Understanding Simple Poles and Residues in Function 1/(z^4 + 1)

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the function 1/(z^4 + 1) and its poles, specifically addressing the nature of these poles as simple poles. Participants express confusion regarding the definition and identification of simple poles in relation to the function's denominator.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore the definition of simple poles and question how to determine their order. There is a discussion about the relationship between the poles and the factors in the denominator, as well as the implications of the numerator's properties.

Discussion Status

Some participants have offered insights into the nature of simple poles and the structure of the function, while others are still seeking clarity on the definitions and the reasoning behind the classification of the poles. Multiple interpretations of the poles' locations and their characteristics are being explored.

Contextual Notes

There is a mention of differing representations of the poles, with some participants providing alternative forms and questioning the assumptions made about their simplicity based on the function's structure.

philip041
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I have a function 1/(z^4 + 1)

I know the poles are pi/4, 3pi/4, 5pi/4, 7pi/4

It says they are simple poles, I thought I understood why, but now I am totally confused. How does my lecturer just know that they are simple?

A simple pole is a pole of order 1, but I thought this meant you look at the series and get the order from the highest indice of z on the denominator?

Help!

Cheers
 
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The numerator has simple zeroes, so the function is pof the form:

1/[(z-a)(z-b)(z-c)(z-d)]

where a, b, c, and d are different. If you expand this around, say, z = a, you can proceed as follows. You can write the function as:

1/(z-a) * 1/[(z-b)(z-c)(z-d)]

The factor 1/[(z-b)(z-c)(z-d)] is not singular at z = a, so it has a regular Taylor expansion. So, the Laurent expansion of the function around z = a is given by the Taylor expansion of that factor times 1/(z-a).
 
What is a simple zero?
 
philip041 said:
I have a function 1/(z^4 + 1)

I know the poles are pi/4, 3pi/4, 5pi/4, 7pi/4
Then you know wrong. The poles are [itex](\sqrt{2}/2)(1+ i)[/itex], [itex]-(\sqrt{2}/2)(1- i)[/itex], [itex](-\sqrt{2}/2)(1+ i)[/itex], and [itex](\sqrt{2}/2)(1- i)[/itex], which can be written [itex]e^{i\pi/4}[/itex], [itex]e^{3i\pi/4}[/itex], [itex]e^{5i\pi/4}[/itex], and [itex]e^{7i\pi/4}[/itex].

It says they are simple poles, I thought I understood why, but now I am totally confused. How does my lecturer just know that they are simple?

A simple pole is a pole of order 1, but I thought this meant you look at the series and get the order from the highest indice of z on the denominator?

Help!

Cheers
[tex]\frac{1}{z^4+ 1}= \frac{1}{z- (\sqrt{2}/2)(1+ i)}\frac{1}{z+ (\sqrt{2}/2)(1-i)}\frac{1}{z+(\sqrt{2}/2)(1+ i)}\frac{1}{z-(\sqrt{2}/2)(1-i)}[/tex]
Each of those numbers is a "simple pole" or "pole of order 1" because each has a power of 1 in the denominator.
 
Cheers, this helps!
 

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