De Moivre's formula
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De Moivre's formula, named after Abraham de Moivre, states that for any complex number (and, in particular, for any real number) x and any integer n,
The formula is important because it connects complex numbers (i stands for the imaginary unit) and trigonometry. The expression "cos x + i sin x" is sometimes abbreviated to "cis x".
By expanding the left hand side and then comparing the real and imaginary parts, it is possible to derive useful expressions for cos(nx) and sin(nx) in terms of cos(x) and sin(x). Furthermore, one can use this formula to find explicit expressions for the n-th roots of unity, that is, complex numbers z such that zn = 1.
Abraham de Moivre was a good friend of Newton; in 1698 he wrote that the formula had been known to Newton as early as 1676. It can be easily derived from (but historically preceded) Euler's formula eix = cos x + i sin x and the exponential law (eix)n = einx (see exponential function).
De Moivre's formula is actually true in a more general setting than stated above: if z and w are complex numbers, then (cos z + i sin z)w is a multivalued function while cos (wz) + i sin (wz) is not, and one can state that
- cos (wz) + i sin (wz) is one value of (cos z + i sin z)w.
[edit] Applications
This formula can be used to find the nth roots of a complex number. If z is a complex number, written in polar form as
then
where k varies from 0 to n − 1 to give the n roots of the complex number.
[edit] Proof by induction
We consider three cases.
For n > 0, we proceed by mathematical induction. When n = 1, the result is clearly true. For our hypothesis, we assume the result is true for some positive integer k. That is, we assume
Now, considering the case n = k + 1:
- (by the induction hypothesis)
- , by using trigonometric identities
We deduce that the result is true for n = k + 1 when it is true for n = k. By the Principle of Mathematical Induction it follows that the result is true for all positive integers n.
When n = 0 the formula is true since cos(0x) + isin(0x) = 1 + i0 = 1, and (by convention) z0 = 1.
When n < 0, we consider a positive integer m such that n = −m. So
- , from above
- , rationalizing the denominator
Hence, the theorem is true for all integral values of n. Q.E.D.