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Ptolemy's theorem states that the sum of the products of the lengths of opposite sides is equal to the product of the lengths of the diagonals. When those side-lengths are expressed in terms of the sin and cos values shown in the figure above, this yields the angle sum trigonometric identity for sine: sin(α + β) = sin α cos β + cos α sin β.
There are several equivalent ways for defining trigonometric functions, and the proofs of the trigonometric identities between them depend on the chosen definition. The oldest and most elementary definitions are based on the geometry of right triangles and the ratio between their sides.
In contrast, by the Lindemann–Weierstrass theorem, the sine or cosine of any non-zero algebraic number is always transcendental. [4] The real part of any root of unity is a trigonometric number. By Niven's theorem, the only rational trigonometric numbers are 0, 1, −1, 1/2, and −1/2. [5]
A calculation confirms that z(0) = 1, and z is a constant so z = 1 for all x, so the Pythagorean identity is established. A similar proof can be completed using power series as above to establish that the sine has as its derivative the cosine, and the cosine has as its derivative the negative sine.
Euler's formula states that, for any real number x, one has = + , where e is the base of the natural logarithm, i is the imaginary unit, and cos and sin are the trigonometric functions cosine and sine respectively. This complex exponential function is sometimes denoted cis x ("cosine plus i sine").
The sine and the cosine functions, for example, are used to describe simple harmonic motion, which models many natural phenomena, such as the movement of a mass attached to a spring and, for small angles, the pendular motion of a mass hanging by a string. The sine and cosine functions are one-dimensional projections of uniform circular motion.
The sine and tangent small-angle approximations are used in relation to the double-slit experiment or a diffraction grating to develop simplified equations like the following, where y is the distance of a fringe from the center of maximum light intensity, m is the order of the fringe, D is the distance between the slits and projection screen ...
Argand called cos φ + i sin φ the direction factor, and = + the modulus; [d] [48] Cauchy (1821) called cos φ + i sin φ the reduced form (l'expression réduite) [49] and apparently introduced the term argument; Gauss used i for , [e] introduced the term complex number for a + bi, [f] and called a 2 + b 2 the norm.