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where either all a n are positive or all a n are negative, is called an alternating series. The alternating series test guarantees that an alternating series converges if the following two conditions are met: [1] [2] [3] | | decreases monotonically [a], i.e., | + | | |, and
Like any series, an alternating series is a convergent series if and only if the sequence of partial sums of the series converges to a limit. The alternating series test guarantees that an alternating series is convergent if the terms a n converge to 0 monotonically , but this condition is not necessary for convergence.
If r > 1, then the series diverges. If r = 1, the root test is inconclusive, and the series may converge or diverge. The root test is stronger than the ratio test: whenever the ratio test determines the convergence or divergence of an infinite series, the root test does too, but not conversely. [1]
Suppose that we have two series and with , > for all . Then if lim n → ∞ a n b n = c {\displaystyle \lim _{n\to \infty }{\frac {a_{n}}{b_{n}}}=c} with 0 < c < ∞ {\displaystyle 0<c<\infty } , then either both series converge or both series diverge.
In mathematics, the Riemann series theorem, also called the Riemann rearrangement theorem, named after 19th-century German mathematician Bernhard Riemann, says that if an infinite series of real numbers is conditionally convergent, then its terms can be arranged in a permutation so that the new series converges to an arbitrary real number, and rearranged such that the new series diverges.
This means that if the original series converges, so does the new series after grouping: all infinite subsequences of a convergent sequence also converge to the same limit. However, if the original series diverges, then the grouped series do not necessarily diverge, as in this example of Grandi's series above.
[2] When testing if a series converges or diverges, this test is often checked first due to its ease of use. In the case of p-adic analysis the term test is a necessary and sufficient condition for convergence due to the non-Archimedean ultrametric triangle inequality.
Furthermore, if Σa n is divergent, a second divergent series Σb n can be found which diverges more slowly: i.e., it has the property that lim n->∞ (b n /a n) = 0. Convergence tests essentially use the comparison test on some particular family of a n, and fail for sequences which converge or diverge more slowly.