Home page for accesible maths Math 101 Chapter 4: Taylor series and complex numbers

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4.28 Complex numbers

Observe the sequence (in)=(i,-1,-i,1,…).(i^{n})=(i,-1,-i,1,\dots).

The notation -1\sqrt{-1} is ugly and unnecessary: use ii instead; some engineers prefer jj.

Note that z=z¯z=\bar{z} if and only if zz is real.

2⁢ℜ⁡z=z+z¯2\Re z=z+\bar{z};   2⁢i⁢ℑ⁡z=z-z¯2i\Im z=z-\bar{z}

Example

Let z=1+2⁢iz=1+2i and w=2+3⁢iw=2+3i; find z+wz+w and z⁢wzw.