Asymptotic Properties of Zeros of Hypergeometric Polynomials

In a paper by K. Driver and P. Duren (1999, Numer. Algorithms21, 147–156) a theorem of Borwein and Chen was used to show that for each k the zeros of the hypergeometric polynomials F(−n, kn+1; kn+2; z) cluster on the loop of the lemniscate {z: |z^k(1−z)|=k^k/(k+1)^k+1}, with Re{z}>k/(k+1) as n→∞. We now supply a direct proof which generalizes this result to arbitrary k>0, while showing that every point of the curve is a cluster point of zeros. Examples generated by computer graphics suggest some finer asymptotic properties of the zeros.