Questions tagged [fourier-transform]
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516 questions
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Why is the Fourier transform so ubiquitous?
Many operations and equivalences in mathematics arise as some sort of Fourier transform. By Fourier transform I mean the following:
Let $X$ and $Y$ be two objects of some category with products, and ...
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What is the actual meaning of a fractional derivative?
We're all use to seeing differential operators of the form $\frac{d}{dx}^n$ where $n\in\mathbb{Z}$. But it has come to my attention that this generalises to all complex numbers, forming a field called ...
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Fourier vs Laplace transforms
In solving a linear system, when would I use a Fourier transform versus a Laplace transform? I am not a mathematician, so the little intuition I have tells me that it could be related to the boundary ...
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Motivation and physical interpretation of the Laplace transform
Concerning the one-sided Laplace transform,
$$\mathcal{L}\{f\}(s) = \int_0^\infty f(t)e^{-st} dt$$
what is a motivation to come up with that formula? I am particularly interested in "physical&...
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The $2\pi$ in the definition of the Fourier transform
There are several conventions for the definition of the Fourier transform on the real line.
1 . No $2\pi$. Fourier (with cosine/sine), Hörmander, Katznelson, Folland.
$ \int_{\bf R} f(x) e^{-ix\xi} \...
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Image of L^1 under the Fourier Transform
The Fourier Transform $\mathcal{F}:L^1(\mathbb{R})\to C_0(\mathbb{R})$ is an injective, bounded linear map that isn't onto. It is known (if I remember correctly) that the range isn't closed, but is ...
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Fourier transform of the unit sphere
The Fourier transform of the volume form of the (n-1)-sphere in $\mathbf R^n$ is given by the well-known formula
$$
\int_{S^{n-1}}e^{i\langle\mathbf a,\mathbf u\rangle}d\sigma(\mathbf u) = (2\pi)^{\nu ...
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Is there a 'certainty' principle?
Heisenberg's uncertainty principle is a restriction on which probability distributions can describe the position and momentum of a quantum particle.
In mathematical terms it says that if $\psi\in L^2$ ...
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Anti-delta function?
Did anyone ever consider a "function" or "distribution" $F(x)$ with the following property:
its integral $\int_a^b F(x)\,dx=0$ for any finite interval $(a,b)$ but $\int_{-\infty}^\...
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Laplace Transform in the context of Gelfand/Pontryagin
Questions:
Is there a class of objects (presumably related to locally compact abelian groups) for which the quasi-characters canonically generalize the Laplace transform?
If not, is there a ...
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When are Fourier coefficients monotonic?
Given some sufficiently smooth function $f$ what conditions would be sufficient for its Fourier coefficients, as defined by
$$
\hat{f}(n) := \int_{0}^{2\pi}\cos(nx)f(x)\ dx, \quad \text{for } n = 1,2,\...
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Functions $f$ on $\mathbb{Z}/N\mathbb{Z}$ with $|f|$ and $|\widehat{f}|$ constant
Let $N$ be a positive integer; for simplicity I'm happy to assume it's an odd prime but I'm interested in the general case too.
Let $f \colon \mathbb{Z}/N\mathbb{Z} \to \mathbb{C}$ and let $\widehat{...
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Fourier transform of $f_a(x)= a^{-2}\exp(-|x|^a)$, $a \in (0,2)$, is decreasing in $a$
Can one show that Fourier transform of
$$ f_a(x) = a^{-2} \exp(-|x|^a), \qquad a \in (0,2)$$
is decreasing in $a$?
I have a solution for $a \in (0,1]$ which cannot be used for $a\in (1,2)$.
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Eigenvectors of the Fourier transformation
The Fourier transform $\hat u$ is defined on the Schwartz space $\mathscr S(\mathbb R^n)$
by
$
\hat u(\xi)=\int e^{-2iπ x\cdot \xi} u(x) dx.
$
It is an isomorphism of $\mathscr S(\mathbb R^n)$ and the ...
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Is this statement which relates the Fourier transform of a function to its singularities correct?
I am working on a problem, which would possibly relate the Fourier transform/series with the jump singularities of the function where the function itself or one of its derivatives jump. ((some kind of ...
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Intuitive explanation why "shadow operator" $\frac D{e^D-1}$ connects logarithms with trigonometric functions?
Consider the operator $\frac D{e^D-1}$ which we will call "shadow":
$$\frac {D}{e^D-1}f(x)=\frac1{2 \pi }\int_{-\infty }^{+\infty } e^{-iwx}\frac{-iw}{e^{-i w}-1}\int_{-\infty }^{+\infty } e^...
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Positivity of certain Fourier transform
Is the Fourier transform of the function
$$ f(\xi) = e^{-t|\xi|^{2m}}$$
positive for $t>0$ and $m \in \mathbb{N}_0$?
