Mellin transforms attached to certain automorphic integrals (Q653659)

In this paper, the analytic properties (analytic connections, functional equations, etc.) of functions given as Mellin transforms of certain smooth periodic functions on the complex upper half plane \(\mathcal{H}\) are studied. The authors show the following facts. Let \(k<2\) be a real number, \(N\) a positive integer, \(f\) and \(\tilde{f}\) smooth complex-valued functions on \(\mathcal{H}\) which is periodic of period \(1\) with Fourier coefficients having exponential decay at infinity and satisfying the equation \[ (f|_k W_N)(z) = C\tilde{f}(z) + q_g(z) \] where \(W_N\) is the Fricke involution, \(|_k\) is an appropriate Patterson slash operator, \(C\) is a nonzero constant, and \(q_g\) is a rational function of the following form \[ q_g(z) = \overline{\int_{0}^{i\infty} g(\tau)(\tau-\overline{z})^{-k}\,d\tau}, \] where \(g(\tau)\) is a holomorphic function on \(\mathcal{H}\) such that both \(g\) and \(g|_{2-k} W_N\) have period \(1\), have only positive terms in their Fourier expansions and Fourier coefficients are of polynomial order. Such function \(q_g\) is called by a period integral attached to \(g\). Then the authors show that the Mellin transform \(M(f,s)\) is absolutely convergent for \(\text{Re}\,s\gg 1\). For \(k <1\), they also show that \(M(f,s)\) has meromorphic continuation to \(\mathbb{C}\) and \(M(f,s)\) satisfies a functional equation with \(M(\tilde{f}, k-s)\). They also calculate the residue of \(M(f,s)\) at its poles and an explicit formula of \(M(f,s)\). Moreover, when \(f\) is an automorphic integral, \textit{i.e.,} \(f\) is as a form \[ f(z)=f_g(z) = \overline{\int_{i\infty}^z g(\tau)(\tau-\overline{z})^{-k}\,d\tau}, \] for a certain cusp form \(g(\tau)\) of weight \(2-k>0\), they give an explicit formula of \(M(f,s)\). When \(k\in \mathbb{Z}\), \(f,\tilde{f}\) are holomorphic functions with period \(1\), with non-negative terms in their Fourier expansions and with Fourier coefficients of polynomial growth, and \(q_g(z)\) is a rational function, this result was proved by \textit{M. I. Knopp} [Bull. Am. Math. Soc. 80, 607--632 (1974; Zbl 0292.10022); Number theory, Semin. New York 1983--84, Lect. Notes Math. 1135, 211--224 (1985; Zbl 0559.10023)]. The paper is concluded by an argument on a relation with mock modular forms.