Plot of the Chebyshev polynomial of the first kind T n(x) with n=5 in the complex plane from -2-2i to 2+2i with colors created with Mathematica 13.1 function ComplexPlot3D
The Chebyshev polynomials of the first kind are defined by:
Similarly, the Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind are defined by:
That these expressions define polynomials in may not be obvious at first sight but follows by rewriting and using de Moivre's formula or by using the angle sum formulas for and repeatedly. For example, the double angle formulas, which follow directly from the angle sum formulas, may be used to obtain and , which are respectively a polynomial in and a polynomial in multiplied by . Hence and .
An important and convenient property of the Tn(x) is that they are orthogonal with respect to the inner product:
and Un(x) are orthogonal with respect to another, analogous inner product, given below.
The Chebyshev polynomials Tn are polynomials with the largest possible leading coefficient whose absolute value on the interval[−1, 1] is bounded by 1. They are also the "extremal" polynomials for many other properties.[1]
These polynomials were named after Pafnuty Chebyshev.[3] The letter T is used because of the alternative transliterations of the name Chebyshev as Tchebycheff, Tchebyshev (French) or Tschebyschow (German).
Plot of the first five Un Chebyshev polynomials (second kind)
The Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind are defined by the recurrence relation:
Notice that the two sets of recurrence relations are identical, except for vs. . The ordinary generating function for Un is:
and the exponential generating function is:
As described in the introduction, the Chebyshev polynomials of the first kind can be defined as the unique polynomials satisfying:
or, in other words, as the unique polynomials satisfying:
for n = 0, 1, 2, 3, ….
The polynomials of the second kind satisfy:
or
which is structurally quite similar to the Dirichlet kernelDn(x):
(The Dirichlet kernel, in fact, coincides with what is now known as the Chebyshev polynomial of the fourth kind.)
An equivalent way to state this is via exponentiation of a complex number: given a complex number z = a + bi with absolute value of one:
Chebyshev polynomials can be defined in this form when studying trigonometric polynomials.[4]
That cos nx is an nth-degree polynomial in cos x can be seen by observing that cos nx is the real part of one side of de Moivre's formula:
The real part of the other side is a polynomial in cos x and sin x, in which all powers of sin x are even and thus replaceable through the identity cos2x + sin2x = 1.
By the same reasoning, sin nx is the imaginary part of the polynomial, in which all powers of sin x are odd and thus, if one factor of sin x is factored out, the remaining factors can be replaced to create a (n−1)st-degree polynomial in cos x.
Chebyshev polynomials can also be characterized by the following theorem:[5]
If is a family of monic polynomials with coefficients in a field of characteristic such that and for all
and , then, up to a simple change of variables, either for all or
for all .
The Chebyshev polynomials can also be defined as the solutions to the Pell equation:
in a ringR[x].[6] Thus, they can be generated by the standard technique for Pell equations of taking powers of a fundamental solution:
Relations between the two kinds of Chebyshev polynomials
The Chebyshev polynomials of the first and second kinds correspond to a complementary pair of Lucas sequencesṼn(P, Q) and Ũn(P, Q) with parameters P = 2x and Q = 1:
It follows that they also satisfy a pair of mutual recurrence equations:[7]
The second of these may be rearranged using the recurrence definition for the Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind to give:
Using this formula iteratively gives the sum formula:
while replacing and using the derivative formula for gives the recurrence relationship for the derivative of :
Different approaches to defining Chebyshev polynomials lead to different explicit expressions. The trigonometric definition gives an explicit formula as follows:
From this trigonometric form, the recurrence definition can be recovered by computing directly that the bases cases hold:
and
and that the product-to-sum identity holds:
Using the complex number exponentiation definition of the Chebyshev polynomial, one can derive the following expression:
The two are equivalent because .
An explicit form of the Chebyshev polynomial in terms of monomials xk follows from de Moivre's formula:
where Re denotes the real part of a complex number. Expanding the formula, one gets:
The real part of the expression is obtained from summands corresponding to even indices. Noting and , one gets the explicit formula:
which in turn means that:
This can be written as a 2F1hypergeometric function:
with inverse:[10][11]
where the prime at the summation symbol indicates that the contribution of j = 0 needs to be halved if it appears.
A related expression for Tn as a sum of monomials with binomial coefficients and powers of two is
Similarly, Un can be expressed in terms of hypergeometric functions:
That is, Chebyshev polynomials of even order have even symmetry and therefore contain only even powers of x. Chebyshev polynomials of odd order have odd symmetry and therefore contain only odd powers of x.
