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The general Legendre equation reads ″ ′ + [(+)] =, where the numbers λ and μ may be complex, and are called the degree and order of the relevant function, respectively. . The polynomial solutions when λ is an integer (denoted n), and μ = 0 are the Legendre polynomials P n; and when λ is an integer (denoted n), and μ = m is also an integer with | m | < n are the associated Legendre ...
The differential equation admits another, non-polynomial solution, the Legendre functions of the second kind. A two-parameter generalization of (Eq. 1) is called Legendre's general differential equation, solved by the Associated Legendre polynomials.
The Legendre ordinary differential equation is frequently encountered in physics and other technical fields. In particular, it occurs when solving Laplace's equation (and related partial differential equations) in spherical coordinates. Associated Legendre polynomials play a vital role in the definition of spherical harmonics.
In mathematics, Legendre's equation is a Diophantine equation of the form: + + = The equation is named for Adrien-Marie Legendre who proved it in 1785 that it is solvable in integers x, y, z, not all zero, if and only if −bc, −ca and −ab are quadratic residues modulo a, b and c, respectively, where a, b, c are nonzero, square-free, pairwise relatively prime integers and also not all ...
Furthermore, a change of variables t = cos θ transforms this equation into the Legendre equation, whose solution is a multiple of the associated Legendre polynomial P m ℓ (cos θ). Finally, the equation for R has solutions of the form R(r) = A r ℓ + B r −ℓ − 1; requiring the solution to be regular throughout R 3 forces B = 0. [3]
This law, together with its supplements, allows the easy calculation of any Legendre symbol, making it possible to determine whether there is an integer solution for any quadratic equation of the form for an odd prime ; that is, to determine the "perfect squares" modulo .
For instance, Legendre's differential equation can be shown to be a special case of the hypergeometric differential equation. Hence, by solving the hypergeometric differential equation, one may directly compare its solutions to get the solutions of Legendre's differential equation, after making the necessary substitutions.
The solutions of this differential equation have singularities unless λ takes on specific values. There is a series of numbers λ 0, λ 1, λ 2, ... that led to a series of polynomial solutions P 0, P 1, P 2, ... if one of the following sets of conditions are met: