Complex number

In mathematics, a complex number is an element of a number

system that extends the real numbers with a specific element
denoted i, called the imaginary unit and satisfying the equation
; every complex number can be expressed in the form
, where a and b are real numbers. Because no real
number satisfies the above equation, i was called an imaginary
number by René Descartes. For the complex number ,a
is called the real part, and b is called the imaginary part.
The set of complex numbers is denoted by either of the
symbols or C. Despite the historical nomenclature A complex number can be visually
"imaginary", complex numbers are regarded in the represented as a pair of numbers (a, b)
mathematical sciences as just as "real" as the real numbers and forming a vector on a diagram called an
are fundamental in many aspects of the scientific description of Argand diagram, representing the complex
the natural world.[1][a] plane. Re is the real axis, Im is the
imaginary axis, and i is the "imaginary
Complex numbers allow solutions to all polynomial equations,
unit", that satisfies i2 = −1.
even those that have no solutions in real numbers. More
precisely, the fundamental theorem of algebra asserts that every
non-constant polynomial equation with real or complex coefficients has a solution which is a complex
number. For example, the equation has no real solution, since the square of a real number
cannot be negative, but has the two nonreal complex solutions and .

Addition, subtraction and multiplication of complex numbers can be naturally defined by using the rule
combined with the associative, commutative, and distributive laws. Every nonzero complex
number has a multiplicative inverse. This makes the complex numbers a field that has the real numbers as a
subfield. The complex numbers also form a real vector space of dimension two, with {1, i} as a standard
basis.

This standard basis makes the complex numbers a Cartesian plane, called the complex plane. This allows a
geometric interpretation of the complex numbers and their operations, and conversely expressing in terms of
complex numbers some geometric properties and constructions. For example, the real numbers form the real
line which is identified to the horizontal axis of the complex plane. The complex numbers of absolute value
one form the unit circle. The addition of a complex number is a translation in the complex plane, and the
multiplication by a complex number is a similarity centered at the origin. The complex conjugation is the
reflection symmetry with respect to the real axis. The complex absolute value is a Euclidean norm.

In summary, the complex numbers form a rich structure that is simultaneously an algebraically closed field,
a commutative algebra over the reals, and a Euclidean vector space of dimension two.

Definition
A complex number is a number of the form a + bi, where a and b are real numbers, and i is an
indeterminate satisfying i2 = −1 . For example, 2 + 3i is a complex number.[3]
This way, a complex number is defined as a polynomial with real
coefficients in the single indeterminate i, for which the relation
i2 + 1 = 0 is imposed. Based on this definition, complex
numbers can be added and multiplied, using the addition and
multiplication for polynomials. The relation i2 + 1 = 0 induces
the equalities i4k = 1, i4k+1 = i, i4k+2 = −1, and i4k+3 = −i,
which hold for all integers k; these allow the reduction of any
polynomial that results from the addition and multiplication of
complex numbers to a linear polynomial in i, again of the form
a + bi with real coefficients a, b.
The real number a is called the real part of the complex number An illustration of the complex number
a + bi; the real number b is called its imaginary part. To z = x + iy on the complex plane. The
emphasize, the imaginary part does not include a factor i; that is, real part is x, and its imaginary part is
the imaginary part is b , not bi.[4][5] y.

Formally, the complex numbers are defined as the quotient ring of

the polynomial ring in the indeterminate i, by the ideal generated by the polynomial i2 + 1 (see below).[6]

Notation
A real number a can be regarded as a complex number a + 0i, whose imaginary part is 0. A purely
imaginary number bi is a complex number 0 + bi, whose real part is zero. As with polynomials, it is
common to write a for a + 0i and bi for 0 + bi. Moreover, when the imaginary part is negative, that is,
b = −|b| < 0 , it is common to write a − |b|i instead of a + (−|b|)i; for example, for b = −4 , 3 − 4i
can be written instead of 3 + (−4)i.

Since the multiplication of the indeterminate i and a real is commutative in polynomials with real
coefficients, the polynomial a + bi may be written as a + ib. This is often expedient for imaginary parts
denoted by expressions, for example, when b is a radical.[7]

The real part of a complex number z is denoted by Re(z), , or ; the imaginary part of a
complex number z is denoted by Im(z), , or For example,

The set of all complex numbers is denoted by (blackboard bold) or C (upright bold).

In some disciplines, particularly in electromagnetism and electrical engineering, j is used instead of i as i is

frequently used to represent electric current.[8][9] In these cases, complex numbers are written as a + bj, or
a + jb.

Visualization
A complex number z can thus be identified with an ordered pair of real numbers, which in
turn may be interpreted as coordinates of a point in a two-dimensional space. The most immediate space is
the Euclidean plane with suitable coordinates, which is then called complex plane or Argand
diagram,[10][b][11] named after Jean-Robert Argand. Another
prominent space on which the coordinates may be projected is the
two-dimensional surface of a sphere, which is then called Riemann
sphere.

Cartesian complex plane

The definition of the complex numbers involving two arbitrary real

values immediately suggests the use of Cartesian coordinates in the
complex plane. The horizontal (real) axis is generally used to
display the real part, with increasing values to the right, and the
imaginary part marks the vertical (imaginary) axis, with increasing A complex number z, as a point
values upwards. (black) and its position vector (blue)

A charted number may be viewed either as the coordinatized point

or as a position vector from the origin to this point. The coordinate values of a complex number z can hence
be expressed in its Cartesian, rectangular, or algebraic form.

Notably, the operations of addition and multiplication take on a very natural geometric character, when
complex numbers are viewed as position vectors: addition corresponds to vector addition, while
multiplication (see below) corresponds to multiplying their magnitudes and adding the angles they make
with the real axis. Viewed in this way, the multiplication of a complex number by i corresponds to rotating
the position vector counterclockwise by a quarter turn (90°) about the origin—a fact which can be
expressed algebraically as

Polar complex plane

Modulus and argument

An alternative option for coordinates in the complex plane is the

polar coordinate system that uses the distance of the point z from
the origin (O), and the angle subtended between the positive real
axis and the line segment Oz in a counterclockwise sense. This
leads to the polar form

of a complex number, where r is the absolute value of z, and is

the argument of z.

The absolute value (or modulus or magnitude) of a complex

Argument φ and modulus r locate a
number z = x + yi is[12]
point in the complex plane.
If z is a real number (that is, if y = 0 ), then r = |x|. That is, the absolute value of a real number equals its
absolute value as a complex number.

By Pythagoras' theorem, the absolute value of a complex number is the distance to the origin of the point
representing the complex number in the complex plane.

The argument of z (in many applications referred to as the "phase" φ )[11] is the angle of the radius Oz with
the positive real axis, and is written as arg z. As with the modulus, the argument can be found from the
rectangular form x + yi[13] by applying the inverse tangent to the quotient of imaginary-by-real parts. By
using a half-angle identity, a single branch of the arctan suffices to cover the range (−π, π] of the arg -
function, and avoids a more subtle case-by-case analysis

Normally, as given above, the principal value in the interval (−π, π] is chosen. If the arg value is negative,
values in the range (−π, π] or [0, 2π) can be obtained by adding 2π . The value of φ is expressed in
radians in this article. It can increase by any integer multiple of 2π and still give the same angle, viewed as
subtended by the rays of the positive real axis and from the origin through z. Hence, the arg function is
sometimes considered as multivalued. The polar angle for the complex number 0 is indeterminate, but
arbitrary choice of the polar angle 0 is common.

The value of φ equals the result of atan2:

Together, r and φ give another way of representing complex numbers, the polar form, as the combination
of modulus and argument fully specify the position of a point on the plane. Recovering the original
rectangular co-ordinates from the polar form is done by the formula called trigonometric form

Using Euler's formula this can be written as

Using the cis function, this is sometimes abbreviated to

In angle notation, often used in electronics to represent a phasor with amplitude r and phase φ , it is written
as[14]

Complex graphs

When visualizing complex functions, both a complex input and

output are needed. Because each complex number is represented in
two dimensions, visually graphing a complex function would
require the perception of a four dimensional space, which is
possible only in projections. Because of this, other ways of
visualizing complex functions have been designed.

In domain coloring the output dimensions are represented by color

and brightness, respectively. Each point in the complex plane as
domain is ornated, typically with color representing the argument A color wheel graph of the
of the complex number, and brightness representing the magnitude. (z2 − 1)(z − 2 − i)2
expression
Dark spots mark moduli near zero, brighter spots are farther away z2 + 2 + 2i
from the origin, the gradation may be discontinuous, but is assumed
π
as monotonous. The colors often vary in steps of 3 for 0 to 2π
from red, yellow, green, cyan, blue, to magenta. These plots are called color wheel graphs. This provides a
simple way to visualize the functions without losing information. The picture shows zeros for ±1, (2 + i)
and poles at

History
The solution in radicals (without trigonometric functions) of a general cubic equation, when all three of its
roots are real numbers, contains the square roots of negative numbers, a situation that cannot be rectified by
factoring aided by the rational root test, if the cubic is irreducible; this is the so-called casus irreducibilis
("irreducible case"). This conundrum led Italian mathematician Gerolamo Cardano to conceive of complex
numbers in around 1545 in his Ars Magna,[15] though his understanding was rudimentary; moreover he
later described complex numbers as "as subtle as they are useless".[16] Cardano did use imaginary numbers,
but described using them as "mental torture."[17] This was prior to the use of the graphical complex plane.
Cardano and other Italian mathematicians, notably Scipione del Ferro, in the 1500s created an algorithm for
solving cubic equations which generally had one real solution and two solutions containing an imaginary
number. Since they ignored the answers with the imaginary numbers, Cardano found them useless.[18]

Work on the problem of general polynomials ultimately led to the fundamental theorem of algebra, which
shows that with complex numbers, a solution exists to every polynomial equation of degree one or higher.
Complex numbers thus form an algebraically closed field, where any polynomial equation has a root.

Many mathematicians contributed to the development of complex numbers. The rules for addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and root extraction of complex numbers were developed by the Italian
mathematician Rafael Bombelli.[19] A more abstract formalism for the complex numbers was further
developed by the Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton, who extended this abstraction to the theory
of quaternions.[20]
The earliest fleeting reference to square roots of negative numbers can perhaps be said to occur in the work
of the Greek mathematician Hero of Alexandria in the 1st century AD, where in his Stereometrica he
considered, apparently in error, the volume of an impossible frustum of a pyramid to arrive at the term
in his calculations, which today would simplify to .[c] Negative quantities
were not conceived of in Hellenistic mathematics and Hero merely replaced it by its positive
[22]

The impetus to study complex numbers as a topic in itself first arose in the 16th century when algebraic
solutions for the roots of cubic and quartic polynomials were discovered by Italian mathematicians (Niccolò
Fontana Tartaglia and Gerolamo Cardano). It was soon realized (but proved much later)[23] that these
formulas, even if one were interested only in real solutions, sometimes required the manipulation of square
roots of negative numbers. In fact, it was proved later that the use of complex numbers is unavoidable when
all three roots are real and distinct.[d] However, the general formula can still be used in this case, with some
care to deal with the ambiguity resulting from the existence of three cubic roots for nonzero complex
numbers. Rafael Bombelli was the first to address explicitly these seemingly paradoxical solutions of cubic
equations and developed the rules for complex arithmetic, trying to resolve these issues.

The term "imaginary" for these quantities was coined by René Descartes in 1637, who was at pains to
stress their unreal nature:[24]

... sometimes only imaginary, that is one can imagine as many as I said in each equation, but
sometimes there exists no quantity that matches that which we imagine.
[... quelquefois seulement imaginaires c'est-à-dire que l'on peut toujours en imaginer autant
que j'ai dit en chaque équation, mais qu'il n'y a quelquefois aucune quantité qui corresponde à
celle qu'on imagine.]

A further source of confusion was that the equation seemed to be capriciously

inconsistent with the algebraic identity , which is valid for non-negative real numbers a and
b, and which was also used in complex number calculations with one of a, b positive and the other
negative. The incorrect use of this identity in the case when both a and b are negative, and the related
identity , even bedeviled Leonhard Euler. This difficulty eventually led to the convention of
using the special symbol i in place of to guard against this mistake. Even so, Euler considered it
natural to introduce students to complex numbers much earlier than we do today. In his elementary algebra
text book, Elements of Algebra, he introduces these numbers almost at once and then uses them in a natural
way throughout.

