On the restricted partition function (Q1633155)

\(\): Let \(\mathbf{a}=(a_1,\dots,a_r)\) be a sequence of positive integers, \(r\ge 1\). The restricted partition function associated with \(\mathbf{a}\) is defined by \(p_{\mathbf{a}}(n):= \)the number of integer solutions \((x_1,\dots,x_r)\) of the equation \(\sum_{j=1}^r a_j x_j = n\), where \(n\) is a positive integer and \(x_j\ge 0\), \(j=1,\ldots,r\). Let \(D\) be a common multiple of \(a_1,\ldots,a_r\). In this paper, the authors obtain an exact formula for the numbers \(p_\mathbf{a}(n)\), which explores unsigned Stirling numbers of the first kind and binomial coefficients. The novelty of this formula is that it reduces the computation of \(p_\mathbf{a}(n)\) to solving the linear congruence \(a_1 j_1+\ldots+a_r j_r \equiv n\pmod{D}\) in the range \(0\le j_k\le\frac{D}{a_k}-1\), \(k=1,\ldots,r\). From this formula, the authors derive as corollaries several previously known results. Their method of proof is based on properties of the Barnes zeta function \(\zeta_{\mathbf{a}}(s,w)\) associated with \(\mathbf{a}\) and related to \(p_{\mathbf{a}(n)}\) by the formula \[ \zeta_{\mathbf{a}}(s,w)=\sum_{n\ge 0} \frac{p_{\mathbf{a}}(n)}{(n+w)^s},\quad \Re(s)>r. \]