Introduction to Differential

Equations

C.P.S. Pathirana
Department of Mathematics & Philosophy of Engineering
Faculty of Engineering Technology,
Nawala, Sri Lanka
Introduction:
In this brief session we try to give perspective to your of
differential equations. First we explain mathematical model
order & degree of ordinary differential equation and boundary
value problem.
In the following example we shall see how we can develop
mathematical models of three simple physical systems.
Example: Let us see whether we can develop a simple mathematical
model to describe the motion of an object, moving in a fixed direction.
When t=0 S=0
Session 02
 First order Ordinary Differential Equations I
Solution of Simple First Order Ordinary Differential
Equations:
In this section we shall see how we can solve the first order
ordinary differential equations of the type,

Where C is an arbitrary constant. This solution satisfies the

given differential equation for any value of C. The solution of a
differential equation given in this form is called its’ general solution.
Example :
Consider an object traveling in a fixed direction with an
acceleration of f0 + Kt where f0 and K are constant and t
the time. What would be the velocity V(t) at a time t, if the
initial velocity was U.
SAQ 2.1:
Solve the following boundary value problem

Answer:
 SAQ 2.2:

Solution: The differential equation can be written as,

Solutions by Separation of Variables
Now, let us look at first order differential
equations, which are a bit more complicated than
what we saw in the last section. We are going to see
how we can solve a first order ordinary
differential equation of the type,
dy f  x 
=
dx g  y 

When f(x) and g(y) are known functions of x and y

respectively.
 g  y dy =  f  x  dx + c
Example 2.3:
Solve the first order ordinary differential
dy x3
equation = Subject to the boundary condition
dx  y +1 2

y(0) = 1.
Solution:
First order differential Equations Reducible to
Separable Form:
The ordinary differential equation,
dy 2
2xy - y + x 2 = 0
dx
is not in the separable from
dy / dx = f  x  / g  y 

But, suppose we define a new variable V,

Note:
Any first order ordinary differential equation cannot be
reduced to separable form. The function f(x,y) is a
homogeneous function of degree n,
SAQ 2.4:
Determine the general solution of the following first order
ordinary differential equation by reducing them to separable
form.
= y + x - y 
dy 2 2 1/2
x
dx
Answer:
(b)

Answer:
Answer:
Session 03
 First Order Differential Equations II
Exact Differential equations
Example 3.2:
Example 3.3

(Differential equation with the right hand side equal to

zero is called a homogeneous equation.)
Example 3.5:
Integrating Factors
Some non-exact differential equations can be made exact
by multiplying it by a suitable function. This function is
called the integrating factor of the given differential
equation.
Example 3.6:
Note: Given a differential equation, which is not exact,
how would you determine the function by which the
equation should be multiplied to make it exact? (That is
the integrating factor).
Let P(x) is the integrating factor of this equation.
dy
P  x  g  x, y  + P  x  f  x, y  = P  x  F  x 
dx
Example 3.7: Obtain the general solution of,

Solution:
 dy
P  x  g  x, y  + P  x  f  x, y  = P  x  F  x 
dx
Session 04
 Linear Differential Equations of Higher Order
A differential equation of the form,

Second Order Homogeneous linear Differential Equations

From what we have learnt so far, we know that a second order
homogeneous linear differential equation can be written in the
form, 2
dy dy
a 2
+ b + Cy = 0
dx dx

Where a, b and c are constants.

Example 4.1:
Characteristic Equations with Complex Roots
Example 4.2:
Characteristic Equations with Non Distinct Roots
What is the general solution of a second order homogeneous
linear differential equation with constant coefficients if it’s
characteristic equation has non-distinct roots. That is if the two
roots are equal.
y =  A + Bx  emx
Example 4.3:
Thank You