Author Question: What is the derivative of the imaginary number i? (Read 1708 times)

coco

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 739
I thought of using the definition of the derivative to find it: f'(x)=lim (h->0) (f(x+h)-f(x))/h = lim ((i+h)-i)/h = lim h/h = lim 1 = 1. Is this right? Are there other proofs?



Jesse_J

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 282
Actually i acts just as any other constant does. So the derivative of i with respect to some variable is 0.

Proof:
Let f(x) = i
Square both sides:
[f(x)]² = i²
[f(x)]² = -1
Implicitly differentiate:
2 f(x) f'(x) = 0
f(x) f'(x) = 0
i f'(x) = 0
f'(x) = 0 / i
f'(x) = 0



Related Topics

Need homework help now?

Ask unlimited questions for free

Ask a Question

Joesy

  • Guest
The number i is a constant, so its derivative is zero.  I think?



 

Did you know?

Never take aspirin without food because it is likely to irritate your stomach. Never give aspirin to children under age 12. Overdoses of aspirin have the potential to cause deafness.

Did you know?

Approximately one in three babies in the United States is now delivered by cesarean section. The number of cesarean sections in the United States has risen 46% since 1996.

Did you know?

To combat osteoporosis, changes in lifestyle and diet are recommended. At-risk patients should include 1,200 to 1,500 mg of calcium daily either via dietary means or with supplements.

Did you know?

More than 34,000 trademarked medication names and more than 10,000 generic medication names are in use in the United States.

Did you know?

When Gabriel Fahrenheit invented the first mercury thermometer, he called "zero degrees" the lowest temperature he was able to attain with a mixture of ice and salt. For the upper point of his scale, he used 96°, which he measured as normal human body temperature (we know it to be 98.6° today because of more accurate thermometers).

For a complete list of videos, visit our video library