Differential operator for discrete Gegenbauer-Sobolev orthogonal polynomials: eigenvalues and asymptotics (Q1749035)

The purpose of this article is to study Gegenbauer-Sobolev polynomials \(Q_{n}^{\alpha,M,j}(x)\), orthogonal with respect to a certain discrete Sobolev-type inner product. A certain special case of normalized Gegenbauer polynomials with parameter \(\alpha\) is considered. First, connection formulae and some asymptotic behaviors are found. Then, the asymptotic behavior of the eigenvalues of Gegenbauer-Sobolev polynomials is outlined. Let \(r_0\) be the least number such that for each \(r > r_ 0\) the kernel \( K (x, y; r )\) converges both absolutely and in a left-definite space. The authors find a value for \(r_0\) valid for certain values of the parameters, e.g. for \(\alpha \geq -\frac 12\). Finally, Mehler-Heine asymptotics are found. The proofs use Stolz's criterion. Remark: the name Sobolev orthonormal polynomials is used on several occasions.