.
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Here is this week's POTW:

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Prove

$$\lim_{n\to \infty} \int_0^{\pi/(2n)} \frac{\sin 2nx}{\sin x}\, dx = \int_0^\pi \frac{\sin x}{x}\, dx.$$

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No one answered this week's problem. You can read my solution below.
I'll prove this in two ways: (1) by Lebesgue integration and (2) by Riemann integration.

(1) By a change of variable $y = 2n x$, I write

$$\int_0^{\pi/2n} \frac{\sin 2n x}{\sin x}\, dx = \int_0^\pi \frac{\sin y}{2n\sin \frac{y}{2n}}\, dy\tag{*}$$

Since $\sin x \ge \dfrac{2x}{\pi}$ for $0 \le x \le \pi/2$, then $2n \sin \dfrac{y}{2n} \ge \dfrac2\pi y$ for $0 \le y \le \pi$. Thus, the integrand of the right-hand side of (*) is bounded by $\dfrac{\pi}{2}\cdot\dfrac{\sin y}{y}$ on $(0,\pi]$. Furthermore, the integrand converges pointwise to $\dfrac{\sin y}{y}$ over $(0,\pi]$. Hence, by the dominated convergence theorem, the integral converges to $\int_0^\pi \frac{\sin y}{y}\, dy$, as desired.

(2) Note that for every $x$,

$$\sin 2n x = \sum_{k = 1}^n (\sin 2kx - \sin\, [2(k-1)x]) =\sum_{k = 1}^n 2\cos\, [(2k-1)x] \sin x.$$

Thus

$$\int_0^{\pi/2n} \frac{\sin 2nx}{\sin x}\, dx = \int_0^{\pi/2n} \sum_{k = 1}^n 2\cos\,[(2k-1)x]\, dx = \int_0^\pi \frac{1}{n}\sum_{k = 1}^n \cos\, \left[\frac{2k-1}{2n}x\right]\, dx.\tag{**}$$

The sequence of continuous functions

$$f_n(x) = \frac{1}{n}\sum_{k = 1}^n \cos \left[\frac{2k-1}{2n}x\right] \quad (n = 1, 2,3,\ldots)$$

increase monotonically, on the compact interval $[0,\pi]$, to the function $F(x)$, where $F(0) = 1$ and for $x > 0$, $$F(x) = \frac{1}{x}\int_0^x \cos t\, dt = \frac{\sin x}{x}.$$

By Dini's theorem, $f_n$ converges uniformly to $F$ on $[0,\pi]$. Hence,

$$\lim_{n\to \infty} \int_0^\pi f_n(x)\, dx = \int_0^\pi \lim_{n\to \infty} f_n(x)\, dx = \int_0^\pi \frac{\sin x}{x}\, dx,$$

and consequently by (**),

$$\lim_{n\to \infty} \int_0^{\pi/2n} \frac{\sin 2nx}{\sin x}\, dx = \int_0^\pi \frac{\sin x}{x}\, dx.$$
 

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