Impulse Functions

In this section: Forcing functions that model impulsive actions − external

forces of very short duration (and usually of very large amplitude).

The idealized impulsive forcing function is the Dirac delta function* (or the
unit impulse function), denotes δ(t). It is defined by the two properties

δ(t) = 0, if t ≠ 0, and

∞
∫ −∞
δ (t ) dt = 1 .

That is, it is a force of zero duration that is only non-zero at the exact
moment t = 0, and has strength (total impulse) of 1 unit.

Translation of δ(t)

The impulse can be located at arbitrary time, rather than just at t = 0. For an
impulse at t = c, we just have:

δ(t − c) = 0, if t ≠ c, and

∞
∫ −∞
δ (t − c) dt = 1 .

*
It was introduced by, and is named after the British physicist Paul A. M. Dirac (1902 – 1984), co-winner
of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1933. A pioneer of quantum mechanics, Dirac is perhaps best known
(besides for the delta function) for formulating the Dirac equation, which predicted the existence of
antimatter.

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 1

Laplace transforms of Dirac delta functions

L {δ(t)} = 1,

L {δ(t − c)} = e−cs, c ≥ 0.

Here is an important and interesting property of the Dirac delta function: If

f (t) is any continuous function, then

∞
∫−∞
δ (t − c ) f (t ) dt = f (c)

Therefore, for c ≥ 0,

∞ ∞
L {δ(t − c)} = ∫ 0
δ (t − c ) e − st dt = ∫ δ (t − c ) e −st dt = e −cs .
−∞

Note: Since the integrand in the above integrals is zero everywhere

except at the single point t = c ≥ 0, the contribution from the interval
(−∞, 0) to the definite integral is, therefore, zero. Hence the two
definite integrals above will have the same value despite their
different lower limits of integration.

And,

∞
L {δ(t − c) f (t)} = ∫0
δ (t − c) f (t ) e −st dt = f (c) e −cs .

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 2

Example: y″ + 6y′ + 5y = δ(t) + δ(t − 2), y(0) = 1, y′(0) = 0.

Transform both sides and simplify:

(s2 L{y} − s y(0) − y′(0)) + 6(sL{y} − y(0)) + 5 L{y} =

L{δ(t) + δ(t − 2)}

(s2 L{y} − s) + 6(sL{y} − 1) + 5L{y} = 1 + e−2s

(s2 + 6 s + 5) L{y} − s − 6 = 1 + e−2s

(s2 + 6 s + 5) L{y} = 1 + e−2s + s + 6 = e−2s + s + 7

e −2 s s+7
+
L{y} = ( s + 1)( s + 5) ( s + 1)( s + 5) .

Further simplifying the two parts using partial fractions:

−2s
Part 1, without the e term, becomes

1 1 1 1 1
= −
( s + 1)( s + 5) 4 ( s + 1) 4 ( s + 5) ,

1 −t 1 −5t
It has an inverse transform e − e .
4 4
−2s
Now apply the effects of the e term, resulting in

1
4
( )
u 2 (t ) e −t +2 − e −5t +10 .

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 3

 Part 2 becomes

s+7 3 1 1 1
= −
( s + 1)( s + 5) 2 ( s + 1) 2 ( s + 5) .

3 −t 1 −5t
It’s inverse transform is e − e .
2 2

Therefore, the solution is

y=
3 −t 1 −5 t 1
2 2 4
( )
e − e + u 2 (t ) e −t +2 − e −5t +10 .

Note that the first term in the forcing function, δ(t), has the same effect to
the solution of this initial value problem as it would if the second initial
condition was y′(0) = 1. (Check this: remove the first term of the forcing
function and change the second initial condition to y′(0) = 1 and see that this
new initial value problem will have the same solution as the above problem.)

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 4

Example: y″ + 2y′ + 10y = −δ(t − 4π), y(0) = 0, y′(0) = 1.

Transform both sides and simplify:

(s2 L{y} − s y(0) − y′(0)) + 2(sL{y} − y(0)) + 10 L{y} =

L{−δ(t − 4π)}

(s2 L{y} − 1) + 2(sL{y} − 0) + 10L{y} = − e−4πs

(s2 + 2 s + 10) L{y} − 1 = − e−4πs

(s2 + 2 s + 10) L{y} = 1 − e−4πs

1 − 4πs 1
L{y} = s 2 + 2 s + 10 − e
s 2 + 2 s + 10 .

