Thursday, 1 June 2017

real analysis - Can we give a definition of the cotangent based on a functional equation?




I've recently learned that the cotangent satisfies the following functional equation:




$$\dfrac1{f(z)}=f(z)-2f(2z)$$




(true for $f(z)\neq 0$).



Can we solve this equation for real or complex functions $f?$ Can we give additional conditions such that $\cot$ is the only real or complex function satisfying these conditions and the equation? Or is there perhaps a different functional equation better suited for this purpose?




I'm asking this because I know about such a characterization of the real function $\exp$.



Please note that I know very little about functional equations. I've only seen two examples dealt with in my courses.


Answer



This might be related. The Herglotz trick is essentially the statement that $\pi\cot(\pi z)$ is the unique meromorphic function $f(z)$ satisfying:



$f(z)$ is defined for $z\in\mathbb{C}\backslash\mathbb{Z}$



$f(z+1)=f(z)$




$f(-z)=f(z)$



$-f(z+\frac{1}{2})=f(z)-2f(2z)$



$\lim_{z\to0}\left(f(z)-\frac{1}{z}\right)=0$


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