Acta Appl Math (2008) 100: 263–267

DOI 10.1007/s10440-007-9183-1

A New Integral Involving the Product of Bessel Functions

and Associated Laguerre Polynomials

R.S. Alassar · H.A. Mavromatis · S.A. Sofianos

Received: 27 November 2007 / Accepted: 12 December 2007 / Published online: 21 December 2007
© Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2007

Abstract A new result for integrals involving the product of Bessel functions and Associ-
ated Laguerre polynomials is obtained in terms of the hypergeometric function. Some spe-
cial cases of the general integral lead to interesting finite and infinite series representations
of hypergeometric functions.

Keywords Hypergeometric functions · Bessel functions · Associated Laguerre

polynomials · Gegenbauer polynomials · Gamma function

Integrals involving products of orthogonal polynomials or special functions arise in several

physical contexts. For example, integrals of the product of two Associated Legendre func-
tions are encountered in heat transfer problems past spheroids [1]. The wavefunctions of the
hydrogen as well as the 2-, 3-, and in general N -dimensional harmonic oscillator involve
Associated Laguerre polynomials and the evaluation of integrals involving the product of
these polynomials is essential [2].
In scattering theory, some calculations require the evaluation of integrals of a product
of Associated Laguerre polynomials and Bessel functions [3]. These integrals are of the

R.S. Alassar ()

Department of Mathematics and Statistics, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, Dhahran
31261, Saudi Arabia
e-mail: alassar@kfupm.edu.sa

H.A. Mavromatis
Physics Department, American University of Beirut, P.O. Box 11-0236, Beirut, Lebanon
e-mail: hm42@aub.edu.lb

S.A. Sofianos
Physics Department, University of South Africa, P.O. Box 392, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
e-mail: sofiasa@science.unisa.ac.za
264 R.S. Alassar et al.

general form
 ∞
x γ e−σ x Lαn (βx)Jν (μx)dx
0

((σ ∓ iμ) > 0, (ν + γ + 1) > 0, n ∈ N0 = N ∪ {0}). (1)

The integrand has seven parameters (γ , σ , n, α, β, ν, and μ). However, by omitting σ , β,

or μ, no degree of freedom is lost since, without loss of generality, we can appropriately set
x → σx , x → βx , or x → μx . We, however, prefer to keep all the parameters for convenience.
The Associated Laguerre polynomials Lαn (βx) are defined by


n
(n + α + 1)(−βx)k
Lαn (βx) = (2)
k=0
k!(n − k + 1)(α + k + 1)

where  denotes Gamma function. Using the expression (2) in (1) and integrating term by
term, the following result is obtained
 ∞
x γ e−σ x Lαn (βx)Jν (μx)dx
0


n
(−1)k β k (n + α + 1)μν (ν + γ + k + 1)
=
k=0
k!(n − k + 1)(α + k + 1)2ν σ ν+γ +k+1 (ν + 1)
 
ν +γ +k+1 ν +γ +k+2 μ2
× 2 F1 , , 1 + ν, − 2 . (3)
2 2 σ

In the process of obtaining (3), we have made use [4] of the known result
 ∞  
γ −1 −σ x μν (γ + ν) ν +γ ν +γ +1 μ2
x e Jν (μx)dx = ν ν+γ 2 F1 , , 1 + ν, − 2 . (4)
0 2 σ (ν + 1) 2 2 σ

The result (3), by using the transformation formula

2 F1 (a, b, c, z) = (1 − z)c−a−b 2 F1 (c − a, c − b, c, z) (5)

can be rewritten as
 ∞
x γ e−σ x Lαn (βx)Jν (μx)dx
0


n
(−1)k β k (n + α + 1)μν (γ + ν + k + 1)
= 1
k=0 k!(n − k + 1)(α + k + 1)2ν σ ν−γ −k (ν + 1)(σ 2 + μ2 )γ +k+ 2
 
ν −γ −k+1 ν −γ −k μ2
× 2 F1 , , 1 + ν, − 2 . (6)
2 2 σ

The hypergeometric function in (6) is a terminating series with a finite number of terms as
long as either ν−γ −k+1
2
or ν−γ2 −k is a negative integer or zero for all k (or equivalently, ν − γ
is a non-positive integer).
A New Integral Involving the Product of Bessel Functions 265

Several special cases of (6) can be obtained. When ν = γ , all the hypergeometric func-
tions within the sum are terminating series with a finite number of terms. The integral, when
ν = γ , can be written as

 ∞
x ν e−σ x Lαn (βx)Jν (μx)dx
0


n
(−1)k β k σ k (n + α + 1)μν (2ν + k + 1)
= 1
k=0 k!(n − k + 1)(α + k + 1)2ν (ν + 1)(σ 2 + μ2 )ν+k+ 2
 
−k + 1 −k μ2
× 2 F1 , , 1 + ν, − 2 . (7)
2 2 σ

Alhaidary [3] used the theory of orthogonal polynomials, their associated recursion relations
and differential formulas to develop a new method for evaluating integrals. As an illustration
of the method, he showed that

 ∞  
x 1 1 1 ν+ 1
x ν e− 2 L2ν
n (x)Jν (μx)dx = 2 ν
 ν + √ (sin θ )ν+ 2 Cn 2 (cos θ ) (8)
0 2 μπ

