The general term for a geometric sequence EMCDT

From the u example above we know that T

1
= 2 and r = 2, and we have seen from
the table that the n
th
term is given by T
n
= 2 2
n1
.
The general geometric sequence can be expressed as:
T
1
= a = ar
0
T
2
= a r = ar
1
T
3
= a r r = ar
2
T
4
= a r r r = ar
3
T
n
= a [r r . . . (n 1) times] = ar
n1
Therefore the general formula for a geometric sequence is:
T
n
= ar
n1
where
a is the rst term in the sequence;
r is the constant ratio.
Test for a geometric sequence
To test whether a sequence is a geometric sequence or not, check if the ratio between
any two consecutive terms is constant:
T
2
T
1
=
T
3
T
2
=
T
n
T
n1
= r
If this condition does not hold, then the sequence is not a geometric sequence.
Exercise 1 5: General term of a geometric sequence
Determine the general formula for the n
th
term of each of the following geometric
sequences:
1. 5; 10; 20; . . .
2.
1
2
;
1
4
;
1
8
; . . .
3. 7; 0,7; 0,07; . . .
4. p; 3p
2
; 9p
3
; . . .
5. 3; 30; 300; . . .
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Check answers online with the exercise code below or click on show me the answer.
1. 285S 2. 285T 3. 285V 4. 285W 5. 285X
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15 Chapter 1. Sequences and series