Evaluate the definite integral of (x2+1x^2 + 1) / (x4+1x^4 + 1) dx from 0 to infinity.

Answer: π2\frac{\pi}{\sqrt{2}}

Step-by-step solution

Step 1: Rewrite the integrand

To simplify the integrand, we divide both the numerator and the denominator by x2x^2. This transformation is useful for integrals involving x4+1x^4 + 1 in the denominator, as it often leads to a form that can be integrated using substitution.

Step 2: Manipulate the denominator

We can rewrite the denominator x2+1x2x^2 + \frac{1}{x^2} using the algebraic identity (a-b)^2 = a2−2ab+b2a^2 - 2ab + b^2. Here, a=xa=x and b=1xb=\frac{1}{x}, so (x - 1x\frac{1}{x})^2 = x2−2(x)(1x)+1x2=x2−2+1x2x^2 - 2(x)(\frac{1}{x}) + \frac{1}{x^2} = x^2 - 2 + \frac{1}{x^2} .Therefore,x2+1x2=(x−1x)2+2. Therefore, x^2 + \frac{1}{x^2} = (x - \frac{1}{x})^2 + 2.

Step 3: Apply substitution

We introduce a substitution u=x−1xu = x - \frac{1}{x}. Differentiating u with respect to x gives du = (1 + 1x2\frac{1}{x^2}) dx, which matches the numerator. We also need to change the limits of integration. As x approaches 0 from the positive side, u approaches - ∞\infty .Asxapproaches∞. As x approaches \infty, u approaches ∞\infty.

Step 4: Integrate with respect to u

The integral transforms into a standard form ∫1u2+a2du=1atan⁡−1(ua)+C\int \frac{1}{u^2 + a^2} du = \frac{1}{a} \tan^{-1}(\frac{u}{a}) + C .Here,a2=2. Here, a^2 = 2, so a=2a = \sqrt{2}. We then evaluate the definite integral using the new limits.

Step 5: Evaluate the definite integral

We evaluate the inverse tangent function at the limits. As u →∞\to \infty ,tan⁡−1(u)→π2, \tan^{-1}(u) \to \frac{\pi}{2}. As u →−∞\to -\infty ,tan⁡−1(u)→−π2, \tan^{-1}(u) \to -\frac{\pi}{2}. Substituting these values gives the final result.

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