Representing Frequency Content in Complex Notation

Konstantinos G. Derpanis York University

kosta@cs.yorku.ca Version 1.0

March 11, 2006

In this note the complex representation of frequency content is reviewed1 . We will use the following identities, ei = cos + isin e
i

(1) (2)

= cos isin.

Through some algebraic manipulation (addition and subtraction), (1) and (2) can be rewritten as, cos = ei + ei 2 ei ei sin = 2 (3) (4)

Any continuous periodic can be represented as a liinear combination of sines and cosines, formally,
N

f (t) =
k=1

Ak cos2k t + Bk sin2k t.

(5)

We now rewrite (5) in complex form,

N

f (t) =
k=1 N

Ak

ei2k t + ei2k t 2

+ Bk

ei2k t ei2k t 2

(6)

=
k=1 N

Ak i2k t Ak i2k t Bk i2k t Bk i2k t e + e + e e 2 2 2 2 Ak + Bk i2k t Ak Bk i2k t e + e 2 2 Ck ei2k t + Ck ei2k t

(7)

=
k=1 N

(8)

=
k=1

(9) (10)

1 This

presentation is adapted from [1]

where Ck = Ck Ak iBk 2 Ak + iBk = 2 (11) (12) (13) More compactly,

N

f (t) =
k=N

Ck ei2k t

(14)

where Ck = Ak + iBk , 2 Ck = 0, Ak iBk Ck = , 2 k = k , k<0 k=0 k>0 k<0 (15) (16) (17) (18)

Alternatively, we can write Ck in polar form as, Ck = rk eik , + 2 Bk k = atan , Ak Bk , k = atan Ak rk = A2 k

2 Bk 1/2

for all k

(19) (20)

k<0 k > 0.

(21) (22)

Finally, putting everything together, (5) in complex form is given as follows,

N N N

f (t) =
k=N

Ck ei2k t =
k=N

rk eik ei2k t =
k=N

rk ei(2k t+k )

(23)

References
[1] H.J. Weaver. Applications of Discrete and Continuous Fourier Analysis. John Wiley and Sons, 1983.