In the 18th century complex numbers gained wider use, as it was noticed that formal manipulation of
complex expressions could be used to simplify calculations involving trigonometric functions. For instance,
in 1730 Abraham de Moivre noted that the identities relating trigonometric functions of an integer multiple
of an angle to powers of trigonometric functions of that angle could be re-expressed by the following de
Moivre's formula:

In 1748, Euler went further and obtained Euler's formula of complex analysis:[25]
by formally manipulating complex power series and observed that this formula could be used to reduce any
trigonometric identity to much simpler exponential identities.

The idea of a complex number as a point in the complex plane (above) was first described by Danish–
Norwegian mathematician Caspar Wessel in 1799,[26] although it had been anticipated as early as 1685 in
Wallis's A Treatise of Algebra.[27]

Wessel's memoir appeared in the Proceedings of the Copenhagen Academy but went largely unnoticed. In
1806 Jean-Robert Argand independently issued a pamphlet on complex numbers and provided a rigorous
proof of the fundamental theorem of algebra.[28] Carl Friedrich Gauss had earlier published an essentially
topological proof of the theorem in 1797 but expressed his doubts at the time about "the true metaphysics of
the square root of −1".[29] It was not until 1831 that he overcame these doubts and published his treatise on
complex numbers as points in the plane,[30] largely establishing modern notation and terminology:[31]

If one formerly contemplated this subject from a false point of view and therefore found a
mysterious darkness, this is in large part attributable to clumsy terminology. Had one not called
+1, −1, positive, negative, or imaginary (or even impossible) units, but instead, say,
direct, inverse, or lateral units, then there could scarcely have been talk of such darkness.

In the beginning of the 19th century, other mathematicians discovered independently the geometrical
representation of the complex numbers: Buée,[32][33] Mourey,[34] Warren,[35][36][37] Français and his
brother, Bellavitis.[38][39]

The English mathematician G.H. Hardy remarked that Gauss was the first mathematician to use complex
numbers in "a really confident and scientific way" although mathematicians such as Norwegian Niels
Henrik Abel and Carl Gustav Jacob Jacobi were necessarily using them routinely before Gauss published
his 1831 treatise.[40]

Augustin-Louis Cauchy and Bernhard Riemann together brought the fundamental ideas of complex
analysis to a high state of completion, commencing around 1825 in Cauchy's case.

The common terms used in the theory are chiefly due to the founders. Argand called cos φ + i sin φ the
direction factor, and the modulus;[e][41] Cauchy (1821) called cos φ + i sin φ the
reduced form (l'expression réduite)[42] and apparently introduced the term argument; Gauss used i for
,[f] introduced the term complex number for a + bi,[g] and called a 2 + b 2 the norm.[h] The expression
direction coefficient, often used for cos φ + i sin φ , is due to Hankel (1867),[46] and absolute value, for
modulus, is due to Weierstrass.
Later classical writers on the general theory include Richard Dedekind, Otto Hölder, Felix Klein, Henri
Poincaré, Hermann Schwarz, Karl Weierstrass and many others. Important work (including a
systematization) in complex multivariate calculus has been started at beginning of the 20th century.
Important results have been achieved by Wilhelm Wirtinger in 1927.

Relations and operations

Equality

Complex numbers have a similar definition of equality to real numbers; two complex numbers a 1 + b 1i
and a 2 + b 2i are equal if and only if both their real and imaginary parts are equal, that is, if a 1 = a 2 and
b1 = b2. Nonzero complex numbers written in polar form are equal if and only if they have the same
magnitude and their arguments differ by an integer multiple of 2π .

Ordering

Unlike the real numbers, there is no natural ordering of the complex numbers. In particular, there is no linear
ordering on the complex numbers that is compatible with addition and multiplication. Hence, the complex
numbers do not have the structure of an ordered field. One explanation for this is that every non-trivial sum
of squares in an ordered field is nonzero, and i2 + 1 2 = 0 is a non-trivial sum of squares. Thus, complex
numbers are naturally thought of as existing on a two-dimensional plane.

Conjugate

The complex conjugate of the complex number z = x + yi is given by

x − yi. It is denoted by either z or z*.[47] This unary operation on
complex numbers cannot be expressed by applying only their basic
operations addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

Geometrically, z is the "reflection" of z about the real axis. Conjugating

twice gives the original complex number

which makes this operation an involution. The reflection leaves both the
real part and the magnitude of z unchanged, that is Geometric representation of z
and its conjugate z in the
complex plane

and

The imaginary part and the argument of a complex number z change their sign under conjugation
For details on argument and magnitude, see the section on Polar form.

The product of a complex number z = x + yi and its conjugate is known as the absolute square. It is
always a non-negative real number and equals the square of the magnitude of each:

This property can be used to convert a fraction with a complex denominator to an equivalent fraction with a
real denominator by expanding both numerator and denominator of the fraction by the conjugate of the
given denominator. This process is sometimes called "rationalization" of the denominator (although the
denominator in the final expression might be an irrational real number), because it resembles the method to
remove roots from simple expressions in a denominator.

The real and imaginary parts of a complex number z can be extracted using the conjugation:

Moreover, a complex number is real if and only if it equals its own conjugate.

Conjugation distributes over the basic complex arithmetic operations:

Conjugation is also employed in inversive geometry, a branch of geometry studying reflections more
general than ones about a line. In the network analysis of electrical circuits, the complex conjugate is used
in finding the equivalent impedance when the maximum power transfer theorem is looked for.

Addition and subtraction

Two complex numbers and are most easily added by separately adding their real
and imaginary parts. That is to say:

Similarly, subtraction can be performed as

Multiplication of a complex number and a real number r can be done similarly by multiplying
separately r and the real and imaginary parts of a :
In particular, subtraction can be done by negating the subtrahend
(that is multiplying it with −1 ) and adding the result to the
minuend:

Using the visualization of complex numbers in the complex plane,

addition has the following geometric interpretation: the sum of two
complex numbers a and b , interpreted as points in the complex
plane, is the point obtained by building a parallelogram from the
three vertices O, and the points of the arrows labeled a and b
(provided that they are not on a line). Equivalently, calling these
Addition of two complex numbers
points A, B, respectively and the fourth point of the parallelogram
can be done geometrically by
X the triangles OAB and XBA are congruent.
constructing a parallelogram.

