Asymptotic inequalities for \(k\)-ranks and their cumulation functions (Q2257742)

This paper studies the distribution of the \(k\)-rank, a partition statistic that generalises the classical rank and crank statistics. One defines \(\mathcal{N}_k(l,N)\) by its generating function \[ \sum_{N \geq 0} \mathcal{N}_k(l,N)q^N = \frac{1}{(q;q)_{\infty}} \sum_{n=1}^{\infty} (-1)^{n-1} q^{n((2k-1)n-1)/2+|l|n}(1-q^n), \] with the standard notation \((q;q)_{\infty} = \prod_{j=1}^{\infty} (1-q^j)\). In the cases \(k=1\) and \(k=2\), the number \(\mathcal{N}_k(l,N)\) is exactly the number of partitions of \(N\) whose crank (rank, respectively) is \(l\). The author provides asymptotic formulas for \(\mathcal{N}_k(l,N)\) as well as its cumulation function \[ \overline{\mathcal{N}}_k(l,N) = \sum_{r \geq l} \mathcal{N}_k(r,N). \] Specifically, it is shown that \(\overline{\mathcal{N}}_k(l,N) \sim p(N)/2\) (where \(p(N)\) denotes the number of partitions of \(N\)) for every fixed \(k\) and \(l\), and that \[ \overline{\mathcal{N}}_k(l,N) - \overline{\mathcal{N}}_{k+1}(l,N) \sim \frac{(2l-1)\pi^2}{96N} p(N). \] Moreover, a very precise asymptotic formula for \(\overline{\mathcal{N}}_k(l,N)\) in terms of Bessel functions is given, and the formulas \[ \mathcal{N}_k(l,N) \sim \frac{\pi}{4\sqrt{6N}} p(N) \] and \[ \mathcal{N}_k(l,N) - \mathcal{N}_{k+1}(l,N) \sim -\frac{\pi^2}{48N} p(N) \] are deduced from it.