I have the following functions:
a) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\frac{1}{e^{\frac{1}{z}}-1}$
b) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0,2\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\frac{\sin z ^2}{z^2(z-2)}$
c) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\cos\left(\frac{1}{z}\right)$
d) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\frac{1}{1-\cos\left(\frac{1}{z}\right)}$
e) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\frac{1}{\sin\left(\frac{1}{z}\right)}$
What would the quickest approach to determine if $f$ has a removable singularity, a pole or an essential singularity? What would be the thinking $behind$ the approach?
Edit:
What I know/ What I have tried:
I know that if we have an open set $\Omega \subseteq \mathbb{C}$, then we call an isolated singularity, a point, where $f$ is not analytic in $\Omega$ ($f \in H(\Omega \backslash \{a\}$).
The functions in (a)-(e) are not defined on some values. So I suspect, that these are the first candidates for singularities. For instance in (a), it would be 0. In (b), it would be 0 and 2.
Question: Could there be any other points where these functions are not analytic?
Let's call our isolated singularity $a$. Furthermore I know that we have 3 types of singularities:
1) removable
This would be the case when $f$ is bounded on the disk $D(a,r)$ for some $r>0$.
2) pole
There is $c_1, … , c_m \in \mathbb{C},\ m\in\mathbb{N}$ with $c_m \neq 0$, so that:
$$f(z)-\sum\limits_{k=1}^m c_k\cdot\frac{1}{(z-a)^k},\ z \in \Omega \backslash \{a\})$$
has a removable singularity in $a$, then we call $a$ a pole.
We also know that in this case:
$|f(z)|\rightarrow \infty$ when $z\rightarrow a$.
3) essential
If the disk $D(a,r) \subseteq \Omega$, then $f(D(a,r)\backslash\{a\})$ is dense in $\mathbb{C}$ and we call $a$ essential singularity.
The books that I have been using (Zill – Complex Analysis and Murray Spiegel – Complex Analysis) both expand the function as a Laurent series and then check the singularities. But how do I do this, if I use the definitions above? It doesn't seem to me to be so straight forward…
What I would want to learn a method which allows me to do the following:
I look at the function and the I try approach X to determine if it has a removable singularity. If not continue with approach Y to see if we have a pole and if not Z, to see if we have an essential singularity. An algorithmic set of steps so to speak, to check such functions as presented in (a) to (e).
Edit 2: This is not homework and I would start a bounty if I could, because I need to understand how this works by tommorow. Unfortunately I can start a bounty only tommorow…
Edit 3: Is this so easy? Because using the definitions, I am getting nowhere in determing the types of singularities…
Best Answer
a) $\displaystyle{f(z)=\dfrac{1}{e^{1/z}-1}}$.
It says $f:\mathbb C\setminus\{0\}\to\mathbb C$, but this is incorrect, because $f$ has a simple pole at $z=\dfrac{1}{2\pi ki}$ for each nonzero integer $k$, and $z=0$ is not even an isolated singularity. If you change the codomain to $\mathbb C\cup\{\infty\}$ and think of $f$ as a meromorphic function, then it has an essential singularity at $0$.
In fact, you can show that $f(D(0,r)\setminus\{0\})=(\mathbb C\cup\{\infty\})\setminus\{0,-1\}$ for all $r>0$, using elementary properties of the exponential function.
b) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0,2\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\frac{\sin z ^2}{z^2(z-2)}$
Evaluate $\lim\limits_{z\to 0}f(z)$ and $\lim\limits_{z\to 2}f(z)$. One is finite, the other is $\infty$, so you have a removable singularity and a pole.
c) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\cos\left(\frac{1}{z}\right)$
In this case, you should be able to show, even just using real variables, that $\lim\limits_{z\to 0}f(z)$ does not exist in either a finite or infinite sense. Sketch a graph of $y=\cos(1/t)$ close to $0$. Another useful tool is the Laurent series, which in this case is obtained from the power series expansion of $\cos$ by substitution of $1/z$. And similarly to a), you could use elementary properties of the exponential function along with the identity $\cos(z)=\frac{1}{2}(e^{iz}+e^{-iz})$ to find the image of a small punctured disk at $0$.
d) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\frac{1}{1-\cos\left(\frac{1}{z}\right)}$
Similarly to a), this is incorrect. Either the domain or the codomain should be changed. If you don't change the codomain, then $f$ is undefined where $\cos(1/z)=1$, and there is not an isolated singularity at $0$. If you allow meromorphic functions, then it is an essential singularity at $0$. (And again you could even explicitly find the range, or you could more simply show that no limit exists by choosing special values.)
e) $\displaystyle f:\mathbb{C}\backslash\{0\}\rightarrow\mathbb{C},\ f(z)=\frac{1}{\sin\left(\frac{1}{z}\right)}$
See a) and d).