Particular integral question with 2nd order diff eq'ns

In summary, if the right hand side of the differential equation is in the form of an exponential, sine, cosine, or polynomial, then the "Method of Undetermined Coefficients" will work to find the particular integral. If the right hand side is in the form of a root of an auxiliary equation, then the "Method of Undetermined Coefficients" will not work, and you will need to use the "Method of Variation of Parameters".
  • #1
rock.freak667
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If there is a differential equation to solve of the form
[tex]a\frac{d^2y}{dx^2} +b\frac{dy}{dx} + cy = tan(x)[/tex]

you would put the LHS=0 and get the complementary function. But what would the the particular integral of tan(x) ?
 
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  • #2
You are talking about using the "method of undermined coefficients"? That only works when the right hand side is on of the types of functions that you can get as solutions of linear constant coefficients equations: exponentials, sine or cosine, polynomials, or products of those. tan(x) is not of that type so "undetermined coefficients" will not work. Try "variation of parameters".
 
  • #3
A quick run with Mathematica shows that the particular integral is... unpleasant. Where has this problem come up? Not as a homework problem, I hope?
 
  • #4
HallsofIvy said:
You are talking about using the "method of undermined coefficients"? That only works when the right hand side is on of the types of functions that you can get as solutions of linear constant coefficients equations: exponentials, sine or cosine, polynomials, or products of those. tan(x) is not of that type so "undetermined coefficients" will not work. Try "variation of parameters".

Ah ok I shall have to do some more reading now..thanks

genneth said:
A quick run with Mathematica shows that the particular integral is... unpleasant. Where has this problem come up? Not as a homework problem, I hope?

Not as a homework problem...On Friday my teacher officially taught 2nd order diff. equations with constant coefficients. In one of the notes if the RHS was a sine or cosine you'd use Acos(bx)+Bsin(bx) or if "b" was a root(or a repeated root) of the auxiliary equation you'd use x{Acos(bx)+Bsin(bx)} as the P.I.

so out of curiosity I wanted to know what would happen if the RHS was tan(x)
 
  • #5
rock.freak667 said:
Ah ok I shall have to do some more reading now..thanks



Not as a homework problem...On Friday my teacher officially taught 2nd order diff. equations with constant coefficients. In one of the notes if the RHS was a sine or cosine you'd use Acos(bx)+Bsin(bx) or if "b" was a root(or a repeated root) of the auxiliary equation you'd use x{Acos(bx)+Bsin(bx)} as the P.I.

so out of curiosity I wanted to know what would happen if the RHS was tan(x)

Aha. Then in this case, I would not keep trying with this example. The particular integral is *extremely* complex. It is worth keep learning about ways to solve differential equations -- the more the better -- but to solve this one will take a *very* long time to learn.
 
  • #6
let [tex]y1[/tex] and [tex]y2[/tex] be the homogenous solutions and [tex]Yp[/tex] be the particular solution}[/tex]
[tex] Yp = V1(x) y1 + V2(x)y2[/tex]
[tex]V1(x) = \int{\frac{-g(x)y2(x)}{W(y1,y2)(x)}dx}[/tex]
[tex]V2(x) = \int{\frac{g(x)y1(x)}{W(y1,y2)(x)}dx}[/tex]

this will give u the particular solution for 2nd order ode (also known as variation of parameters as "HallsofIvy" suggested)

where [tex]W(y1,y2)(x)[/tex] is the wronskian.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wronskian
 
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  • #7
Particular Integral

HallsofIvy said:
You are talking about using the "method of undermined coefficients"? That only works when the right hand side is on of the types of functions that you can get as solutions of linear constant coefficients equations: exponentials, sine or cosine, polynomials, or products of those. tan(x) is not of that type so "undetermined coefficients" will not work. Try "variation of parameters".

Actually its called "Method of Undetermined Coefficients" for finding solutions in terms of Particular Integral and Complementary Function for Non-homogeneous Linear Equations with constant coefficients for Second Order Differential Equations.

