JEE Mathematics | Introduction of Derivative |

Theory & Problem Solving | In English |

Understanding the Derivative of a Function

Before we dive into the essence and practical applications of the derivative of a function, let's start with
the dry definition. A derivative is the rate at which a function changes at a specific point. In this article,
we will focus on real-valued functions defined on an open interval (a, b). It is important to have a good
understanding of how functions behave and the properties of limits before studying derivatives.

Definition of a Derivative

A function f is said to be differentiable at a point x = c if and only if the limit of the function as x
approaches c exists finitely. In other words, the function f is differentiable at c if the following limit
exists:

limit x → c [ f(x) - f(c) / x - c ]

If this limit exists and is a finite real number, then we can say that f is differentiable at the point c.

Examples of Limits

Let's go through some examples to better understand the concept of limits:

Example 1: Find the limit of 2 sin^2(x) + 2 sin(x) - sin(x) - 1 / 2 sin^2(x) - 2 sin(x) - sin(x) + 1 as x
approaches π/6.

Example 2: If the value of 1 - x^n - 1 / x - 1 is 100, find the value of n.

Example 3: Evaluate the limit of sqrt(x^2 + 3) - sqrt(x^2 + 2) / 4 + 3 as x tends to infinity.

Example 4: Find the value of the limit lim n → ∞ [ ∑ (r * (r + 1)) ].

To find the limit x tends to 0 of the expression x^2 / (1 + x)^2, we can simplify it as follows:
First, let's expand the expression by multiplying both the numerator and denominator by (1 - x):

Numerator: x^2 * (1 - x)

Denominator: (1 + x) * (1 - x)

Next, we can cancel out the common factors of (1 - x) from the numerator and denominator:

Numerator: x^2 * (1 - x) (cancelling out (1 - x))

Denominator: 1 + x (cancelling out (1 - x))

Now, as x approaches 0, both x^2 and (1 - x) approach 0, and 1 + x approaches 1. Therefore, the limit
simplifies to:

Limit as x tends to 0: 0 / 1 = 0

Therefore, the value of the given limit is 0.

$x$ tends to 0: $\lim_{x \to 0} x^2 = 1$$\lim_{x \to 0} x^3 = 1$$\lim_{x \to 0} x^4 = 1$$\lim_{x \to 0} \
frac{1}{1+x} = \frac{1}{2}$

$\lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\tan(x) - \sin(x)}{x^3} = \lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x) - \sin(x)\cos(x)}{\cos(x) \cdot x^3}
= \lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x)(1-\cos(x))}{\cos(x) \cdot x^3}$

$\lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x)(1-\cos(x))}{\cos(x) \cdot x^3} = \lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x)(1-\cos(x))}{\

cos(x)} \cdot \lim_{x \to 0} \frac{1}{x^2} = \frac{1}{2}$

$\lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x/2)}{x/2} = 1$

$\lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x/2)^2}{(x/2)^2} = 1$

$\lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x)}{\cos(x)} \cdot \frac{x}{2} \cdot \frac{1}{(x/2)^2} = \frac{1}{2}$

$\lim_{x \to 0} \frac{\sin(x)}{\cos(x)} \cdot \frac{x}{2} \cdot \frac{1}{(x/2)^2} = \frac{1}{2}$

$\lim_{x \to 0} (1+x)^{1/x} = \lim_{x \to 0} e^{(\ln(1+x))/x} = \lim_{x \to 0} e^{\ln(1+x)/x} = \lim_{x \to 0}
e^{(x-x^2/2+x^3/3-...)/x} = e^{1/3 - 1/8} = \frac{11}{24}e$