Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-rcrh6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T01:06:43.413Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The simple branching process: a note on convergence when the mean is infinite

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2016

P. L. Davies*
Affiliation:
Universität Essen–Gesamthochschule

Abstract

Let denote the simple branching process with Z0 = 1 and let G denote the distribution function of Z1. Suppose G satisfies xαγ(x)≦1 − G(x) ≦ xα+γ(x) for large x, where (i) 0 < α < 1, (ii) γ (x) is non-negative and non-increasing, (iii) xγ(x) is non-decreasing and (iv) Then limn→∞α n log (Zn + 1) converges almost surely to a non-degenerate finite random variable W satisfying P(W = 0) = q = probability of extinction of the process.

Type
Research Papers
Copyright
Copyright © Applied Probability Trust 1978 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

[1] Athreya, K. B. and Ney, P. E. (1972) Branching Processes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.Google Scholar
[2] Bingham, N. H. and Teugels, J. L. (1975) Duality for regularly varying functions. Quart. J. Math. Oxford (3) 26, 333353.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
[3] Cohn, H. (1977) Almost sure convergence of branching processes. Z. Wahrscheinlichkeitsth. 38, 7381.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
[4] Darling, D. H. (1970) The Galton–Watson process with infinite mean. J. Appl. Prob. 7, 455456.Google Scholar
[5] Davies, P. L. (1974) Eine Klasse nirgends differenzierbarer stochastischer Prozesse mit stationären Gaußschen Zuwachsen. Math. Nachr. 63, 197204.Google Scholar
[6] Davies, P. L. (1976) Tail probabilities for positive random variables with entire characteristic functions of very regular growth. Z. angew. Math. Mech. 56, T334T336.Google Scholar
[7] Feller, W. (1971) An Introduction to Probability Theory and its Applications, Vol. 2, 2nd edn. Wiley, New York.Google Scholar
[8] Grey, D. R. (1977) Almost sure convergence in Markov branching processes with infinite mean. J. Appl. Prob. 14, 702716.Google Scholar
[9] Hudson, I. L. and Seneta, E. (1977) A note on simple branching processes with infinite mean. J. Appl. Prob. 14, 836842.Google Scholar
[10] Kallenberg, O. (1976) Some applications of Feller's dominated variation. Tagung ‘Mathematische Stochastik’, Oberwolfach.Google Scholar
[11] Schuh, H.-J. and Barbour, A. D. (1977) On the asymptotic behaviour of branching processes with infinite mean. Adv. Appl. Prob. 9, 681723.Google Scholar
[12] Seneta, E. (1969) Functional equations and the Galton–Watson process. Adv. Appl. Prob. 1, 142.Google Scholar
[13] Seneta, E. (1973) The simple branching process with infinite mean, I. J. Appl. Prob. 10, 206212.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
[14] Seneta, E. (1976) Regularly Varying Functions. Lecture Notes in Mathematics 508, Springer-Verlag, Berlin.Google Scholar