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Some sign properties of symmetric functions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 October 2008

D. B. Hunter
Affiliation:
Department of Mathematics, University of Bradford
I. G. Macdonald
Affiliation:
School of Mathematical Sciences, Queen Mary College, London

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the sign properties of the S-functions sλ for real arguments. We show first that sλ is indefinite if any part of the partition λ is odd. Thus it is only if all parts of λ are even that sλ can possibly be positive definite or semi-definite. In this case we show that sλ(x) is positive provided that at least l(λ) of the components of x are non-zero, where l(λ) is the number of parts of the partition λ.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge Philosophical Society 1989

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References

REFERENCES

[1]Hunter, D. B.. The positive-definiteness of the complete symmetric functions of even order. Math. Proc. Camb. Philos. Soc. 82 (1977), 255258.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
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[3]Macdonald, I. G., Symmetric Functions and Hall Polynomials (Clarendon Press, 1979).Google Scholar