Multiplication and square

The rules of the distributive property, the commutative properties (of addition and multiplication), and the
defining property i2 = −1 apply to complex numbers. It follows that

In particular,

Reciprocal and division

Using the conjugate, the reciprocal of a nonzero complex number can be broken into real and
imaginary components

This can be used to express a division of an arbitrary complex number by a non-zero complex
number as
Multiplication and division in polar form

Formulas for multiplication, division and exponentiation are simpler

in polar form than the corresponding formulas in Cartesian
coordinates. Given two complex numbers
z1 = r1(cos φ1 + i sin φ1) and z2 = r2(cos φ2 + i sin φ2),
because of the trigonometric identities

Multiplication of 2 + i (blue triangle)

and 3 + i (red triangle). The red
we may derive
triangle is rotated to match the
vertex of the blue one (the adding of
both angles in the terms φ1+φ2 in the
equation) and stretched by the length
In other words, the absolute values are multiplied and the arguments of the hypotenuse of the blue triangle
are added to yield the polar form of the product. For example, (the multiplication of both radiuses,
multiplying by i corresponds to a quarter-turn counter-clockwise, as per term r1r2 in the equation).
which gives back i2 = −1 . The picture at the right illustrates the
multiplication of

Since the real and imaginary part of 5 + 5i are equal, the argument of that number is 45 degrees, or π/4 (in
radian). On the other hand, it is also the sum of the angles at the origin of the red and blue triangles are
arctan(1/3) and arctan(1/2), respectively. Thus, the formula

holds. As the arctan function can be approximated highly efficiently, formulas like this – known as Machin-
like formulas – are used for high-precision approximations of π .

Similarly, division is given by

Square root

The square roots of a + bi (with b ≠ 0 ) are , where

and

where sgn is the signum function. This can be seen by squaring to obtain a + bi.[48][49] Here
is called the modulus of a + bi, and the square root sign indicates the square root with non-
negative real part, called the principal square root; also where z = a + bi.[50]

Exponential function

The exponential function can be defined for every complex number z by the
power series

which has an infinite radius of convergence.

The value at 1 of the exponential function is Euler's number

If z is real, one has Analytic continuation allows extending this equality for every complex
value of z, and thus to define the complex exponentiation with base e as

Functional equation

The exponential function satisfies the functional equation This can be proved either by
comparing the power series expansion of both members or by applying analytic continuation from the
restriction of the equation to real arguments.

Euler's formula

Euler's formula states that, for any real number y,

The functional equation implies thus that, if x and y are real, one has

which is the decomposition of the exponential function into its real and imaginary parts.

Complex logarithm

In the real case, the natural logarithm can be defined as the inverse of the
exponential function. For extending this to the complex domain, one can start from Euler's formula. It
implies that, if a complex number is written in polar form

with then with

as complex logarithm one has a proper inverse:

However, because cosine and sine are periodic functions, the addition of an integer multiple of 2π to φ
does not change z. For example, eiπ = e3iπ = −1 , so both iπ and 3iπ are possible values for the natural
logarithm of −1 .

Therefore, if the complex logarithm is not to be defined as a multivalued function

one has to use a branch cut and to restrict the codomain, resulting in the bijective function

If is not a non-positive real number (a positive or a non-real number), the resulting

principal value of the complex logarithm is obtained with −π < φ < π . It is an analytic function outside the
negative real numbers, but it cannot be prolongated to a function that is continuous at any negative real
number , where the principal value is ln z = ln(−z) + iπ .[i]

Exponentiation

If x > 0 is real and z complex, the exponentiation is defined as

where ln denotes the natural logarithm.

It seems natural to extend this formula to complex values of x, but there are some difficulties resulting from
the fact that the complex logarithm is not really a function, but a multivalued function.

It follows that if z is as above, and if t is another complex number, then the exponentiation is the
multivalued function

Integer and fractional exponents

If, in the preceding formula, t is an integer, then the

sine and the cosine are independent of k. Thus, if the
exponent n is an integer, then zn is well defined, and
the exponentiation formula simplifies to de Moivre's
formula:

The n n th roots of a complex number z are given by

for 0 ≤ k ≤ n − 1 . (Here is the usual (positive)

nth root of the positive real number r.) Because sine
and cosine are periodic, other integer values of k do
not give other values.

While the n th root of a positive real number r is Geometric representation of the 2nd to 6th roots of
chosen to be the positive real number c satisfying a complex number z, in polar form reiφ where
cn = r, there is no natural way of distinguishing one r = |z | and φ = arg z. If z is real, φ = 0 or π.
particular complex n th root of a complex number. Principal roots are shown in black.
Therefore, the n th root is a n -valued function of z.
This implies that, contrary to the case of positive real
numbers, one has

since the left-hand side consists of n values, and the right-hand side is a single value.
Properties

Field structure

The set of complex numbers is a field.[51] Briefly, this means that the following facts hold: first, any two
complex numbers can be added and multiplied to yield another complex number. Second, for any complex
number z, its additive inverse –z is also a complex number; and third, every nonzero complex number has a
reciprocal complex number. Moreover, these operations satisfy a number of laws, for example the law of
commutativity of addition and multiplication for any two complex numbers z1 and z2:

These two laws and the other requirements on a field can be proven by the formulas given above, using the
fact that the real numbers themselves form a field.

Unlike the reals, is not an ordered field, that is to say, it is not possible to define a relation z1 < z2 that is
compatible with the addition and multiplication. In fact, in any ordered field, the square of any element is
necessarily positive, so i2 = −1 precludes the existence of an ordering on [52]

When the underlying field for a mathematical topic or construct is the field of complex numbers, the topic's
name is usually modified to reflect that fact. For example: complex analysis, complex matrix, complex
polynomial, and complex Lie algebra.

Solutions of polynomial equations

Given any complex numbers (called coefficients) a 0, ..., a n, the equation

has at least one complex solution z, provided that at least one of the higher coefficients a 1, ..., a n is
nonzero.[6] This is the statement of the fundamental theorem of algebra, of Carl Friedrich Gauss and Jean le
Rond d'Alembert. Because of this fact, is called an algebraically closed field. This property does not hold
for the field of rational numbers (the polynomial x2 − 2 does not have a rational root, since √2 is not a
rational number) nor the real numbers (the polynomial x2 + 4 does not have a real root, since the square
of x is positive for any real number x).