−4πs
Notice that, other than the extra factor − e , the second part
contains the same expression as the first part. This fact simplifies our
task somewhat. Complete the squares in the denominator and rewrite
the expression as:

1 1 3
=
s 2 + 2 s + 10 3 ( s + 1) 2 + 32 .

1 −t
Its inverse transform is e sin(3t ) , which corresponds exactly to
3
the first part of the expression.

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 5

 −4πs
The second part, with the extra − e term, gains its effects (plus a
negative sign) of a unit step function and a translation by c = 4π. It
becomes
1
( )
− u4π (t ) e −(t −4π ) sin 3(t − 4π ) .
3

Therefore,

1
3
1
(
y = e −t sin(3t ) − u 4π (t ) e −( t −4π ) sin 3(t − 4π )
3
)
1 1
= e −t sin(3t ) − u 4π (t ) e −t + 4π sin(3t )
3 3

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 6

Resonance induced by a discontinuous forcing function

Example: u″ + u = δ(t) + δ(t − 2π) + δ(t − 4π) + … + δ(t − 2000π),

u(0) = 0, u′(0) = 0.

Transform and simplify the equation:

(s2 L{u} − 0s − 0) + L{u} = 1 + e−2πs + e−4πs + … + e−2000πs,

(s2 + 1) L{u} = 1 + e−2πs + e−4πs + … + e−2000πs,

1  1000 − 2 nπs 
1 + ∑ e 
L{u} = s 2 + 1  .
 n =1 

The inverse transform of each term contains sin(t ). The terms inside
the summation, after applying the required step functions and
translations, become u2nπ (t ) sin(t − 2nπ) = u2nπ (t ) sin(t).

Therefore,
 sin(t ), 0 ≤ t < 2π
 2 sin(t ), 2π ≤ t < 4π
1000 
u = sin(t ) + ∑ u 2 nπ (t ) sin(t ) =  3 sin(t ), 4π ≤ t < 6π
n =1  : :

1001 sin(t ), 2000π ≤ t

Notice the increase in amplitude, not continuously but rather in

discrete steps, that occurs linearly with elapsed time. This is a
discrete version of the resonance behavior.

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 7

The graph of the previous solution:

Transfer Function and Impulse Response

When a system or device can be described by a linear differential equation (a

mass-spring system, or a RLC electrical circuit, for examples) its transfer
function, H(s), is the ratio of the Laplace transform of the system’s output
(its response to an input, expressed by the equation’s solution), Y(s), divided
by the Laplace transform of the system’s input (the equation’s forcing
function), G(s), given that all initial conditions are zero. It is a description
of how the system would react to a unit measure of external stimulus.

Take, as an example, a system described by a second order linear equation

a y″ + b y′ + c y = g(t).

Transform both sides, with all initial conditions zero, it becomes

a (s2 L{y} − 0s − 0) + b (sL{y} − 0) + c L{y} = L{g(t)}.

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 8

Simplify to obtain

(as2 + bs + c) L{y} = L{g(t)} = G(s),

ீ(௦)
Y(s) = L{y} = .
௔௦ మ ା௕௦ା௖

Therefore, the transfer function, H(s), is

Y ( s ) G ( s ) /(as 2 + bs + c) 1
H (s) = = = 2
G (s) G(s) as + bs + c

Note the expression is really just the reciprocal of the characteristic

polynomial, in variable s, of the corresponding homogeneous linear equation.
Further, since L {δ(t)} = 1, if the forcing function g(t) is δ(t) then G(s) = 1.
The transfer function would just become H(s) = Y(s) / 1 = Y(s). Therefore,
even though H(s) is independent of g(t), it can nevertheless be considered
simply as just the output Y(s), with all-zero initial conditions, of the equation

a y″ + b y′ + c y = δ(t).

That is, the transfer function is a direct measurement of the system’s reaction
to a single unit of impulse applied to the system. As a result, the inverse
−1
Laplace transform of the transfer function, h(t) = L {H(s)}, is called the
system’s impulse response function. It describes how a single unit of input,
when applied, would affect the behavior of the system’s output. For
example, in a mass-spring system, it describes the change in displacement
caused by a unit of applied impulse (when the mass is struck by a hammer,
say).

In practice, because Y(s) = H(s) G(s), when a system has all initial conditions
zero, its output function can be directly calculated by convolution of the
impulse response and forcing functions (see Appendix A). Namely,

−1 −1 ௧
y(t) = L {H(s) G(s)} = L {L{h(t) * g(t)}} = ‫׬‬଴ ℎ(߬)݃(‫ ݐ‬− ߬)݀߬.

