On an iterative method for the unfolding of spectra

An iterative method has been formally proposed for the numerical solution of a special class of integral equations of the first kind, where one of the essential assumptions is the positivity of both the kernel and the right-hand side. Solving such an equation is also known as unfolding or deconvolution. In this paper, we report the main results of our study on a motivation for this iterative method and its convergence, taking into account a result on global convergence for a special discrete version of the iteration procedure. In presenting the results, priority has been given to the applicability of the method and not to its mathematical analysis. A numerical example from high-energy physics is presented. (orig./HSI)