There are various proofs of this theorem, by either analytic methods such as Liouville's theorem, or
topological ones such as the winding number, or a proof combining Galois theory and the fact that any real
polynomial of odd degree has at least one real root.
Because of this fact, theorems that hold for any algebraically closed field apply to For example, any
non-empty complex square matrix has at least one (complex) eigenvalue.

Algebraic characterization

The field has the following three properties:

First, it has characteristic 0. This means that 1 + 1 + ⋯ + 1 ≠ 0 for any number of

summands (all of which equal one).
Second, its transcendence degree over , the prime field of is the cardinality of the
continuum.
Third, it is algebraically closed (see above).

It can be shown that any field having these properties is isomorphic (as a field) to For example, the
algebraic closure of the field of the p -adic number also satisfies these three properties, so these two
fields are isomorphic (as fields, but not as topological fields).[53] Also, is isomorphic to the field of
complex Puiseux series. However, specifying an isomorphism requires the axiom of choice. Another
consequence of this algebraic characterization is that contains many proper subfields that are isomorphic
to .

Characterization as a topological field

The preceding characterization of describes only the algebraic aspects of That is to say, the properties
of nearness and continuity, which matter in areas such as analysis and topology, are not dealt with. The
following description of as a topological field (that is, a field that is equipped with a topology, which
allows the notion of convergence) does take into account the topological properties. contains a subset P
(namely the set of positive real numbers) of nonzero elements satisfying the following three conditions:

P is closed under addition, multiplication and taking inverses.

If x and y are distinct elements of P, then either x − y or y − x is in P.
If S is any nonempty subset of P, then S + P = x + P for some x in

Moreover, has a nontrivial involutive automorphism x ↦ x* (namely the complex conjugation), such
that x x* is in P for any nonzero x in

Any field F with these properties can be endowed with a topology by taking the sets
B(x, p) = { y | p − (y − x)(y − x)* ∈ P } as a base, where x ranges over the field and p ranges over
P. With this topology F is isomorphic as a topological field to
The only connected locally compact topological fields are and This gives another characterization of
as a topological field, since can be distinguished from because the nonzero complex numbers are
connected, while the nonzero real numbers are not.[54]

Formal construction

Construction as ordered pairs

William Rowan Hamilton introduced the approach to define the set of complex numbers[55] as the set
of ordered pairs (a, b) of real numbers, in which the following rules for addition and multiplication are
imposed:[51]

It is then just a matter of notation to express (a, b) as a + bi.

Construction as a quotient field

Though this low-level construction does accurately describe the structure of the complex numbers, the
following equivalent definition reveals the algebraic nature of more immediately. This characterization
relies on the notion of fields and polynomials. A field is a set endowed with addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division operations that behave as is familiar from, say, rational numbers. For example,
the distributive law

must hold for any three elements x, y and z of a field. The set of real numbers does form a field. A
polynomial p(X) with real coefficients is an expression of the form

where the a 0, ..., a n are real numbers. The usual addition and multiplication of polynomials endows the
set of all such polynomials with a ring structure. This ring is called the polynomial ring over the real
numbers.

The set of complex numbers is defined as the quotient ring [6] This extension field

contains two square roots of −1 , namely (the cosets of) X and −X, respectively. (The cosets of) 1 and X
form a basis of as a real vector space, which means that each element of the extension
field can be uniquely written as a linear combination in these two elements. Equivalently, elements of the
extension field can be written as ordered pairs (a, b) of real numbers. The quotient ring is a field, because
X2 + 1 is irreducible over so the ideal it generates is maximal.

The formulas for addition and multiplication in the ring modulo the relation X2 = −1 , correspond to
the formulas for addition and multiplication of complex numbers defined as ordered pairs. So the two
definitions of the field are isomorphic (as fields).

Accepting that is algebraically closed, since it is an algebraic extension of in this approach, is

therefore the algebraic closure of

Matrix representation of complex numbers

Complex numbers a + bi can also be represented by 2 × 2 matrices that have the form
Here the entries a and b are real numbers. As the sum and product of two such matrices is again of this
form, these matrices form a subring of the ring of 2 × 2 matrices.

A simple computation shows that the map

is a ring isomorphism from the field of complex numbers to the ring of these matrices, proving that these
matrices form a field. This isomorphism associates the square of the absolute value of a complex number
with the determinant of the corresponding matrix, and the conjugate of a complex number with the
transpose of the matrix.

The geometric description of the multiplication of complex numbers can also be expressed in terms of
rotation matrices by using this correspondence between complex numbers and such matrices. The action of
the matrix on a vector (x, y) corresponds to the multiplication of x + iy by a + ib . In particular, if the
determinant is 1 , there is a real number t such that the matrix has the form

In this case, the action of the matrix on vectors and the multiplication by the complex number
are both the rotation of the angle t.

Complex analysis
The study of functions of a complex variable is known as complex
analysis and has enormous practical use in applied mathematics as
well as in other branches of mathematics. Often, the most natural
proofs for statements in real analysis or even number theory employ
techniques from complex analysis (see prime number theorem for
an example). Unlike real functions, which are commonly
represented as two-dimensional graphs, complex functions have
four-dimensional graphs and may usefully be illustrated by color-
coding a three-dimensional graph to suggest four dimensions, or by
animating the complex function's dynamic transformation of the Color wheel graph of sin(1/z). White
complex plane. parts inside refer to numbers having
large absolute values.

Complex exponential and related functions

The notions of convergent series and continuous functions in (real) analysis have natural analogs in
complex analysis. A sequence of complex numbers is said to converge if and only if its real and imaginary
parts do. This is equivalent to the (ε, δ)-definition of limits, where the absolute value of real numbers is
replaced by the one of complex numbers. From a more abstract point of view, , endowed with the metric
is a complete metric space, which notably includes the triangle inequality

for any two complex numbers z1 and z2.

Like in real analysis, this notion of convergence is used to construct a number of elementary functions: the
exponential function exp z, also written ez, is defined as the infinite series

The series defining the real trigonometric functions sine and cosine, as well as the hyperbolic functions sinh
and cosh, also carry over to complex arguments without change. For the other trigonometric and hyperbolic
functions, such as tangent, things are slightly more complicated, as the defining series do not converge for
all complex values. Therefore, one must define them either in terms of sine, cosine and exponential, or,
equivalently, by using the method of analytic continuation.

