214k views
0 votes
Find the values of x for which the series [infinity] (-2)ⁿ * xⁿ converges. Enter your answer using interval notation.

User Rguerin
by
7.9k points

1 Answer

6 votes

Final answer:

The series ∞ (-2)ⁿ * xⁿ converges for values of x within the interval (-1, 1), which is determined by using the ratio test for convergence.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the values of x for which the series ∞ (-2)ⁿ * xⁿ converges, we must consider the ratio test for convergence of an infinite series. The ratio test says that for the series ∞ aⁿ, it will converge absolutely if the limit as n approaches infinity of |aⁿ+1 / aⁿ| is less than 1. So, we apply the ratio test to our series (-2)ⁿ * xⁿ.

Let's calculate the limit:


  • |((-2)ⁿ+1 * xⁿ+1) / ((-2)ⁿ * xⁿ)|

  • = |(-2 * x) / (-2)|

  • = |x|

For the series to converge, we need |x| < 1. So, the interval of convergence for x is (-1, 1).

User Randombits
by
8.0k points