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Exercise 1500Calculus › Differential equations › Linear equations of order twoL2Added 2 Nov 2026

Resonance with a double root

#resonance#double root#particular solution#identification

Statement

Solve
y′′−2y′+y=e3x.y'' - 2y' + y = e^{3x}.

Hint

The characteristic equation has a double root at r=1r=1. Since 33 is not a root, try yp=αe3xy_p = \alpha e^{3x}.

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Solution

Homogeneous equation. r2−2r+1=(r−1)2=0r^2 - 2r + 1 = (r-1)^2 = 0, so r=1r=1 is a double root and
yh(x)=(Ax+B)ex.y_h(x) = (Ax+B)e^x.

Particular solution. Try yp=αe3xy_p = \alpha e^{3x}. Then yp′=3αe3xy_p' = 3\alpha e^{3x}, yp′′=9αe3xy_p'' = 9\alpha e^{3x}, and
yp′′−2yp′+yp=(9−6+1)αe3x=4αe3x.y_p'' - 2y_p' + y_p = (9 - 6 + 1)\alpha e^{3x} = 4\alpha e^{3x}.
We need 4α=14\alpha = 1, so α=14\alpha = \frac14.

General solution.
y(x)=(Ax+B)ex+14e3x.y(x) = (Ax+B)e^x + \frac14 e^{3x}.