There are rules for the same in case we find the "forcing functions"(the terms on the right hand side) such as these.

Rules are based on forcing functions

RULE 1
If form of forcing function is in the form of A.exp(kx)
then form of PI will be
C.exp(kx), when k is not a root.
If k is a single root, then C.x.exp(kx)
If k is a double root, then C.x(square).exp(kx)
=====================================================================

RULE 2
If form of forcing function is in the form of Ploynomial then
if k=0 is not a root, PI will be C0+C1.x(raise to 1)+C2.x(square)+...
if k=0 is a single root, PI will be x(C0+C1.x+...)
if k=0 is a double root, PI will be x(square)(C0+C1.x+...)
=====================================================================

RULE 3
If form of focring function is A coskx and
if roots are of nature such as ik and its not a root, then PI will be C coskx + D sinkx

If form of corcing function is A sinkx and
if roots are of nature such as ik and its a single root, then PI will be x(C cos kx + D sinkx)

I hope that gives you a light, instead of the solution directly. :-)
 
  • #8
Particular Integral... ways to find

HallsofIvy said:
You are talking about using the "method of undermined coefficients"? That only works when the right hand side is on of the types of functions that you can get as solutions of linear constant coefficients equations: exponentials, sine or cosine, polynomials, or products of those. tan(x) is not of that type so "undetermined coefficients" will not work. Try "variation of parameters".

Actually its called "Method of Undetermined Coefficients" for finding solutions in terms of Particular Integral and Complementary Function for Non-homogeneous Linear Equations with constant coefficients for Second Order Differential Equations.

There are rules for the same in case we find the "forcing functions"(the terms on the right hand side) such as these.

Rules are based on forcing functions

RULE 1
If form of forcing function is in the form of A.exp(kx)
then form of PI will be
C.exp(kx), when k is not a root.
If k is a single root, then C.x.exp(kx)
If k is a double root, then C.x(square).exp(kx)
=====================================================================

RULE 2
If form of forcing function is in the form of Ploynomial then
if k=0 is not a root, PI will be C0+C1.x(raise to 1)+C2.x(square)+...
if k=0 is a single root, PI will be x(C0+C1.x+...)
if k=0 is a double root, PI will be x(square)(C0+C1.x+...)
=====================================================================

RULE 3
If form of focring function is A coskx and
if roots are of nature such as ik and its not a root, then PI will be C coskx + D sinkx

If form of corcing function is A sinkx and
if roots are of nature such as ik and its a single root, then PI will be x(C cos kx + D sinkx)
 
  • #9
As I said above, the "method of undetermined coefficients" only works when the right hand side is on of the types of functions that you can get as solutions of linear constant coefficients equations: exponentials, sine or cosine, polynomials, or products of those.
Look up "variation of parameters" in your textbook. It gives a reasonably simple method of reducing the problem to a pair of integrals. In general, however, those integrals do not have any anti-derivative in terms of elementary functions.
 

FAQ: Particular integral question with 2nd order diff eq'ns

What is a particular integral?

A particular integral is a solution to a differential equation that satisfies the given initial conditions. It is a specific solution that is added to the general solution of a differential equation to satisfy the boundary conditions.

What is a 2nd order differential equation?

A 2nd order differential equation is a mathematical equation that involves the second derivative of a function. It can be written in the form of d^2y/dx^2 = f(x,y,dy/dx), where y is the dependent variable and x is the independent variable.

Why is finding a particular integral important?

Finding a particular integral is important because it allows us to solve a differential equation and determine the specific solution for a given set of initial conditions. It also helps us to understand the behavior of a system over time.

What methods can be used to find a particular integral?

There are several methods that can be used to find a particular integral, such as the method of undetermined coefficients, variation of parameters, and the method of reduction of order. These methods involve manipulating the given differential equation to solve for the particular integral.

Can a particular integral be found for any 2nd order differential equation?

No, not all 2nd order differential equations have a particular integral. In some cases, the particular integral may not exist or may be very difficult to find. It depends on the specific form of the differential equation and the boundary conditions given.

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