Euler's formula states:

for any real number φ , in particular

, which is Euler's identity. Unlike in the situation of real numbers, there is an infinitude of complex solutions
z of the equation

for any complex number w ≠ 0 . It can be shown that any such solution z – called complex logarithm of w
– satisfies

where arg is the argument defined above, and ln the (real) natural logarithm. As arg is a multivalued
function, unique only up to a multiple of 2π , log is also multivalued. The principal value of log is often
taken by restricting the imaginary part to the interval (−π, π].

Complex exponentiation zω is defined as

and is multi-valued, except when ω is an integer. For ω = 1 / n , for some natural number n , this recovers
the non-uniqueness of n th roots mentioned above.

Complex numbers, unlike real numbers, do not in general satisfy the unmodified power and logarithm
identities, particularly when naïvely treated as single-valued functions; see failure of power and logarithm
identities. For example, they do not satisfy
Both sides of the equation are multivalued by the definition of complex exponentiation given here, and the
values on the left are a subset of those on the right.

Holomorphic functions

A function f: → is said to be holomorphic at a point if it is complex differentiable in an open

neighborhood of that point. A necessary (but not sufficient) condition for f to be holomorphic is that it
satisfies the Cauchy–Riemann equations. For example, any -linear map → can be written in the form

with complex coefficients a and b . This map is holomorphic if and only if b = 0 . The function is real-
differentiable, but does not satisfy the Cauchy–Riemann equations.

Complex analysis shows some features not apparent in real analysis. For example, any two holomorphic
functions f and g that agree on an arbitrarily small open subset of necessarily agree everywhere.
Meromorphic functions, functions that can locally be written as f(z)/(z − z0)n with a holomorphic function
f, still share some of the features of holomorphic functions. Other functions have essential singularities, such
as sin(1/z) at z = 0 .

Applications
Complex numbers have applications in many scientific areas, including signal processing, control theory,
electromagnetism, fluid dynamics, quantum mechanics, cartography, and vibration analysis. Some of these
applications are described below.

Geometry

Shapes

Three non-collinear points in the plane determine the shape of the triangle . Locating the
points in the complex plane, this shape of a triangle may be expressed by complex arithmetic as

The shape of a triangle will remain the same, when the complex plane is transformed by translation or
dilation (by an affine transformation), corresponding to the intuitive notion of shape, and describing
similarity. Thus each triangle is in a similarity class of triangles with the same shape.[56]

Fractal geometry
The Mandelbrot set is a popular example of a fractal formed on the
complex plane. It is defined by plotting every location where
iterating the sequence does not diverge when
iterated infinitely. Similarly, Julia sets have the same rules, except
where remains constant.

Triangles

Every triangle has a unique Steiner inellipse – an ellipse inside the The Mandelbrot set with the real and
triangle and tangent to the midpoints of the three sides of the imaginary axes labeled.
triangle. The foci of a triangle's Steiner inellipse can be found as
follows, according to Marden's theorem:[57][58] Denote the
triangle's vertices in the complex plane as a = xA + yAi, b = xB + yBi, and c = xC + yCi. Write the
cubic equation , take its derivative, and equate the (quadratic) derivative to
zero. Marden's theorem says that the solutions of this equation are the complex numbers denoting the
locations of the two foci of the Steiner inellipse.

Algebraic number theory

As mentioned above, any nonconstant polynomial equation (in complex

coefficients) has a solution in . A fortiori, the same is true if the equation
has rational coefficients. The roots of such equations are called algebraic
numbers – they are a principal object of study in algebraic number theory.
Compared to , the algebraic closure of , which also contains all
algebraic numbers, has the advantage of being easily understandable in
geometric terms. In this way, algebraic methods can be used to study
geometric questions and vice versa. With algebraic methods, more
specifically applying the machinery of field theory to the number field
containing roots of unity, it can be shown that it is not possible to Construction of a regular
construct a regular nonagon using only compass and straightedge – a pentagon using straightedge
purely geometric problem. and compass.

Another example is the Gaussian integers; that is, numbers of the form
x + iy, where x and y are integers, which can be used to classify sums of squares.

Analytic number theory

Analytic number theory studies numbers, often integers or rationals, by taking advantage of the fact that
they can be regarded as complex numbers, in which analytic methods can be used. This is done by
encoding number-theoretic information in complex-valued functions. For example, the Riemann zeta
function ζ(s) is related to the distribution of prime numbers.

Improper integrals
In applied fields, complex numbers are often used to compute certain real-valued improper integrals, by
means of complex-valued functions. Several methods exist to do this; see methods of contour integration.

Dynamic equations

In differential equations, it is common to first find all complex roots r of the characteristic equation of a
linear differential equation or equation system and then attempt to solve the system in terms of base
functions of the form f(t) = ert. Likewise, in difference equations, the complex roots r of the characteristic
equation of the difference equation system are used, to attempt to solve the system in terms of base
functions of the form f(t) = rt.

Linear algebra

Eigendecomposition is a useful tool for computing matrix powers and matrix exponentials. However, it
often requires the use of complex numbers, even if the matrix is real (for example, a rotation matrix).

Complex numbers often generalize concepts originally conceived in the real numbers. For example, the
conjugate transpose generalizes the transpose, hermitian matrices generalize symmetric matrices, and unitary
matrices generalize orthogonal matrices.

In applied mathematics

Control theory

In control theory, systems are often transformed from the time domain to the complex frequency domain
using the Laplace transform. The system's zeros and poles are then analyzed in the complex plane. The root
locus, Nyquist plot, and Nichols plot techniques all make use of the complex plane.

In the root locus method, it is important whether zeros and poles are in the left or right half planes, that is,
have real part greater than or less than zero. If a linear, time-invariant (LTI) system has poles that are

in the right half plane, it will be unstable,

all in the left half plane, it will be stable,
on the imaginary axis, it will have marginal stability.

If a system has zeros in the right half plane, it is a nonminimum phase system.

