Topics in analytic number theory, Lent 2013.

Lecture 22: Approximate functional equation

Bob Hough
March 11, 2013
Reference for this lecture: Iwaniec and Kowalski, pp. 98, 195.
The approximate functional equation is one commonly used tool in studying
L-functions inside the critical strip.
Theorem 22.1 (Approximate functional equation). Let mod q be a primitive
even character. We may represent
r 
r 

X
X
(n)

(n)

V
V
L(1/2, ) =
n + 
n
q
q
n
n
n=1
n=1
where V : R+ R is a smooth function satisfying


1 + O( x)
x<1
V (x) =
3/2 x2
O(x e
)
x1
Proof. Define (s) = (s/2)
L(1/2, ) =

1
(1/2)

1
2i

q s/2
.

We have

1+i

(s + 1/2, )
1i

ds
1

s
2i

1+i

(s + 1/2, )
1i

ds
s

by picking up the single residue inside the contour. Applying the functional
equation in the second integral, and making the change of variable s 7 s, this
is equal to


Z 1+i
Z 1+i
1
ds

ds
1
(s + 1/2, ) +
(s + 1/2, )
,
(1/2) 2i 1i
s
2i 1i
s
Writing the first term as (the second is similar)
Z 1+i s 1   s

X
( 2 + 4 ) q 2 1 ds
(n) 1

2i

ns s
n
( 14 )
1i
n=1
we see that the identity is true if we define
Z 1+i s 1
( 2 + 4 ) s ds
1
V (x) =
x
,
2i 1i
s
( 41 )
so it remains to verify the properties of V .
1


,

Smoothness follows by differentiating under the integral. To prove the estimate for small x, shift the contour left to <(s) = 1, passing a pole at 0 and
another at 1/2. Thus

1
V (x) = 1 + O( x) +
2i
To prove the estimate for large
say. Write
s
( +
2
Let 0 solve

0
2

V (x) =

5
4

1
2i

1+i

1i

( 2s + 14 ) s ds
x
= 1 + O( x).
1
s
( 4 )

x, first note that we may assume that x 10,

1
)=
4

s
2

1
s 5
1 ( 2 + 4 ).
+4

= x2 , and shift the contour to <(s) = 0 . We find

0 +i

0 i

( 2s + 45 ) s
ds
0
5
x
 ( + )x0 ,
(1/4)
s(s/2 + 1/4)
2
4

since |( + it)| (), as may be seen directly from the integral definition.
By Stirlings approximation, the RHS is bounded by



 


2
3
0
3
0
5
0
5
exp
+
+
+
log

0 log x + O(1)  x 2 ex ,
2
4
2
4
2
4
by using that

0
2

5
4

= x2 .

Remark. We may truncate the sums over n in the approximate functional equa
tion at n q log q with very small error. Indeed, the error is bounded by [sum
dyadically]


n q log q

e
3/4

n2
q

22A e

22A
q

 q(log q)2 e(log q) .

A:2A q log q

Thus we find
|L(1/2, )| 

n q log q

p
1
 q 1/4 log q,
n

which recovers the convexity bound. In particular,

a subconvex bound follows
P

from essentially any cancellation in sums

(n)
for x < q. Burgess
nx
proved such an estimate. His work gives that
|L(1/2, )|  q 3/16+ .
Remark. There was nothing special about the point 1/2. For any w in the
critical strip we could use the above method to produce
L(w, ) =

r 
r 

X
X
(n)

(n)

V
n
+

V
n
w

1w
w
1w
n
q
n
q
n=1
n=1

The decay properties of Vw and V1w will now depend upon w.

As an application of the approximate functional equation, we prove the

following upper bound for the 8th moment of primitive Dirichlet L-functions.
Notice that the bound is of the same order as the number of L-functions, so
that it asserts that the Lindel
of bound |L(1/2, )|  q  is true at the point 1/2
for almost all of the L-functions.
Theorem 22.2 (Large sieve implies bound for moments). We have the upper
bound
X X
|L(1/2, )|8  Q2+
qQ mod q

Proof sketch. We will treat only the even characters. The odd ones may be dealt
with similarly, (the associated smooth function V will be slightly different).
The function

X
d4 (n)(n)
L(s, )4 =
,
<(s) > 1
ns
n=1
satisfies the functional equation
(s, )4 = 4 (1 s, )4 .
Note that

s
q2
s
( )4 L(s, )4 ,
2
2
so that by mimicing the proof of the approximate functional equation for L(s, )
we may write
X (n)d4 (n)  2 n 
X (n)d4 (n)  2 n 
4

V
+
V
+ tiny error
L(1/2, )4 =

q2
q2
n
n
2+
2+
(s, )4 =

nq

nq

In particular, using |a + b|2 2(|a|2 + |b|2 ), we have


2


X (n)d4 (n)  2 n 

8

|L(1/2, )|  
V
q 2 
n

2+
nq

Splitting the inner sum dyadically as



X
X
(n)d4 (n) 2 n

V
,
q2
n
A
2+ A
A+1
A:2 q

2 n<2

and applying Cauchy-Schwarz, we obtain the bound



 2  2
X 
X
(n)d4 (n) n 


|L(1/2, )|8  log q

V

q 2 
n

A
A+1
A
2+
2 q
2 n<2
This sum is not quite in the right form to apply the large sieve, since the
argument of V depends on q. To remove this dependance, write


 Z 2A+1  2 
X
X (n)d4 (n)
(n)d4 (n) 2 n

V
=
V
d
q2
q2
n
n
2A
A
A+1
A
2 n<2

X
2A n<2A+1

2 n<y

(n)d4 (n)

V
n

2 A+1

2
q2

2A+1

2A

X
2A n<y

(n)d4 (n) 2 0

V
q2
n

2 y
q2


dy

Using |a + b|2 2(|a|2 + |b|2 ) again, we reduce to handling separately the

evaluation and integral term. We bound the integral term, the evaluation term
being easier.
By Cauchy-Schwarz we have

2
Z 2A+1

X (n)d4 (n) 2  2 y  

0



V
dy
 A

q2
q2
n
 2

2A n<y

2

Z 2A+1 2  X
Z 2A+1 2  2 2
(n)d4 (n) 

0 y

V
dy

 dy A
2 
q
q2
q2
n
A
2
2
2A n<y


2


Z 2A+1
X

1 
(n)d4 (n) 

 Q
 dy
2A  A
n
2A

2 n<y

To justify the last line, we need to estimate the integral with V 0 , which is equal
to
Z 2A+1 22
q
V 0 (y)2 dy.
2
2A
q2

Making similar estimates to those in Theorem 22.1 one can show that V 0 (y) 

| log y|3

for small y, while for large y, V 0 (y)  P (y)e y with P a polynomial.

y
Thus the integral is  (log q)7 .
Putting together our bounds, we find that
X X
|L(1/2, )|8
qQ mod q

 Q

X X

A:2A Q2+ qQ mod q

 Q

A:2A Q2+

 Q2+

X
nQ2+

2A+1

2A

2A+1

2A

Q2 + 2A
2A

1
2A


2


 X (n)d4 (n) 
 dy




n
2A n<y


X
2A n<y

d4 (n)2
dy
n

d4 (n)
 Q2+ ,
n

by applying the multiplicative large sieve. Note that we may use d4 (n)  n
(Example Sheet 1, Problems 5 and 6), although we could also estimate the sum
over n by  (log Q)16 , e.g. by Perron summation.