Ordinary differential equation

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The trajectory of a projectile launched from

a cannon follows a curve determined by an ordinary differential equation that is derived
from Newton's second law.

Differential equations

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In mathematics, an ordinary differential equation (ODE) is a differential equation (DE)

dependent on only a single independent variable. As with other DE, its unknown(s)
consists of one (or more) function(s) and involves the derivatives of those functions.
[1]
The term "ordinary" is used in contrast with partial differential equations which may be
with respect to more than one independent variable.[2]

Differential equations[edit]
A linear differential equation is a differential equation that is defined by a linear
polynomial in the unknown function and its derivatives, that is an equation of the form

where , ..., and are arbitrary differentiable functions that do

not need to be linear, and are the successive derivatives of the unknown
function y of the variable x.
Among ordinary differential equations, linear differential equations play a prominent
role for several reasons. Most elementary and special functions that are
encountered in physics and applied mathematics are solutions of linear differential
equations (see Holonomic function). When physical phenomena are modeled with
non-linear equations, they are generally approximated by linear differential
equations for an easier solution. The few non-linear ODEs that can be solved
explicitly are generally solved by transforming the equation into an equivalent linear
ODE (see, for example Riccati equation).