Signal analysis

Complex numbers are used in signal analysis and other fields for a convenient description for periodically
varying signals. For given real functions representing actual physical quantities, often in terms of sines and
cosines, corresponding complex functions are considered of which the real parts are the original quantities.
For a sine wave of a given frequency, the absolute value |z| of the corresponding z is the amplitude and the
argument arg z is the phase.

If Fourier analysis is employed to write a given real-valued signal as a sum of periodic functions, these
periodic functions are often written as complex-valued functions of the form
and

where ω represents the angular frequency and the complex number A encodes the phase and amplitude as
explained above.

This use is also extended into digital signal processing and digital image processing, which use digital
versions of Fourier analysis (and wavelet analysis) to transmit, compress, restore, and otherwise process
digital audio signals, still images, and video signals.

Another example, relevant to the two side bands of amplitude modulation of AM radio, is:

In physics

Electromagnetism and electrical engineering

In electrical engineering, the Fourier transform is used to analyze varying voltages and currents. The
treatment of resistors, capacitors, and inductors can then be unified by introducing imaginary, frequency-
dependent resistances for the latter two and combining all three in a single complex number called the
impedance. This approach is called phasor calculus.

In electrical engineering, the imaginary unit is denoted by j, to avoid confusion with I, which is generally in
use to denote electric current, or, more particularly, i, which is generally in use to denote instantaneous
electric current.

Since the voltage in an AC circuit is oscillating, it can be represented as

To obtain the measurable quantity, the real part is taken:

The complex-valued signal V(t) is called the analytic representation of the real-valued, measurable signal
v(t). [59]

Fluid dynamics

In fluid dynamics, complex functions are used to describe potential flow in two dimensions.

Quantum mechanics

The complex number field is intrinsic to the mathematical formulations of quantum mechanics, where
complex Hilbert spaces provide the context for one such formulation that is convenient and perhaps most
standard. The original foundation formulas of quantum mechanics – the Schrödinger equation and
Heisenberg's matrix mechanics – make use of complex numbers.

Relativity

In special and general relativity, some formulas for the metric on spacetime become simpler if one takes the
time component of the spacetime continuum to be imaginary. (This approach is no longer standard in
classical relativity, but is used in an essential way in quantum field theory.) Complex numbers are essential
to spinors, which are a generalization of the tensors used in relativity.

Generalizations and related notions

The process of extending the field of reals to is known as the
Cayley–Dickson construction. It can be carried further to higher
dimensions, yielding the quaternions and octonions which
(as a real vector space) are of dimension 4 and 8, respectively. In
this context the complex numbers have been called the
binarions.[60]

Just as by applying the construction to reals the property of

ordering is lost, properties familiar from real and complex
numbers vanish with each extension. The quaternions lose
commutativity, that is, x·y ≠ y·x for some quaternions x, y, and
the multiplication of octonions, additionally to not being
commutative, fails to be associative: (x·y)·z ≠ x·(y·z) for some Cayley Q8 quaternion graph showing
octonions x, y, z. cycles of multiplication by i, j and k

Reals, complex numbers, quaternions and octonions are all

normed division algebras over . By Hurwitz's theorem they are the only ones; the sedenions, the next step
in the Cayley–Dickson construction, fail to have this structure.

The Cayley–Dickson construction is closely related to the regular representation of thought of as an -

algebra (an -vector space with a multiplication), with respect to the basis (1, i). This means the following:
the -linear map
for some fixed complex number w can be represented by a 2 × 2 matrix (once a basis has been chosen).
With respect to the basis (1, i), this matrix is

that is, the one mentioned in the section on matrix representation of complex numbers above. While this is a
linear representation of in the 2 × 2 real matrices, it is not the only one. Any matrix

has the property that its square is the negative of the identity matrix: J2 = −I. Then

is also isomorphic to the field and gives an alternative complex structure on This is generalized by
the notion of a linear complex structure.

Hypercomplex numbers also generalize and For example, this notion contains the split-
complex numbers, which are elements of the ring (as opposed to for
complex numbers). In this ring, the equation a 2 = 1 has four solutions.

The field is the completion of the field of rational numbers, with respect to the usual absolute value
metric. Other choices of metrics on lead to the fields of p -adic numbers (for any prime number p ),
which are thereby analogous to . There are no other nontrivial ways of completing than and by
Ostrowski's theorem. The algebraic closures of still carry a norm, but (unlike ) are not complete
with respect to it. The completion of turns out to be algebraically closed. By analogy, the field is
called p -adic complex numbers.

The fields and their finite field extensions, including are called local fields.

See also
Algebraic surface
Circular motion using complex numbers
Complex-base system
Complex geometry
Dual-complex number
Eisenstein integer
Geometric algebra (which includes the complex plane as the 2-dimensional spinor subspace
)
Unit complex number

Number systems
 Zero: 0
One: 1
Natural
Integer Prime numbers
Composite
Rational numbers
Real Negative integers
Complex
Finite decimal
Fraction Dyadic (finite binary)
Repeating decimal

Algebraic irrational
Irrational
Transcendental

Imaginary

Notes
a. "Complex numbers, as much as reals, and perhaps even more, find a unity with nature that is
truly remarkable. It is as though Nature herself is as impressed by the scope and consistency
of the complex-number system as we are ourselves, and has entrusted to these numbers the
precise operations of her world at its minutest scales." — R. Penrose (2016, p. 73)[2]
b. Solomentsev 2001: "The plane whose points are identified with the elements of is
called the complex plane ... The complete geometric interpretation of complex numbers and
operations on them appeared first in the work of C. Wessel (1799). The geometric
representation of complex numbers, sometimes called the 'Argand diagram', came into use
after the publication in 1806 and 1814 of papers by J.R. Argand, who rediscovered, largely
independently, the findings of Wessel".
c. In the literature the imaginary unit often precedes the radical sign, even when preceded itself
by an integer.[21]
d. It has been proved that imaginary numbers necessarily appear in the cubic formula when the
equation has three real, different roots by Pierre Laurent Wantzel in 1843, Vincenzo Mollame
in 1890, Otto Hölder in 1891, and Adolf Kneser in 1892. Paolo Ruffini also provided an
incomplete proof in 1799.——S. Confalonieri (2015)[23]
e. Argand 1814, p. 204 defines the modulus of a complex number but he doesn't name it:
"Dans ce qui suit, les accens, indifféremment placés, seront employés pour indiquer la
grandeur absolue des quantités qu'ils affectent; ainsi, si , et étant réels,
on devra entendre que ou ."
[In what follows, accent marks, wherever they're placed, will be used to indicate the absolute
size of the quantities to which they're assigned; thus if , and being real,
one should understand that or .]
Argand 1814, p. 208 defines and names the module and the direction factor of a complex
number: "... pourrait être appelé le module de , et représenterait la
grandeur absolue de la ligne , tandis que l'autre facteur, dont le module est l'unité,
en représenterait la direction."
 [... could be called the module of and would represent the
absolute size of the line (Argand represented complex numbers as vectors.)
whereas the other factor [namely, ], whose module is unity [1], would

represent its direction.]