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 9

This is true for every nonhomogeneous linear equation. When all initial
conditions are zero, the solution of the equation can be found as the
convolution of its impulse response function and its forcing function.

Example: y″ + 4y = 1, y(0) = 0, y′(0) = 0.

The transfer function and the impulse response are, respectively,

1 1
H (s) = and h(t ) = sin 2t.
s2 + 4 2

Therefore, the solution y is the convolution of g(t) = 1 and h(t), which

we have calculated earlier in Appendix A.

1 t 1 1
2 ∫0
y (t ) = sin 2 ( t − τ ) d τ = − cos 2t .
4 4

Example: y″ + 10y′ + 25y = e5t, y(0) = 0, y′(0) = 0.

The transfer function and the impulse response are, respectively,

1
H (s) = and h(t) = te−5t.
s + 10 s + 25
2

t
t t 1
y (t ) = ∫ τ e − 5τ
e − 5 ( t −τ )
dτ = ∫ τ e d τ = τ 2 e −5t
−5 t
0 0 2 0

=
2
(
1 2 −5 t 1
t e − 0 = t 2 e −5 t .
2
)

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 10

Lastly, let us explore a bit the relation between the unit step function, uc(t),
and the unit impulse function, δ(t − c), for c ≥ 0. We have seen previously
that, if f (t) is discontinuous at t = 0, then the Laplace transform of its
derivative can be derived by the formula

L{f ′(t)} = s L{f (t)} − tlim

→ 0−
f (t ) .

Therefore, for c = 0,

1
L{u0 ′(t)} = s L{u0(t)} − tlim −
u 0 (t ) = s − 0 = 1 = L{δ(t)}.
→0 s

As well, for c > 0,

e − cs
L{uc ′(t)} = s L{uc(t)} − uc(0) = s − 0 = e −cs = L{δ(t − c)}.
s

That is, for c ≥ 0, the unit impulse function δ(t − c) is, in fact, the derivative
of the unit step function, uc(t).

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 11

(Optional topic) Deflection of a uniform beam under a point-
load – an example of solving a boundary value problem of a fourth
order linear equation with a discontinuous forcing function

Previously we have studied the static deflection of a uniform beam under

continuous loads. Now, armed with the new tool of Laplace transform we
will be able to solve beam deflection problems where the forcing functions
are discontinuous. An interesting aspect of this application is that a beam
deflection problem is intrinsically a boundary value problem, whereas the
method of Laplace transform requires a full set of initial conditions (which a
BVP lacks) to work. Thus, the example below also demonstrates how the
Laplace transform method can be applied to solve boundary value problems.

Example: A simply supported beam of length L bears a load P concentrated

at its midpoint (that is, at x = L/2). Find the deflection of the beam.

The beam equation and the required boundary conditions are

EI u(4) = P δ(x – L/2),

u(0) = u″(0) = u(L) = u″(L) = 0.

First of all, in order to apply the Laplace transform, we must assume

that the function u(x) is defined on [0, ∞), but it only has physical
meaning on the interval [0, L]. The next issue is the lack of a full set
of initial conditions. Since a fourth order equation is involved, we
ordinarily need 4 initial conditions, u(0), u′(0), u″(0), and u′″(0). The
problem as stated gives us only two: u(0) = u″(0) = 0. This
deficiency can be managed, for the time being, by writing down two
as-yet-unknown initial conditions u′(0) = α and u′″(0) = β as place-
holders. (Not to worry, the exact values of α and β will be determined
later using the remaining boundary conditions.) As a result, what we
are really solving, at first, is the following initial value problem:

EI u(4) = P δ(x – L/2),

u(0) = 0, u′(0) = α, u″(0) = 0, u′″(0) = β.

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 12

 Transform and simplify the equation:
4
EI (s L{u} – 0s3 – αs2 – 0s − β) = Pe−Ls /2
4
EI s L{u} = Pe−Ls /2 + αEIs2 + βEI

α β P
L{u} = s 2 + + e − Ls / 2
s4 EIs 4

β
The first two terms invert directly to αx + x 3 . While the last term
6
−Ls /2
P 3
is in the form of e L{ x }, which has the inverse Laplace
6 EI
3
P  L
transform of u L / 2 ( x)  x −  . Combining the two parts we
6 EI  2
get:

3
Pβ  L
u ( x ) = αx + x + u L / 2 ( x)  x −  .
3

6 6 EI  2

Next, we will use the last two boundary conditions, u(L) = 0 and
u″(L) = 0, to determine the exact values of α and β.

