How to solve the integral of Ax^2 * exp(-x^2/2a^2)

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the integral of the function Ax^2 * exp(-x^2/2a^2), which falls within the subject area of calculus, specifically focusing on integration techniques and properties of exponential functions.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Mathematical reasoning, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore whether the integral is definite or indefinite and discuss the challenges of expressing the antiderivative in terms of elementary functions. There are suggestions to use integration by parts and the error function (erf). Some participants also relate the integral to statistical concepts, such as the expectation of a normally distributed variable.

Discussion Status

The discussion is active, with participants offering various approaches and insights. There is no explicit consensus on a single method, but several productive lines of reasoning have been introduced, including integration techniques and statistical interpretations.

Contextual Notes

Participants question the level of calculus knowledge required to tackle the problem and discuss the implications of integrating over the whole real line versus a definite integral.

danai_pa
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Please healp me

What is the solution of equation?

intregal of Ax^2*exp(-x^2/2a^2)
 
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danai_pa said:
Please healp me

What is the solution of equation?

intregal of Ax^2*exp(-x^2/2a^2)
Do you want a definite or indefinite integral? The antiderivative of this function cannot be written in terms of elementry function. If you know the function erf(x) you can express the integral in terms of it (hint: integrate by parts). erf is usually defined in terms of the integral of exp(-x^2). You can also find the integral of the function over the whole real line by integrating by parts and using the fact that the whole real line integral of exp(-k x^2) is
sqrt(pi/k) a fact that can be shown a number of ways. How much calculus do you know?
 
If you are looking to integrate over the whole real line, and are familiar with statistics, another approach is to notice that, apart from a constant, this is similar to finding the expectation of x^2 where x is a normally distributed random variable with mean 0 and variance a^2. Using the formula

var[x] = E[x^2] - (E[x])^2

will then provide the answer.
 
why don't you just set u = (-x^2 / 2 * x ^2)

then du / dx = - x / a ^ 2

then it is much easier
 

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