Remember we talked about functions---
taking a set X and mapping into a Set Y
11
22
2
2 4
33 4
66
4 88
4
55 10
10
Set X Set Y
An inverse function would reverse that
process and map from SetY back into Set X
How do you find the Inverse Function?
• Notation for the inverse function f -1 is read
“f-inverse”
{(-3, 7), (-2, 10), (-1, 12), (0, 15), (1, 10)}
Inverse:
{(-5, 12), (-2, -8), (4, 10), (6, 14), (10, 18)}
Inverse:
** Remember functions have to pass the vertical line test!
***Remember for functions to have an inverse function they have to
pass the horizontal line test!
How do you find an Equation for the Inverse
Function?
• Notation for the inverse function f is read
-1
“f-inverse”
Finding the Equation of the Inverse of y = f(x)
1. Interchange x and y.
2. Solve for y.
3. Replace y with f -1(x).
Any restrictions on x and y should be considered.
** Remember functions have to pass the vertical line test!
***Remember for functions to have an inverse function they have to
pass the horizontal line test!
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Finding the Equation of the Inverse of y = f(x)
1. Interchange x and y.
2. Solve for y.
3. Replace y with f -1(x).
Any restrictions on x and y should be considered.
Given f (x) = -2x – 7, find the inverse
y = -2x – 7
1. x = -2y – 7
2. y = x + 7
-2
3.f -1(x) = x + 7
-2
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Ex: (a)Find the inverse of f(x)=x5.
(b) Is f -1(x) a function?
y = x5 (hint: look at the graph!
1.x = y5 Does it pass the vertical line
2. 5 x 5 y 5 test?)
5
xy
y x
5
Yes , f -1(x) is
a function.
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Ex: f(x)=2x2-4 Determine whether f -1(x) is a
function, then find the inverse equation.
y = 2x2-4
x = 2y2-4
x+4 = 2y2
x4
y2
2
x4
y
2
1
f (x) is not a function.
-1
OR y x2
2
*Later we will talk about how you can make this a function.
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Ex: g(x)=2x3
y=2x3
x=2y3
x
y3
2
x
3 y
2
x
y 3
2
3
4x
Inverse is a function! y
2
How to determine inverse function?
Find the inverse, if it exists, of
f (x) = 3x2 + 2
Step 1: Switch x and y: x = 3y2 + 2
Step 2: Solve for y: x 3y 2 2
2
x 2 3y
x2
y2
3
x2
y
3
Step 3: Replace y with f -1(x):
Therefore, f -1(x) = .
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Find the inverse, if it exists, of
4x 6
f ( x) .
5
4x 6
Solution y Write f (x) = y.
5
4y 6
x Interchange x and y.
5
5x 4 y 6 Solve for y.
5x 6
y
4
1 5x 6
f ( x) Replace y with f -1(x).
4
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Find the inverse, if it exists, of
f(x) = -3x+6
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Find the inverse, if it exists, of
2x 5
f ( x) .
x5
How do you find an equation for the inverse
function?
Find the inverse, if it exists, of
f ( x) x 4
5
Let’s look back at your warm-up functions.
Do they have an inverse?
If so, find the inverse equation.
f(x) = 2x3 + 5 g(x) = x2 – 3
How do you finding the inverse of a
function with a restricted domain?
1
Example Let f ( x ) x 5. Find f ( x).
Solution Notice that the domain of f is restricted
to [–5,), and its range is [0, ). It is one-to-one and
thus has an inverse.
y x5
x y5
x2 y 5
y x2 5
The range of f is the domain of f -1, so its inverse is
1
f ( x) x 5, x 0.
2
How do you prove that a function is an inverse of
another function?
Let f be a one-to-one function. Then, g is the
inverse function of f and f is the inverse of g if
( f g )( x) x for every x in the domain of g ,
and
( g f )( x) x for every x in the domain of f .
How do you prove that a function is an inverse of
another function?
Ex: Verify that f(x)=-3x+6 and g(x)=-1/3x+2 are inverses.
• Meaning find f(g(x)) and g(f(x)). If they both equal x, then they
are inverses.
f(g(x))= -3(-1/3x+2)+6 g(f(x))= -1/3(-3x+6)+2
= x-6+6 = x-2+2
=x =x
** Because f(g(x))=x and g(f(x))=x, they are inverses.
How do you prove that a function is an inverse of
another function?
Composition of Inverse Functions
1
f ( x) x 3
and f ( x) x 3
• Consider
• f(3) = 27 and f -1(27) = 3
• Thus, f(f -1(27)) = 27
• and f -1(f(3)) = 3
• In general f(f -1(x)) = x and f -1(f(x)) = x
(assuming both f and f -1 are defined for x)
How do you prove that a function is an inverse of
another function?
f and f –1 are inverses if and only if the result of the
composition of a function and its inverse (in either order
is the original input, x.
f ( x) x3 1 f 1 ( x) 3 x 1
Use the composition of functions to show inverses
How do you prove that a function is an inverse of
another function?
• Consider f ( x) 2 3 x 4
3
x
g ( x) 4
8
• Demonstrate that these are inverse functions
