Some Partial Fraction Identities associated with the Cyclotomic Polynomials

Abstract

We establish some partial fraction identities for rational functions whose denominators are implicit products of the cyclotomic polynomials. To achieve this, we first develop a general algebraic approach for partial fraction decomposition inspired by the Heaviside's cover-up method. We thus call our method the Extended Cover-Up Method. Using our method we obtain direct formulas for $q$-partial fractions for certain generating functions. As a direct consequence of our formulas one can compute the Sylvester denumerants, the Frobenius number and the Ehrhart polynomials in pseudo-polynomial time. Further, we provide a framework for a generalization of the Fourier-Dedekind sum and their associated Rademacher reciprocity theorem extending the results of Carlitz, Zagier and Gessel. By performing a Fourier analysis we demonstrate that our extended cover-up method explains in simple terms the mechanism behind the reciprocity law.