Tangent Line
Tangent Line
• A line that passes on a plane or curve at exactly one point. Leibniz defined it as the line through a pair
of infinitely close points on the curve.
Tangent lint to the curve y = f (x) at the point P (a , f (a)) is the through P.
f ( x )−f (a)
m= lim x → a
x −a
If we let x = h + a then h = x – a
Example 2:
Find the equation of the tangent line to the hyperbola y = 3 / x at point ( 3 , 1 )
Solution:
f ( h+3 )−1
m= lim h → 0
h
3
¿ f ( a )=f ( 3 )= =1
3
3
¿ f ( h+ 3 )=
h+3
3
−1
m= lim h → 0 h+ 3
h
3−h−3 −1 −1
m= = =
h+3 h+3 3
h
−1
y−1= (x−3)
3
−x +3
y−1=
3
3 y−3=−x +3
x +3 y−6=0
Example 3:
Find the slope of the tangent line to the parabola y = 4x – x 2 at point ( 1 , 3 )
f (x )−f (a)
a. m = lim x → a
x−a
m = lim x → 1
4 x−x 2 ( 4 a−a2 )
x −a
2
4 x−x ( 4−1 )
m = lim x → 1
x−1
m = lim x → 1
4 x−x 2 ( 4 a−a2 )
x −a
2
−(x +4 x +3)
m = lim x → 1
x−1
m = lim x → 1 = −x +3
m = lim x → 1 = −1+3=2
f ( x+ h )−f (x )
b. m = lim h → 0
h
m = lim h → 0 4 ( x+ h )−( x +h )2
2
¿ 4 x+ 4 h−x −2 xh−h ²
m = lim h → 0 4 x+ 4 h−x 2−2 xh−h2 −4 x + x ²
2
m = lim h →
4 h−2 xh−h
h
h ( 4−2 x−h )
m = lim h → 0
h
m = lim h → 0 4−2 ( 1 )−h
m = lim h → 0 4−2−0=2
Example 4:
Find the equation of the tangent line to the curve y = x 3 – x at the point ( 2 , 3 )
f ( h+ a )−f ( a )
m = lim x → 0
h
f ( h+2 ) −f (2)
m = lim x → 0
h
f ( h + a ) = ( h+2 )2 −(h+ 2)
= h3 +6 h2+ 11h+6
f(2)=6
3
f h +6 h ²+ 11h+6−6
m = lim x → 0
h
3 2
h +6 h +11h
m = lim x → 0
h
2
h(h +6 h+11)
m = lim x → 0
h
m = lim x → 0 h2 +6 h+ 11=02+ 6 ( 0 ) +11
m = 0+ 0+11 , m=11
y – y 1 = m ( x – x 1)
y – 3 = 11 ( x – 2 )
y – 3 = 11x – 22
11x – y – 19 = 0