Arithmetic functionIn number theory, an arithmetic, arithmetical, or number-theoretic function is for most authors any function f(n) whose domain is the positive integers and whose range is a subset of the complex numbers. Hardy & Wright include in their definition the requirement that an arithmetical function "expresses some arithmetical property of n". An example of an arithmetic function is the divisor function whose value at a positive integer n is equal to the number of divisors of n.
Möbius functionThe Möbius function μ(n) is a multiplicative function in number theory introduced by the German mathematician August Ferdinand Möbius (also transliterated Moebius) in 1832. It is ubiquitous in elementary and analytic number theory and most often appears as part of its namesake the Möbius inversion formula. Following work of Gian-Carlo Rota in the 1960s, generalizations of the Möbius function were introduced into combinatorics, and are similarly denoted μ(x). For any positive integer n, define μ(n) as the sum of the primitive nth roots of unity.
Divergent seriesIn mathematics, a divergent series is an infinite series that is not convergent, meaning that the infinite sequence of the partial sums of the series does not have a finite limit. If a series converges, the individual terms of the series must approach zero. Thus any series in which the individual terms do not approach zero diverges. However, convergence is a stronger condition: not all series whose terms approach zero converge. A counterexample is the harmonic series The divergence of the harmonic series was proven by the medieval mathematician Nicole Oresme.
Dirichlet seriesIn mathematics, a Dirichlet series is any series of the form where s is complex, and is a complex sequence. It is a special case of general Dirichlet series. Dirichlet series play a variety of important roles in analytic number theory. The most usually seen definition of the Riemann zeta function is a Dirichlet series, as are the Dirichlet L-functions. It is conjectured that the Selberg class of series obeys the generalized Riemann hypothesis. The series is named in honor of Peter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet.
Summation by partsIn mathematics, summation by parts transforms the summation of products of sequences into other summations, often simplifying the computation or (especially) estimation of certain types of sums. It is also called Abel's lemma or Abel transformation, named after Niels Henrik Abel who introduced it in 1826. Suppose and are two sequences. Then, Using the forward difference operator , it can be stated more succinctly as Summation by parts is an analogue to integration by parts: or to Abel's summation formula: An alternative statement is which is analogous to the integration by parts formula for semimartingales.
Prime number theoremIn mathematics, the prime number theorem (PNT) describes the asymptotic distribution of the prime numbers among the positive integers. It formalizes the intuitive idea that primes become less common as they become larger by precisely quantifying the rate at which this occurs. The theorem was proved independently by Jacques Hadamard and Charles Jean de la Vallée Poussin in 1896 using ideas introduced by Bernhard Riemann (in particular, the Riemann zeta function).
Ramanujan summationRamanujan summation is a technique invented by the mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan for assigning a value to divergent infinite series. Although the Ramanujan summation of a divergent series is not a sum in the traditional sense, it has properties that make it mathematically useful in the study of divergent infinite series, for which conventional summation is undefined. Since there are no properties of an entire sum, the Ramanujan summation functions as a property of partial sums.
Möbius inversion formulaIn mathematics, the classic Möbius inversion formula is a relation between pairs of arithmetic functions, each defined from the other by sums over divisors. It was introduced into number theory in 1832 by August Ferdinand Möbius. A large generalization of this formula applies to summation over an arbitrary locally finite partially ordered set, with Möbius' classical formula applying to the set of the natural numbers ordered by divisibility: see incidence algebra.
Prime numberA prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways of writing it as a product, 1 × 5 or 5 × 1, involve 5 itself. However, 4 is composite because it is a product (2 × 2) in which both numbers are smaller than 4.
Dirichlet convolutionIn mathematics, the Dirichlet convolution is a binary operation defined for arithmetic functions; it is important in number theory. It was developed by Peter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet. If are two arithmetic functions from the positive integers to the complex numbers, the Dirichlet convolution f ∗ g is a new arithmetic function defined by: where the sum extends over all positive divisors d of n, or equivalently over all distinct pairs (a, b) of positive integers whose product is n.
