Numerical stability of the branched continued fraction expansion of Horn's hypergeometric function $H_4$

Abstract

In this paper, we consider some numerical aspects of branched continued fractions as special families of functions to represent and expand analytical functions of several complex variables, including generalizations of hypergeometric functions. The backward recurrence algorithm is one of the basic tools of computation approximants of branched continued fractions. Like most recursive processes, it is susceptible to error growth. Each cycle of the recursive process not only generates its own rounding errors but also inherits the rounding errors committed in all the previous cycles. On the other hand, in general, branched continued fractions are a non-linear object of study (the sum of two fractional-linear mappings is not always a fractional-linear mapping). In this work, we are dealing with a confluent branched continued fraction, which is a continued fraction in its form. The essential difference here is that the approximants of the continued fraction are the so-called figure approximants of the branched continued fraction. An estimate of the relative rounding error, produced by the backward recurrence algorithm in calculating an nth approximant of the branched continued fraction expansion of Horn’s hypergeometric function H4, is established. The derivation uses the methods of the theory of branched continued fractions, which are essential in developing convergence criteria. The numerical examples illustrate the numerical stability of the backward recurrence algorithm.