A Chebyshev polynomial of either kind with degree n has n different simple roots, called Chebyshev roots, in the interval [−1, 1]. The roots of the Chebyshev polynomial of the first kind are sometimes called Chebyshev nodes because they are used as nodes in polynomial interpolation. Using the trigonometric definition and the fact that:
one can show that the roots of Tn are:
Similarly, the roots of Un are:
The extrema of Tn on the interval −1 ≤ x ≤ 1 are located at:
One unique property of the Chebyshev polynomials of the first kind is that on the interval −1 ≤ x ≤ 1 all of the extrema have values that are either −1 or 1. Thus these polynomials have only two finite critical values, the defining property of Shabat polynomials. Both the first and second kinds of Chebyshev polynomial have extrema at the endpoints, given by:
The extrema of on the interval where are located at values of . They are , or where , , and , i.e., and are relatively prime numbers.
The derivatives of the polynomials can be less than straightforward. By differentiating the polynomials in their trigonometric forms, it can be shown that:
The last two formulas can be numerically troublesome due to the division by zero (0/0indeterminate form, specifically) at x = 1 and x = −1. By L'Hôpital's rule:
More generally,
which is of great use in the numerical solution of eigenvalue problems.
Also, we have:
where the prime at the summation symbols means that the term contributed by k = 0 is to be halved, if it appears.
Concerning integration, the first derivative of the Tn implies that:
and the recurrence relation for the first kind polynomials involving derivatives establishes that for n ≥ 2:
The last formula can be further manipulated to express the integral of Tn as a function of Chebyshev polynomials of the first kind only:
The Chebyshev polynomials of the first kind satisfy the relation:
which is easily proved from the product-to-sum formula for the cosine:
For n = 1 this results in the already known recurrence formula, just arranged differently, and with n = 2 it forms the recurrence relation for all even or all odd indexed Chebyshev polynomials (depending on the parity of the lowest m) which implies the evenness or oddness of these polynomials. Three more useful formulas for evaluating Chebyshev polynomials can be concluded from this product expansion:
The polynomials of the second kind satisfy the similar relation:
(with the definition U−1 ≡ 0 by convention ). They also satisfy:
for m ≥ n.
For n = 2 this recurrence reduces to:
which establishes the evenness or oddness of the even or odd indexed Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind depending on whether m starts with 2 or 3.
The trigonometric definitions of Tn and Un imply the composition or nesting properties:[15]
For Tmn the order of composition may be reversed, making the family of polynomial functions Tn a commutativesemigroup under composition.
Since Tm(x) is divisible by x if m is odd, it follows that Tmn(x) is divisible by Tn(x) if m is odd. Furthermore, Umn−1(x) is divisible by Un−1(x), and in the case that m is even, divisible by Tn(x)Un−1(x).
Both Tn and Un form a sequence of orthogonal polynomials. The polynomials of the first kind Tn are orthogonal with respect to the weight:
on the interval [−1, 1], i.e. we have:
This can be proven by letting x = cos θ and using the defining identity Tn(cos θ) = cos(nθ).
Similarly, the polynomials of the second kind Un are orthogonal with respect to the weight:
on the interval [−1, 1], i.e. we have:
The Tn also satisfy a discrete orthogonality condition:
where N is any integer greater than max(i, j),[9] and the xk are the NChebyshev nodes (see above) of TN(x):
For the polynomials of the second kind and any integer N > i + j with the same Chebyshev nodes xk, there are similar sums:
and without the weight function:
For any integer N > i + j, based on the N zeros of UN(x):
one can get the sum:
and again without the weight function:
For any given n ≥ 1, among the polynomials of degree n with leading coefficient 1 (monic polynomials):
is the one of which the maximal absolute value on the interval [−1, 1] is minimal.
This maximal absolute value is:
and |f(x)| reaches this maximum exactly n + 1 times at:
Proof
Let's assume that wn(x) is a polynomial of degree n with leading coefficient 1 with maximal absolute value on the interval [−1, 1] less than 1 / 2n − 1.
By the equioscillation theorem, among all the polynomials of degree ≤ n, the polynomial f minimizes ‖f‖∞ on [−1, 1]if and only if there are n + 2 points −1 ≤ x0 < x1 < ⋯ < xn + 1 ≤ 1 such that |f(xi)| = ‖f‖∞.
Of course, the null polynomial on the interval [−1, 1] can be approximated by itself and minimizes the ∞-norm.
Above, however, |f| reaches its maximum only n + 1 times because we are searching for the best polynomial of degree n ≥ 1 (therefore the theorem evoked previously cannot be used).
