Euler Sums and Contour Integral Representations (Q4228034)

The authors survey some of the methods that have been used to study Euler sums, and they introduce a powerful new approach. They apply residue calculus to integrals of the form \[ \int_{(\infty)}r(s)\xi(s) ds, \] where \(\int_{(\infty)}\) is the limit of integrals taken along large circles that expand to \(\infty\), \(r(s)\) is a rational function that is \(O(s^{-2})\) for large \(| s|\), and \(\xi(s)\) is a kernel function that is \(o(s)\) on large circles whose radii tend to \(\infty\). By employing kernels that are polynomials in \(\psi(s)=\Gamma'(s)/\Gamma(s)\), its derivatives and related trigonometric functions, they deduce a host of known relations on Euler sums and discover many new ones. A modification also gives results on alternating Euler sums.