L 2-approximation by the translates of a function and related attenuation factors

Summary Let be thek-dimensional subspace spanned by the translates (·–2j/k),j=0, 1, ...,k–1, of a continuous, piecewise smooth, complexvalued, 2-periodic function . For a given functionfL ²(–, ), its least squares approximantS _kf from can be expressed in terms of an orthonormal basis. Iff is continuous,S _kf can be computed via its discrete analogue by fast Fourier transform. The discrete least squares approximant is used to approximate Fourier coefficients, and this complements the works of Gautschi on attenuation factors. Examples of include the space of trigonometric polynomials where is the de la Valleé Poussin kernel, algebraic polynomial splines where is the periodic B-spline, and trigonometric polynomial splines where is the trigonometric B-spline.