f. Gauss writes:[43]"Quemadmodum scilicet arithmetica sublimior in quaestionibus hactenus
pertractatis inter solos numeros integros reales versatur, ita theoremata circa residua
biquadratica tunc tantum in summa simplicitate ac genuina venustate resplendent, quando
campus arithmeticae ad quantitates imaginarias extenditur, ita ut absque restrictione ipsius
obiectum constituant numeri formae a + bi, denotantibus i, pro more quantitatem imaginariam
, atque a, b indefinite omnes numeros reales integros inter - et + ." [Of course just
as the higher arithmetic has been investigated so far in problems only among real integer
numbers, so theorems regarding biquadratic residues then shine in greatest simplicity and
genuine beauty, when the field of arithmetic is extended to imaginary quantities, so that,
without restrictions on it, numbers of the form a + bi — i denoting by convention the
imaginary quantity , and the variables a, b [denoting] all real integer numbers between
and — constitute an object.]
g. Gauss:[44]"Tales numeros vocabimus numeros integros complexos, ita quidem, ut reales
complexis non opponantur, sed tamquam species sub his contineri censeantur." [We will call
such numbers [namely, numbers of the form a + bi ] "complex integer numbers", so that real
[numbers] are regarded not as the opposite of complex [numbers] but [as] a type [of number
that] is, so to speak, contained within them.]
h. Gauss:[45] "Productum numeri complexi per numerum ipsi conjunctum utriusque normam
vocamus. Pro norma itaque numeri realis, ipsius quadratum habendum est." [We call a
"norm" the product of a complex number [for example, a + ib ] with its conjugate [a - ib ].
Therefore the square of a real number should be regarded as its norm.]
i. However for another inverse function of the complex exponential function (and not the above
defined principal value), the branch cut could be taken at any other ray thru the origin.

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Works cited
Ahlfors, Lars (1979). Complex analysis (https://archive.org/details/lars-ahlfors-complex-analy
sis-third-edition-mcgraw-hill-science_engineering_math-1979/page/n1/mode/2up) (3rd ed.).
McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-07-000657-7.
Apostol, Tom (1981). Mathematical analysis. Addison-Wesley.
Argand (1814). "Reflexions sur la nouvelle théorie des imaginaires, suives d'une application
à la demonstration d'un theorème d'analise" (https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.$c126
479&view=1up&seq=209) [Reflections on the new theory of complex numbers, followed by
an application to the proof of a theorem of analysis]. Annales de mathématiques pures et
appliquées (in French). 5: 197–209.
Gauss, C. F. (1831). "Theoria residuorum biquadraticorum. Commentatio secunda" (https://b
abel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015073697180&view=1up&seq=292) [Theory of
biquadratic residues. Second memoir.]. Commentationes Societatis Regiae Scientiarum
Gottingensis Recentiores (in Latin). 7: 89–148.
Solomentsev, E.D. (2001) [1994], "Complex number" (https://www.encyclopediaofmath.org/in
dex.php?title=Complex_number), Encyclopedia of Mathematics, EMS Press

Further reading
Penrose, Roger (2005). The Road to Reality: A complete guide to the laws of the universe (ht
tps://archive.org/details/roadtorealitycom00penr_0). Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 978-0-679-45443-
 4.
Derbyshire, John (2006). Unknown Quantity: A real and imaginary history of algebra (https://a
rchive.org/details/isbn_9780309096577). Joseph Henry Press. ISBN 978-0-309-09657-7.
Needham, Tristan (1997). Visual Complex Analysis. Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-0-19-
853447-1.

Mathematical
Ahlfors, Lars (1979). Complex analysis (3rd ed.). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-07-000657-7.
Conway, John B. (1986). Functions of One Complex Variable I. Springer. ISBN 978-0-387-
90328-6.
Joshi, Kapil D. (1989). Foundations of Discrete Mathematics. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
ISBN 978-0-470-21152-6.
Pedoe, Dan (1988). Geometry: A comprehensive course. Dover. ISBN 978-0-486-65812-4.
Press, W.H.; Teukolsky, S.A.; Vetterling, W.T.; Flannery, B.P. (2007). "Section 5.5 Complex
Arithmetic" (https://web.archive.org/web/20200313111530/http://apps.nrbook.com/empanel/i
ndex.html?pg=225). Numerical Recipes: The art of scientific computing (3rd ed.). New York:
Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-88068-8. Archived from the original (http://app
s.nrbook.com/empanel/index.html?pg=225) on 13 March 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
Solomentsev, E.D. (2001) [1994], "Complex number" (https://www.encyclopediaofmath.org/in
dex.php?title=Complex_number), Encyclopedia of Mathematics, EMS Press

Historical
Bourbaki, Nicolas (1998). "Foundations of mathematics § logic: set theory". Elements of the
history of mathematics. Springer.
Burton, David M. (1995). The History of Mathematics (3rd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
ISBN 978-0-07-009465-9.
Katz, Victor J. (2004). A History of Mathematics, Brief Version. Addison-Wesley. ISBN 978-0-
321-16193-2.
Nahin, Paul J. (1998). An Imaginary Tale: The Story of . Princeton University Press.
ISBN 978-0-691-02795-1. — A gentle introduction to the history of complex numbers and the
beginnings of complex analysis.
Ebbinghaus, H. D.; Hermes, H.; Hirzebruch, F.; Koecher, M.; Mainzer, K.; Neukirch, J.;
Prestel, A.; Remmert, R. (1991). Numbers (hardcover ed.). Springer. ISBN 978-0-387-97497-
2. — An advanced perspective on the historical development of the concept of number.

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