LogarithmIn mathematics, the logarithm is the inverse function to exponentiation. That means that the logarithm of a number x to the base b is the exponent to which b must be raised to produce x. For example, since 1000 = 103, the logarithm base 10 of 1000 is 3, or log10 (1000) = 3. The logarithm of x to base b is denoted as logb (x), or without parentheses, logb x, or even without the explicit base, log x, when no confusion is possible, or when the base does not matter such as in big O notation.
Average order of an arithmetic functionIn number theory, an average order of an arithmetic function is some simpler or better-understood function which takes the same values "on average". Let be an arithmetic function. We say that an average order of is if as tends to infinity. It is conventional to choose an approximating function that is continuous and monotone. But even so an average order is of course not unique. In cases where the limit exists, it is said that has a mean value (average value) .
Multiplicative functionIn number theory, a multiplicative function is an arithmetic function f(n) of a positive integer n with the property that f(1) = 1 and whenever a and b are coprime. An arithmetic function f(n) is said to be completely multiplicative (or totally multiplicative) if f(1) = 1 and f(ab) = f(a)f(b) holds for all positive integers a and b, even when they are not coprime.
Logarithmic scaleA logarithmic scale (or log scale) is a way of displaying numerical data over a very wide range of values in a compact way. As opposed to a linear number line in which every unit of distance corresponds to adding by the same amount, on a logarithmic scale, every unit of length corresponds to multiplying the previous value by the same amount. Hence, such a scale is nonlinear: the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and so on, are not equally spaced. Rather, the numbers 10, 100, 1000, 10000, and 100000 would be equally spaced.
Cesàro summationIn mathematical analysis, Cesàro summation (also known as the Cesàro mean) assigns values to some infinite sums that are not necessarily convergent in the usual sense. The Cesàro sum is defined as the limit, as n tends to infinity, of the sequence of arithmetic means of the first n partial sums of the series. This special case of a matrix summability method is named for the Italian analyst Ernesto Cesàro (1859–1906). The term summation can be misleading, as some statements and proofs regarding Cesàro summation can be said to implicate the Eilenberg–Mazur swindle.
Prime omega functionIn number theory, the prime omega functions and count the number of prime factors of a natural number Thereby (little omega) counts each distinct prime factor, whereas the related function (big omega) counts the total number of prime factors of honoring their multiplicity (see arithmetic function). That is, if we have a prime factorization of of the form for distinct primes (), then the respective prime omega functions are given by and . These prime factor counting functions have many important number theoretic relations.
Incidence algebraIn order theory, a field of mathematics, an incidence algebra is an associative algebra, defined for every locally finite partially ordered set and commutative ring with unity. Subalgebras called reduced incidence algebras give a natural construction of various types of generating functions used in combinatorics and number theory. A locally finite poset is one in which every closed interval [a, b] = {x : a ≤ x ≤ b} is finite.
Euclid's theoremEuclid's theorem is a fundamental statement in number theory that asserts that there are infinitely many prime numbers. It was first proved by Euclid in his work Elements. There are several proofs of the theorem. Euclid offered a proof published in his work Elements (Book IX, Proposition 20), which is paraphrased here. Consider any finite list of prime numbers p1, p2, ..., pn. It will be shown that at least one additional prime number not in this list exists. Let P be the product of all the prime numbers in the list: P = p1p2.
Dirichlet characterIn analytic number theory and related branches of mathematics, a complex-valued arithmetic function is a Dirichlet character of modulus (where is a positive integer) if for all integers and : that is, is completely multiplicative. (gcd is the greatest common divisor) that is, is periodic with period . The simplest possible character, called the principal character, usually denoted , (see Notation below) exists for all moduli: The German mathematician Peter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet—for whom the character is named—introduced these functions in his 1837 paper on primes in arithmetic progressions.
Mathematical proofA mathematical proof is a deductive argument for a mathematical statement, showing that the stated assumptions logically guarantee the conclusion. The argument may use other previously established statements, such as theorems; but every proof can, in principle, be constructed using only certain basic or original assumptions known as axioms, along with the accepted rules of inference. Proofs are examples of exhaustive deductive reasoning which establish logical certainty, to be distinguished from empirical arguments or non-exhaustive inductive reasoning which establish "reasonable expectation".