For x > L / 2, the step function = 1, so the deflection is

3
β
P  L
u ( x ) = αx + x + x −  .
3

6 6 EI  2

Differentiate it twice, the bending moment of the beam for x > L / 2 is

P  L
u ′′( x) = βx + x− .
EI  2

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 13

 Apply the boundary conditions u(L) = 0 and u″(L) = 0, we have a
system of 2 equations in the unknowns α and β.

βL3 PL3
u ( L) = αL + + =0
6 48 EI
PL
u ′′( L) = βL + =0
2 EI

Multiplying the first by 6, the second by L2, and subtract the second
from the first, we have

3PL3
6αL − =0
8 EI

3PL3 PL2
That is, 6αL = , therefore, α = . Meanwhile, β can
8 EI 16 EI
found by solving the second equation directly:

− PL
βL =
2 EI

P
Therefore, β = − . The deflection curve is, finally,
2 EI
3
PL2 P 3 P  L
u ( x) = x− x + u L / 2 ( x)  x −  .
16 EI 12 EI 6 EI  2

More explicitly, the beam’s deflection is

 PL2 P 3 L
 x− x , 0≤ x<
16 EI 12 EI 2
u ( x) =  2 3
 PL x − P x 3 + P  x − L  , L ≤ x ≤ L
.
16 EI 12 EI 6 EI  2 2

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 14

Exercises C-3.1:

1. Find the Laplace transform of each function

(a) f (t) = δ(t − π / 3) cos2(t) sin(2t)
(b) f (t) = δ(t − 2) t3 e−t cos3(πt)

2 – 3 Find the inverse Laplace transform of each function. (Hint: Since

each expression is an improper fraction, first you will need to simplify it
using polynomial division, and then proceed as usual.)
2s 2 + s − 7 s 3 + 3s 2 + 6 s
2. F ( s ) = 3. F ( s ) =
s 2 + 49 ( s + 1) 3

4 – 9 Solve each initial value problem.

4. y′ + y = u4(t) t − δ(t − 10), y(0) = −2.

5. y″ − 6y′ = δ(t − 1) − u4(t), y(0) = 2, y′(0) = 5.

6. y″ + 5y′ + 6y = δ(t) + δ(t − 5), y(0) = −4, y′(0) = 0.

7. y″ + 16y = δ(t − π) − 2δ(t − 10π), y(0) = 1, y′(0) = 0.

8. y″ − 6y′ + 9y = 4 − δ(t − 7), y(0) = 2, y′(0) = 0.

9. y″′ + y″ + 4y′ + 4y = δ(t − 6π), y(0) = 0, y′(0) = −1, y″(0) = 1.

10 – 11 Find the impulse response function of each equation.

10. y″ + 2y′ + 10y = g(t)

11. y″ + 8y′ + 16y = g(t)

12. Use convolution to solve y″ + 16y = t, y(0) = 0, y′(0) = 0.

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 15

Answers C-3.1:

3 −π s / 3
1. (a) e , (b) 8e−2s−2
8
2. y = 2δ(t) + cos(7t) − 15sin(7t)
3. y = δ(t) + 3te−t − 2t2e−t
4. y = −2e−t + u4(t)( t − 1 − 3e−t + 3) − u10(t) e−t + 10
7 5 6t 1
5. y = + e + u1 (t ) − 1 + e
6 6 6
( 6t −6
) 1
(
+ u 4 (t ) 6t − 23 − e 6t −24
36
)
−3t −2t −2t + 10 −3t + 15
6. y = 7e − 11e + u5(t)( e −e )
1 1
7. y = cos 4t + uπ (t ) sin 4t − u10π (t ) sin 4t
4 2
4 14 3t 14 3t 3t − 21
8. y = + e − t e − u 7 (t )(t − 7)e
9 9 3
1 −t 1 2
9. y = e − cos 2t − sin 2t + u 6π (t ) 2e
5 5 5 10
1
( − t + 6π
− 2 cos 2t + sin 2t )
1 −t
10. h(t ) = e sin 3t
3
11. h(t) = t e−4t
t 1
12. y = − sin 4t
16 64

© 2008, 2012 Zachary S Tseng C-3 - 16