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Is there a $C_c^{\infty}( \mathbb{R}^d)$ function whose Fourier transform we can explicitly write down?
I noticed that although $C_c^{\infty}$-functions are dense in some quite large spaces and well understood (especially their Fourier transform) I have never encountered an explicit example of a ...
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Looking for sufficient conditions for positive Fourier transforms
I am looking for some sufficient conditions for an even, continuous, nonnegative, non-increasing, non-convex function to be non-negative definite. In other words
$$
\int_0^\infty f(x)\cos(x\omega) \, ...
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Function and Fourier transform vanish on an interval
I'm no expert on these things (and this may not be cutting edge research level; it's really motivated by this MSE question), but it seems that there are non-zero measures (and also functions (?), I ...
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Fourier transform on Minkowski space
Physicists Some people like to define the "Fourier transform" on Minkowski space as $\hat f(\xi) = \int e^{i \eta(x,\xi)} f(x) dx$, where $\eta(x,\xi)$ is the Minkowski form. I'm used to thinking of ...
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Fast convolution of sparse functions
Let $F:\mathbb{R}\to \mathbb{Z}$ be a step function with at most $k$ discontinuities, at given rationals $a_1<a_2<\dotsc<a_k$. Let $g:\mathbb{R}\to \mathbb{Z}$ be given as a linear ...
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Error of Discrete Fourier Transform on Finite Domain (vs. Continuous FT) in terms of Sobolev order
My question is about quantifying the error that occurs by approximating the continuous Fourier transform on a finite domain by using a discretised version with resolution $N$ for a function of a given ...
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What is the intuition behind applying the Mellin Transform to prime distribution?
I am an undergraduate student writing an expository thesis on the complex-analytic proof of the Prime Number Theorem.
I understand that applying the Mellin Transform to the partial sum of the van ...
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About the Fourier transform of the logarithm function
I want to calculate / simplify:
$$\mathcal{F} (\ln(|x|)\mathcal{F(f)}(x))=\mathcal{F} (\ln(|x|)) \star f$$
where $\mathcal{F}$ is the Fourier transform ($\mathcal[f](\xi)=\int_{\mathbb R}f(x)e^{ix\...
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Reference request: Fourier transform on the multiplicative group of real numbers
Let us consider the three groups $(\mathbb{R},+)$, $(\mathbb{Z}/2\mathbb{Z},+)$ and $(\mathbb{R}^\times,\cdot)$ (where $\mathbb{R}^\times := \mathbb{R} \setminus \{0\}$). We endow $\mathbb{R}$ with ...
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What is the asymptotics of the Fourier transform of $\exp(-x^4)$ for large wave numbers?
The Fourier transform of $\exp(-x^4)$ has an analytical expression, it's the difference of two generalized hypergeometric functions:
$\int d x \ e^{-x^4} e^{ikx} = 2 \ \Gamma(\frac{5}{4}) \ _0F_2(;\...
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"Small" zero divisors in $\mathbb C[\mathbb Z/p\mathbb Z]$
If $p$ is a prime, and $a,b$ are non-zero elements of the group algebra $\mathbb C[\mathbb Z/p\mathbb Z]$ satisfying $a\ast b=0$, then $$|{\rm supp}\ a|+|{\rm supp}\ b|\ge p+2.$$ This is easy to prove ...
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Fourier Transforms of Convolutions
Straightforward computations lead to the following standard property of Fourier transformation: it transforms convolutions into products, i.e. for functions $f$ and $g$ Schwartz class we have
$$\...
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Are functions of moderate growth a bornological space?
I was thinking a bit about distribution theory the last weeks and stumbled across the following question:
There are two natural locally convex topologies on the space of smooth functions of moderate ...
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Fourier transform of compactly supported distribution is smooth
My advisor made the comment that if $u\in \mathcal{E}'$ is a compactly supported distribution, then $\hat{u}(\xi)\in C^{\infty}(\mathbb{R}^n)$ is actually a smooth function (not merely a distribution ...
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Newton series and Fourier transform - is there an analogy?
Fourier expansion for a function:
$$f(x)=\frac{1}{2\pi}\int_{-\infty}^{+\infty} e^{- i \omega x}\int_{-\infty}^{+\infty}e^{i\omega t}f(t)dt \, d\omega$$
Newton series expansion of a function:
$$f(x)...
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Asymptotic Weyl Character Formula
Let $G$ be a complex semi-simple group along with a chosen pair of opposite Borel subgroups (so we get all the root-theoretic data we need). Let $\lambda$ be a dominant weight, and let $V(\lambda)$ be ...
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Determining convexity of a polygon from its Fourier coefficients
Consider an $n$-sided polygonal curve in the plane, represented by an ordered set of points $(x_0, x_1, \ldots, x_{n-1})$; line segments connect consecutive points and also $x_{n-1}$ to $x_0$. It is ...