2 ν+ 1
where, sin θ = μ2 +1/4
μ
, cos θ = μμ2 −1/4
+1/4
, and Cn 2 is the ultra-spherical (Gegenbauer) poly-
nomial.
To facilitate comparison with our results, we write the Gegenbauer polynomial, for inte-
ger n, in terms of the hypergeometric function [4] as

 
(2ζ + n) 1 1−t
Cnζ (t) = 2 F1 2ζ + n, −n, ζ + , . (9)
(2ζ )(n + 1) 2 2

Alhaidary’s result (8), then, reduces to

 ∞
x 23ν+1 μν (ν + 12 )(2ν + n + 1)
x ν e− 2 L2ν
n (x)Jν (μx)dx = √ 1
0 π(2ν + 1)(n + 1)(4μ2 + 1)ν+ 2
 
1
× 2 F1 2ν + n + 1, −n, ν + 1, 2 . (10)
4μ + 1

Independently, one can use our result (7) to evaluate Alhaidary’s integral as

 ∞
x ν e−x/2 L2ν
n (x)Jν (μx)dx
0


n
(−1)k (n + 2ν + 1)μν
= 1
k=0 k!(n − k + 1)2ν+k (ν + 1)(μ2 + 1/4)ν+k+ 2
 
−k + 1 −k
× 2 F1 , , 1 + ν, −4μ2 . (11)
2 2
266 R.S. Alassar et al.

Now, by comparing (10) and (11), one obtains the following relation
 
1
2 F1 2ν + n + 1, −n, ν + 1,
4μ2 + 1
√
π(2ν + 1)(n + 1) 
n
(−1)k 2k
= ν
4 (ν + 1)(ν + 1/2) k=0 k!(n − k + 1)(4μ2 + 1)k
 
−k + 1 −k
× 2 F1 , , 1 + ν, −4μ2 . (12)
2 2

Using Gamma doubling formula [4] and the binomial coefficients form, the result (12) can
be rewritten in the simpler form
 
1
2 F1 2ν + n + 1, −n, ν + 1,
z+1
 
k n
n (−2)  
k −k + 1 −k
= F
2 1 , , 1 + ν, −z . (13)
k=0
(z + 1)k 2 2

The result (13) shows that a terminating hypergeometric function of argument 1/(z + 1) can
be written as a finite sum of terminating hypergeometric functions of argument −z.
A similar representation of the terminating hypergeometric function of argument
1/(z + 1) but as an infinite sum of terminating hypergeometric functions of constant ar-
gument 2 is also possible by rewriting the hypergeometric function in (11) as an infinite sum
and then reversing the order of the resulting double sum. The result after some manipulations
may be written as
 
1
2 F1 n + 2ν + 1, −n, ν + 1,
z+1
1 ∞
(−1)n (1 + z)ν+ 2  (k + ν + 12 )(−z)k
= 2 F1 (−n, −2k, 2ν + 1, 2) . (14)
(ν + 12 ) k=0
k!

The hypergeometric function on the left side of (13) and (14) is a polynomial in 1/(z + 1).
As z → −1, the last term of the hypergeometric function dominates. Using the Pochhammer
symbol, one can write
 
1 (−1)n (n + 2ν + 1)n 1
F
2 1 n + 2ν + 1, −n, ν + 1, → as z → −1. (15)
z+1 (ν + 1)n (z + 1)n
1
Moving the factor (1 + z)ν+ 2 to the left side of (14), one recognizes the remaining right hand
1
side as the McLaurin series expansion of 2 F1 [n + 2ν + 1, −n, ν + 1, 1/(z + 1)]/(1 + z)ν+ 2 .
It, then, follows that

2 F1 (−n, −2k, 2ν + 1, 2)
 
(ν + 12 ) d k 2 F1 n + 2ν + 1, −n, ν + 1, z+1 
1
=  . (16)
(−1)n+k (k + ν + 12 ) dzk 1
(1 + z)ν+ 2 
z=0
A New Integral Involving the Product of Bessel Functions 267

The derivatives on the right side of (16) generate related hypergeometric functions with unit
argument which are obviously related to the hypergeometric function of argument 2 on the
left side. The two examples that follow are obtained from (13) when z = 0 and (16) with
k = 1, respectively.


n  
n
2 F1 (−n, n + 2ν + 1, 1 + ν, 1) = (−1)n = (−2)k , (17)
k
k=0

2 F1 (−n, −2, 2ν + 1, 2)

2n(n + 2ν + 1)
= (−1)n 2 F1 (−n, n + 2ν + 1, 1 + ν, 1) − ,
(ν + 1)(2ν + 1)

× 2 F1 (1 − n, n + 2ν + 2, 2 + ν, 1) . (18)

In this paper, we have obtained a general formula for the integral involving the product
of Bessel functions and Associated Laguerre polynomials. The general result (6) reduces
to a finite sum of terminating hypergeometric functions for several special cases among
which is that reported by Alhaidary (8). The independent result obtained in this paper for
Alhaidary’s case shows that some hypergeometric functions can be written in terms of finite
and infinite sums of hypergeometric functions of variable and constant arguments ((13) and
(14)), respectively.

Acknowledgements R.S. Alassar wishes to acknowledge the support of King Fahd University of Petro-
leum & Minerals (KFUPM). H.A. Mavromatis is grateful to UNISA for a visit there that enabled a collabo-
ration to be initiated.

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903–905 (2001)
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