Hausdorff means and moment sequences (Q539268)

A moment sequence (m.s for short) \(\mu=(\mu_0\mu_1,\dots)\), defined by \(\mu_n=\int_I t^n\,d\mu(t)\) \((n=0,1,\dots)\) (here \(d\mu(t)\) is a finite non-negative Borel measure on \(I\)), is said to be a Hausdorff m.s if \(I=[0,1]\). In the case where \(I\) is \((-\infty,\infty)\) or \([0,\infty)\), \(\mu\) is called a Hamburger and Stieltjes m.s, respectively. By the well-known positivity criterion, a sequence \(\mu\) is a m.s (associated with the interval \(I\)) if and only if \(\sum_{n=0}^N c_n\mu_n\geq 0\) for every polynomial \(\sum_{n=0}^N c_n x^n\) that is non-negative on \(I\). Applying this criterion, the author shows that if \(\sigma\) and \(\tau\) are m.ss of the same type, then so are their Hausdorff convolutions \(\sum_{k=0}^n h_{nk}(\mu)\sigma_k\tau_{n-k}\), where \(H_\mu=(h_{nk}(\mu))\) is a Hausdorff mean (Theorem 2). Then, by using this result, he proves the following. Theorem 1. If \(a_1,\dots,a_N\) are real numbers and \(b_1,\dots,b_N\) are positive, then the sequence \(q\), defined formally by \[ \prod_{m=1}^N\frac{1}{(1-a_m t)^{b_m}}= \sum_{n=0}^\infty\binom {b_1+\cdots+b_N+n-1}{n} q_n t^n, \] is a Hamburger m.s. If, moreover, \(a_1,\dots,a_N\) are nonnegative, then \(q\) is a Stieltjes m.s. The author gives an integral representation for \(q\) and discusses some nice applications of Theorem 1 to Fibonacci and Stirling numbers, Haber's inequality \((\frac{x+y}{2})^n\leq \frac{x^n+x^{n-1} y+\cdots+y^n}{n+1}\) \((x,y\geq 0)\), positivity of polynomials, counting sequences, etc. By using the positivity criterion, he gives the following characterization of triangular matrices \(A=(a_{nk})\) that preserve Stieltjes m.ss. Theorem 6. Suppose that for every Stieltjes m.s \(\sigma\), the sequence \(\rho\), defined by \(\rho_n=\sum_{k=0}^n a_{nk}\sigma_k\) \((n=0,1,\dots)\), is a Stieltjes m.s. Then so is \(\sum_{k=0}^n a_{nk}\sigma_k\tau_{n-k}\), the \(A\)-convolution of Stieltjes m.ss \(\sigma\) and \(\tau\). Theorem 6 applies when \(A\) is the Stirling kernel of the first or second kind, or if it is the Eulerian kernel.