Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The number e is a mathematical constant approximately equal to 2.71828 that is the base of the natural logarithm and exponential function.It is sometimes called Euler's number, after the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler, though this can invite confusion with Euler numbers, or with Euler's constant, a different constant typically denoted .
Exponential functions occur very often in solutions of differential equations. The exponential functions can be defined as solutions of differential equations. Indeed, the exponential function is a solution of the simplest possible differential equation, namely ′ = .
In mathematics, Euler's identity [note 1] (also known as Euler's equation) is the equality + = where e {\displaystyle e} is Euler's number , the base of natural logarithms , i {\displaystyle i} is the imaginary unit , which by definition satisfies i 2 = − 1 {\displaystyle i^{2}=-1} , and
Euler's formula is ubiquitous in mathematics, physics, chemistry, and engineering. The physicist Richard Feynman called the equation "our jewel" and "the most remarkable formula in mathematics". [2] When x = π, Euler's formula may be rewritten as e iπ + 1 = 0 or e iπ = −1, which is known as Euler's identity.
In mathematics, the exponential function can be characterized in many ways. This article presents some common characterizations, discusses why each makes sense, and proves that they are all equivalent. The exponential function occurs naturally in many branches of mathematics. Walter Rudin called it "the most important function in mathematics". [1]
The definition of e x as the exponential function allows defining b x for every positive real numbers b, in terms of exponential and logarithm function. Specifically, the fact that the natural logarithm ln(x) is the inverse of the exponential function e x means that one has = () = for every b > 0.
It is used to solve systems of linear differential equations. In the theory of Lie groups, the matrix exponential gives the exponential map between a matrix Lie algebra and the corresponding Lie group. Let X be an n×n real or complex matrix. The exponential of X, denoted by e X or exp(X), is the n×n matrix given by the power series = =!
Often the independent variable is time. Described as a function, a quantity undergoing exponential growth is an exponential function of time, that is, the variable representing time is the exponent (in contrast to other types of growth, such as quadratic growth). Exponential growth is the inverse of logarithmic growth.