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Montgomery's conjecture and lower bound on certain Fourier transform.
Recently I have come across the following question, while meditating about Matt Young's answer to this question of mine, explaining the heuristic (or at least, one possible heuristic) behind ...
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Fourier cosine transform from Erdélyi's Tables of Integral Transforms
I’d like confirmation that
$$ \frac{\cos(b \sqrt{a^2+x^2})}{(a^2+x^2)^{3/2}} $$
has the Fourier cosine transform
$$ \frac{\pi}{2 a} \, \exp(-ay) \qquad \text{if $y>a$,}
$$
as found in Tables of ...
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Fourier transform of a bounded function
This should really be well-known, but I was not able to find a definite answer to this question:
Is the Fourier transform of a bounded function always a borel measure (i.e. an order 0 distribution)?
...
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How was Claim 5 in "A non-linear generalisation of the Loomis–Whitney inequality and applications" thought up?
In Bennett, Carbery and Wright's paper A non-linear generalisation of the Loomis–Whitney inequality and applications, Claim 5 was used to generalise the case from characteristic functions to simple ...
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How is the propagator computed on an elliptic curve?
I've been struggling for a while now understanding why the propagator for the action
$$
S(\varphi) = \int_E \partial \varphi \bar\partial\varphi + \frac{\lambda}{6}(\partial\varphi)^3
$$
on an ...
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Distribution $f$ such that (a) $\widehat{f}$ has compact support, (b) $\mathbb{E}(|X|)$ is minimal?
(What follows is motivated by an answer to Fourier optimization problem related to the Prime Number Theorem)
Let $f:\mathbb{R}\to [0,\infty)$ be such that
(a) $\int_{\mathbb{R}} f(x) dx = 1$,
(b) $\...
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Pairs of elementary Fourier transforms in $L^2$
It is customary to teach Fourier transform on the real line by starting with functions from $L^1$, $L^2$ or the Schwartz space. It is not so easy to illustrate the theory by computing explicit pairs ...
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Who introduced the discrete Fourier transform?
I am trying to find the original reference which introduced the definition of discrete Fourier transform as used today. When did this modern formulation (which includes the indexing from n to N-1) of ...
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General Fourier inversion formula (Gil-Pelaez)
Gil-Pelaez (1951) proves the Fourier inversion formula
\begin{align*}
F(x) &= \frac{1}{2} + \frac{1}{2\pi} \int_0^\infty \frac{e^{itx}\phi(-t)-e^{-itx}\phi(t)}{it}dt \\
&= \frac{1}{2} - \frac{...
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Fourier transform that is almost a brick wall - but why?
Let $$g(x) := \sqrt{1+x^2},$$ and $$h(x) := g^{-3/2}(x) \exp(-i2\pi g(x)).$$
I can observe that the Fourier transform $|H(f)|$ is almost flat if $|f|<1$, and $H(f)\approx 0, \; |f|>1$.
This ...
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Rate of decrease of the Fourier transform of standard mollifiers
What is the the rate of decrease of $|\widehat{f_p}(t)|$ (as $t\to\infty$), where $p\in(0,\infty)$,
$$\widehat{f_p}(t):=\int_{\mathbb R} e^{itx}f_p(x)\,dx,$$
and
$$f_p(x):=e^{-1/(1-x^2/p)^p}1(|x|<\...
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Functional equation with Fourier transform and $\frac{1}{x} f(\frac{1}{x}) $
What are the continuous functions $f$ such that on $\mathbb{R}^{+*}$, they satisfy following functional equation:
$$\int_0^\infty f(t) e^{-itx} \, dt =\lambda \frac{1}{x} f\left(\frac{1}{x}\right)$$
$\...
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Where does the Laplace transform come from?
The Gelfand transform on the commutative Banach *-algebra $L^1(\mathbb{R})$ is just the Fourier transform.
Q. What can we say concerning the Laplace transform?
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What is the difference (if any) between "fourier transform" and "SO(3) fourier transform"?
What is the difference (if any) between "fourier transform" and "SO(3) fourier transform"?
I searched on Google but couldn't find a satisfiable answer.
Thanks in advance :)
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Eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of the Laplace operator on entire plane
According to the answers in the the following questions: How to prove the spectrum of the Laplace operator? and What is spectrum for Laplacian in $\mathbb{R}^n$ , the spectrum of the Laplace operator $...
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Fourier transform surjective on $L^p(\mathbb{R}^n)$ for $p \in (1,2)$?
I know that $F_2:L^2 \rightarrow L^2$ is of course unitary, whereas $F_1:L^1 \rightarrow C_0$ is injective but not surjective. This can be seen by looking at the dual map.
Riesz-Thorin gives us that ...
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