Chebyshev polynomials as special cases of more general polynomial families
The curves given by y = Tn(x), or equivalently, by the parametric equations y = Tn(cos θ) = cos nθ, x = cos θ, are a special case of Lissajous curves with frequency ratio equal to n.
Similar to the formula:
we have the analogous formula:
For x ≠ 0:
and:
which follows from the fact that this holds by definition for x = eiθ.
There are relations between Legendre polynomials and Chebyshev polynomials
These identities can be proven using generating functions and discrete convolution
The first few Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind in the domain −1 < x < 1: The flat U0, U1, U2, U3, U4 and U5. Although not visible in the image, Un(1) = n + 1 and Un(−1) = (n + 1)(−1)n.
The first few Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind are OEIS: A053117
The non-smooth function (top) y = −x3H(−x), where H is the Heaviside step function, and (bottom) the 5th partial sum of its Chebyshev expansion. The 7th sum is indistinguishable from the original function at the resolution of the graph.
In the appropriate Sobolev space, the set of Chebyshev polynomials form an orthonormal basis, so that a function in the same space can, on −1 ≤ x ≤ 1, be expressed via the expansion:[16]
Furthermore, as mentioned previously, the Chebyshev polynomials form an orthogonal basis which (among other things) implies that the coefficients an can be determined easily through the application of an inner product. This sum is called a Chebyshev series or a Chebyshev expansion.
Since a Chebyshev series is related to a Fourier cosine series through a change of variables, all of the theorems, identities, etc. that apply to Fourier series have a Chebyshev counterpart.[16] These attributes include:
The Chebyshev polynomials form a complete orthogonal system.
The Chebyshev series converges to f(x) if the function is piecewisesmooth and continuous. The smoothness requirement can be relaxed in most cases – as long as there are a finite number of discontinuities in f(x) and its derivatives.
At a discontinuity, the series will converge to the average of the right and left limits.
The abundance of the theorems and identities inherited from Fourier series make the Chebyshev polynomials important tools in numeric analysis; for example they are the most popular general purpose basis functions used in the spectral method,[16] often in favor of trigonometric series due to generally faster convergence for continuous functions (Gibbs' phenomenon is still a problem).
Consider the Chebyshev expansion of log(1 + x). One can express:
One can find the coefficients an either through the application of an inner product or by the discrete orthogonality condition. For the inner product:
which gives:
Alternatively, when the inner product of the function being approximated cannot be evaluated, the discrete orthogonality condition gives an often useful result for approximate coefficients:
where δij is the Kronecker delta function and the xk are the N Gauss–Chebyshev zeros of TN(x):
For any N, these approximate coefficients provide an exact approximation to the function at xk with a controlled error between those points. The exact coefficients are obtained with N = ∞, thus representing the function exactly at all points in [−1,1]. The rate of convergence depends on the function and its smoothness.
This allows us to compute the approximate coefficients an very efficiently through the discrete cosine transform:
As an interpolant, the N coefficients of the (N − 1)st partial sum are usually obtained on the Chebyshev–Gauss–Lobatto[17] points (or Lobatto grid), which results in minimum error and avoids Runge's phenomenon associated with a uniform grid. This collection of points corresponds to the extrema of the highest order polynomial in the sum, plus the endpoints and is given by:
Polynomials denoted and closely related to Chebyshev polynomials are sometimes used. They are defined by:[18]
and satisfy:
A. F. Horadam called the polynomials Vieta–Lucas polynomials and denoted them . He called the polynomials Vieta–Fibonacci polynomials and denoted them .[19] Lists of both sets of polynomials are given in Viète'sOpera Mathematica, Chapter IX, Theorems VI and VII.[20] The Vieta–Lucas and Vieta–Fibonacci polynomials of real argument are, up to a power of and a shift of index in the case of the latter, equal to Lucas and Fibonacci polynomialsLn and Fn of imaginary argument.
Shifted Chebyshev polynomials of the first and second kinds are related to the Chebyshev polynomials by:[18]
When the argument of the Chebyshev polynomial satisfies 2x − 1 ∈ [−1, 1] the argument of the shifted Chebyshev polynomial satisfies x ∈ [0, 1]. Similarly, one can define shifted polynomials for generic intervals [a, b].
