On a class number formula of Hurwitz (Q824424)

Let the integer \(d\) be a fundamental discriminant, i.e., \(d\equiv 1\bmod 4\) and square free, of \(d=4m\) with square free \(m\equiv 2,3\bmod 4\), and let \({\mathcal Q}_d\) be the set of (primitive) integral quadratic forms \([a,b,c]:=aX^2+bXY+cY^2\) with \(b^2-4ac=d\), where we assume that \([a,b,c]\) is positive definite if \(d<0\). \(\Gamma=\mathrm{PSL}(2,{\mathbb Z})\) acts on \({\mathcal Q}_d\) and the class number \(h(d)\) is defined to be the cardinality of \(\Gamma\backslash {\mathcal Q}_d\). There are well-known formulas for \(h(d)\) due to Dirichlet given in terms of a certain Dirichlet series. Less well known is a class number formula in the case \(d<0\) due to \textit{A. Hurwitz} [J. Reine Angew. Math. 129, 187--213 (1906; JFM 37.0245.02)] that only involves the coefficients of the forms. More precisely, Hurwitz showed that for \(d<0\), \[\frac{1}{w_d}h(d)=\frac{1}{12\pi}|d|^{3/2}\sum_{a>0\\ b^2-4ac=d} \frac{1}{a(a+b+c)c},\] where \(w_{-3}=3\), \(w_{-4}=2\), \(w_d=1\) for \(d<-4\). The authors give a new approach to this result (and variations of that formula with better convergence properties) that allows them to also get a Hurwitz-type formula in the (more complicated) case \(d>0\). To formulate their result, let \(\sum'\) (resp. \(\sum''\)) denote a sum taken over all \([a,b,c]\) of discriminant \(d\) with \(a,c>0\) and \(b>a+c\) (resp. with \(a,c,a+b+c>0\)), and put \(\varepsilon_d=\frac{1}{2}(t+u\sqrt{d})\) for positive integers \(t,u\) with \(u\) minimal that solve Pell's equation \(t^2-du^2=4\). The class number formula now reads \[h(d)\log\varepsilon_d=d^{1/2}\sum'b^{-1}+d^{3/2}\sum''\frac{1}{3(b+2a)b(b+2c)}.\] The authors include a sketch of the proof of Dirichlet's formulas using Eisenstein series that serves as an indication of their approach to the Hurwitz-type formulas. To prove the latter, they now use certain Poincaré series instead of Eisenstein series.