Definition:Bessel Function/Historical Note

Historical Note on Bessel Functions

Bessel functions were introduced by Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel in $1824$.

They arise in many problems of physics and engineering.

However, despite bearing the name of Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel, they were first studied by Leonhard Paul Euler.

He encountered them during his study of the vibrations of a stretched circular membrane.

Sources

• 1972: George F. Simmons: Differential Equations ... (previous) ... (next): $\S 3$: Appendix $\text A$: Euler
• 1992: George F. Simmons: Calculus Gems ... (previous) ... (next): Chapter $\text {A}.21$: Euler ($\text {1707}$ – $\text {1783}$)
• 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Bessel functions
• 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Bessel functions