Around 1990 the terms "third-kind" and "fourth-kind" came into use in connection with Chebyshev polynomials, although the polynomials denoted by these terms had an earlier development under the name airfoil polynomials. According to J. C. Mason and G. H. Elliott, the terminology "third-kind" and "fourth-kind" is due to Walter Gautschi, "in consultation with colleagues in the field of orthogonal polynomials."[21] The Chebyshev polynomials of the third kind are defined as:
and the Chebyshev polynomials of the fourth kind are defined as:
where .[21][22] In the airfoil literature and are denoted and . The polynomial families , , , and are orthogonal with respect to the weights:
and are proportional to Jacobi polynomials with:[22]
All four families satisfy the recurrence with , where , , , or , but they differ according to whether equals , , , or .[21]
Some applications rely on Chebyshev polynomials but may be unable to accommodate the lack of a root at zero, which rules out the use of standard Chebyshev polynomials for these kinds of applications. Even order Chebyshev filter designs using equally terminated passive networks are an example of this.[23] However, even order Chebyshev polynomials may be modified to move the lowest roots down to zero while still maintaining the desirable Chebyshev equi-ripple effect. Such modified polynomials contain two roots at zero, and may be referred to as even order modified Chebyshev polynomials. Even order modified Chebyshev polynomials may be created from the Chebyshev nodes in the same manner as standard Chebyshev polynomials.
where
is an N-th order Chebyshev polynomial
is the i-th Chebyshev node
In the case of even order modified Chebyshev polynomials, the even order modified Chebyshev nodes are used to construct the even order modified Chebyshev polynomials.
where
is an N-th order even order modified Chebyshev polynomial
is the i-th even order modified Chebyshev node
For example, the 4th order Chebyshev polynomial from the example above is , which by inspection contains no roots of zero. Creating the polynomial from the even order modified Chebyshev nodes creates a 4th order even order modified Chebyshev polynomial of , which by inspection contains two roots at zero, and may be used in applications requiring roots at zero.
^Rivlin, Theodore J. (1974). "Chapter 2, Extremal properties". The Chebyshev Polynomials. Pure and Applied Mathematics (1st ed.). New York-London-Sydney: Wiley-Interscience [John Wiley & Sons]. pp. 56–123. ISBN978-047172470-4.
^Chebyshev polynomials were first presented in Chebyshev, P. L. (1854). "Théorie des mécanismes connus sous le nom de parallélogrammes". Mémoires des Savants étrangers présentés à l'Académie de Saint-Pétersbourg (in French). 7: 539–586.
^Beckenbach, E. F.; Seidel, W.; Szász, Otto (1951), "Recurrent determinants of Legendre and of ultraspherical polynomials", Duke Math. J., 18: 1–10, doi:10.1215/S0012-7094-51-01801-7, MR0040487
^ abWolfram, D. A. (2022). "Factoring Chebyshev polynomials of the first and second kinds with minimal polynomials of ". American Mathematical Monthly. 129 (2): 172–176. doi:10.1080/00029890.2022.2005391. S2CID245808448.
^Wolfram, D. A. (2022). "Factoring Chebyshev polynomials with minimal polynomials of ". Bulletin of the Australian Mathematical Society. arXiv:2106.14585. doi:10.1017/S0004972722000235.
^Rayes, M. O.; Trevisan, V.; Wang, P. S. (2005), "Factorization properties of chebyshev polynomials", Computers & Mathematics with Applications, 50 (8–9): 1231–1240, doi:10.1016/j.camwa.2005.07.003
^ abcMason, J. C.; Elliott, G. H. (1993), "Near-minimax complex approximation by four kinds of Chebyshev polynomial expansion", J. Comput. Appl. Math., 46 (1–2): 291–300, doi:10.1016/0377-0427(93)90303-S
^Saal, Rudolf (January 1979). Handbook of Filter Design (in English and German) (1st ed.). Munich, Germany: Allgemeine Elektricitais-Gesellschaft. pp. 25, 26, 56–61, 116, 117. ISBN3-87087-070-2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
Dette, Holger (1995). "A note on some peculiar nonlinear extremal phenomena of the Chebyshev polynomials". Proceedings of the Edinburgh Mathematical Society. 38 (2): 343–355. arXiv:math/9406222. doi:10.1017/S001309150001912X. S2CID16703489.
Mason, J. C. (1984). "Some properties and applications of Chebyshev polynomial and rational approximation". Rational Approximation and Interpolation. Lecture Notes in Mathematics. Vol. 1105. pp. 27–48. doi:10.1007/BFb0072398. ISBN978-3-540-13899-0.
Mathews, John H. (2003). "Module for Chebyshev polynomials". Department of Mathematics. Course notes for Math 340 Numerical Analysis & Math 440 Advanced Numerical Analysis. Fullerton, CA: California State University. Archived from the original on 29 May 2007. Retrieved 17 August 2020.