UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH

SCHOOL OF MATHEMATICS

Advanced Methods of Applied Mathematics ASSIGNMENT 4

1. The equations for the propagation of linear waves on the surface of the ocean can be
solved to yield the Fourier transformation solution
Z 1
(x, t) = F (k)eikx iW (k)t
dk.
1

Here
p x is space, t is time and F is a function related to the initial wave state. W (k) =
gk is the so-called dispersion relation relating the wavenumber k to the wave frequency
W , where g is the acceleration due to gravity. The wavespeed (phase speed) is given
by c = W/k. We seek the long term behaviour of this solution as t ! 1. If we assume
t ! 1 with x/t fixed, show that
!p
gt2 ⇡g t 1 gt
i
2
+i ⇡4
(x, t) ⇠ F e 4 x .
4x2 x3/2

W 0 (k) is called the group velocity and is the velocity at which the wave energy propa-
gates. [Hint: introduce ↵ = x/t, a positive constant.]

2. The Bessel function of the first kind of order 0, J0 (x), and the Bessel function of the
second kind of order 0, Y0 (x), can be expressed in integral form as
Z 1 Z 1
1 1
J0 (x) = sin(x cosh t) dt, Y0 (x) = cos(x cosh t) dt.
⇡ 1 ⇡ 1

Use these integral representations to obtain the first term in the asymptotic expansion
of each of these Bessel functions as x ! 1.

3. Find the first term in the asymptotic expansion of

Z ⇡ ⇣ ⌘
t2 + ⇡t eix sin t dt
⇡

as x ! 1.