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Please assist me with the power of i(imaginary)​

Please assist me with the power of i(imaginary)​-example-1

1 Answer

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Let's raise i to various powers starting with 0,1,2,3...

i^0 = 1

i^1 = i

i^2 = ( sqrt(-1) )^2 = -1

i^3 = i^2*i = -1*i = -i

i^4 = (i^2)^2 = (-1)^2 = 1

i^5 = i^4*i = 1*i = i

i^6 = i^5*i = i*i = i^2 = -1

We see that the pattern repeats itself after 4 iterations. The four items to memorize are

i^0 = 1

i^1 = i

i^2 = -1

i^3 = -i

It bounces back and forth between 1 and i, alternating in sign as well. This could be one way to memorize the pattern.

To figure out something like i^25, we simply divide the exponent 25 over 4 to get the remainder. In this case, the remainder of 25/4 is 1 since 24/4 = 6, and 25 is one higher than 24.

This means i^25 = i^1 = i

Likewise,

i^5689 = i^1 = i

because 5689/4 = 1422 remainder 1. The quotient doesn't play a role at all so you can ignore it entirely

User Nedec
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