OFFSET
0,3
COMMENTS
This is the case m = 1 of the general recurrence a(0) = 0, a(1) = 1, a(n+1) = (2*n^2 + 2*n + m^2 + m + 1)*a(n) - n^4*a(n-1) (we suppress the dependence of a(n) on m), which arises when accelerating the convergence of the series Sum_{k>=1} 1/k^2 for the constant zeta(2). For other cases see A001819 (m=0), A142996 (m=2), A142997 (m=3) and A142998 (m=4).
The solution to the general recurrence may be expressed as a sum: a(n) = n!^2*p_m(n)*Sum_{k = 1..n} 1/(k^2*p_m(k-1)*p_m(k)), where p_m(x) := Sum_{k = 0..m} C(m,k)^2*C(x+k,m) = Sum_{k = 0..m} C(m,k)*C(m+k,k)*C(x,k) is the Ehrhart polynomial of the polytope formed from the convex hull of a root system of type A_m (equivalently, the polynomial that generates the crystal ball sequence for the A_m lattice [Bacher et al.]).
The first few are p_0(x) = 1, p_1(x) = 2*x + 1, p_2(x) = 3*x^2 + 3*x + 1 and p_3(x) = (10*x^3 + 15*x^2 + 11*x + 3)/3. The o.g.f. for the p_m(x) is ((1-t^2)^x/(1-t)^(2x+1))*Legendre_P(x,(1+t^2)/(1-t^2)) = 1 + (2*x+1)*t + (3*x^2+3*x+1)*t^2 + ... [Gogin & Hirvensalo, Theorem 1 with N = -1].
The polynomial p_m(x) is the unique polynomial solution of the difference equation (x+1)^2*f(x+1) + x^2*f(x-1) = (2*x^2 + 2*x + m^2 + m + 1)*f(x), normalized so that f(0) = 1. These polynomials have their zeros on the vertical line Re x = -1/2 in the complex plane; that is, the polynomials p_m(x-1), m = 1,2,3,..., satisfy a Riemann hypothesis (adapt the proof of the lemma on p. 4 of [BUMP et al.]).
The general recurrence in the first paragraph above has a second solution b(n) = n!^2*p_m(n) with initial conditions b(0) = 1, b(1) = m^2 + m + 1. Hence the behavior of a(n) for large n is given by lim n -> infinity a(n)/b(n) = Sum_{k>=1} 1/(k^2*p_m(k-1)*p_m(k)) = 1/((m^2 + m + 1) - 1^4/((m^2 + m + 5) - 2^4/((m^2 + m + 13) - ... - n^4/((2*n^2 + 2*n + m^2 + m + 1) - ...)))) = 2*Sum_{k>=1} (-1)^(k+1)/(m+k)^2. The final equality follows from a result of Ramanujan; see [Berndt, Chapter 12, Corollary to Entry 31] (replace x by 2x+1 in the corollary and apply Entry 14).
REFERENCES
Bruce C. Berndt, Ramanujan's Notebooks Part II, Springer-Verlag.
LINKS
Seiichi Manyama, Table of n, a(n) for n = 0..252
R. Bacher, P. de la Harpe and B. Venkov, Séries de croissance et séries d'Ehrhart associées aux réseaux de racines, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris, 325 (Series 1) (1997), 1137-1142.
D. Bump, K. Choi, P. Kurlberg and J. Vaaler, A local Riemann hypothesis, I, Math. Zeit. 233, (2000), 1-19.
N. Gogin and M. Hirvensalo, On the generating function of discrete Chebyshev polynomials, Turku Centre for Computer Science Technical Report No. 819, (2007), 1-8.
FORMULA
a(n) = n!^2*p(n)*Sum_{k = 1..n} 1/(k^2*p(k-1)*p(k)), where p(n) = 2*n+1. Recurrence: a(0) = 0, a(1) = 1, a(n+1) = (2*n^2 + 2*n + 3)*a(n) - n^4*a(n-1). The sequence b(n):= n!^2*p(n) satisfies the same recurrence with the initial conditions b(0) = 1, b(1) = 3. Hence we obtain the finite continued fraction expansion a(n)/b(n) = 1/(3 - 1^4/(7 - 2^4/(15 - 3^4/(27 - ... - (n-1)^4/(2*n^2 - 2*n + 3))))), for n >= 2. Lim_{n -> infinity} a(n)/b(n) = 1/(3 - 1^4/(7 - 2^4/(15 - 3^4/(27 - ... - n^4/((2*n^2 + 2*n + 3) - ...))))) = Sum_{k>=1} 1/(k^2*(4*k^2 - 1)) = 2 - zeta(2).
MAPLE
p := n -> 2*n+1: a := n -> n!^2*p(n)*sum (1/(k^2*p(k-1)*p(k)), k = 1..n): seq(a(n), n = 0..20);
MATHEMATICA
a[n_] := -1/6*n!^2*(2*n*(Pi^2-12) + Pi^2 - 6*(2*n+1)*PolyGamma[1, n+1]) // Simplify; Table[a[n], {n, 0, 14}] (* Jean-François Alcover, Mar 06 2013 *)
CROSSREFS
KEYWORD
easy,nonn
AUTHOR
Peter Bala, Jul 18 2008
STATUS
approved