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Erdos-Borwein constant


The Erdős-Borwein constant is the sum of the reciprocals of the Mersenne numbers.

By definition it is:

E=\sum_{n=1}^{\infty}\frac{1}{2^n-1} \approx 1.60669 51524 15291 763...

It can be proven that the following forms are equivalent to the former:

E=\sum_{n=1}^{\infty}\frac{1}{2^{n^2}}\frac{2^n+1}{2^n-1}
E=\sum_{m=1}^{\infty}\sum_{n=1}^{\infty} \frac{1}{2^{mn}}
E=1+\sum_{n=1}^{\infty} \frac{1}{2^n(2^n-1)}
E=\sum_{n=1}^{\infty}\frac{\sigma_0(n)}{2^n}

where σ0(n) = d(n) is the divisor function, a multiplicative function that equals the number of positive divisors of the number n. To prove the equivalence of these sums, note that they all take the form of Lambert series and can thus be resumed as such.

Paul Erdős in 1948 showed that the constant E is an irrational number.

Last updated: 05-29-2005 10:13:49
Last updated: 10-29-2005 02:13:46