1978Journal of Mathematical PhysicsRequires access

Spherical delta functions and multipole expansions

E. G. Peter Rowe

Open publisher page 27 citations

Abstract

The Cartesian–Taylor series for an analytic function in three dimensions is rewritten as a series of solid spherical harmonics. A discussion of the distribution theory definition of singular spherical harmonics is given, which leads to a definition of spherical delta functions. An expansion of source functions in spherical delta functions and their derivatives leads to multipole expansions for the fields which, in a distribution theory sense, are valid everywhere.

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What this paper is about

The Cartesian–Taylor series for an analytic function in three dimensions is rewritten as a series of solid spherical harmonics. A discussion of the distribution theory definition of singular spherical harmonics is given, which leads to a definition of spherical delta functions. An expansion of source functions in spherical delta functions and their derivatives leads to multipole expansions for the fields which, in a distribution theory sense, are valid everywhere.

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OpenAlex reports 27 citations for this work. Citation counts describe recorded attention and do not establish research quality.

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Available abstract

The Cartesian–Taylor series for an analytic function in three dimensions is rewritten as a series of solid spherical harmonics. A discussion of the distribution theory definition of singular spherical harmonics is given, which leads to a definition of spherical delta functions. An expansion of source functions in spherical delta functions and their derivatives leads to multipole expansions for the fields which, in a distribution theory sense, are valid everywhere.

Key concepts: Multipole expansion, Spherical harmonics, Spin-weighted spherical harmonics, Spherical multipole moments, Zonal spherical harmonics, Solid harmonics, Vector spherical harmonics, Dirac delta function

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