MATH1530 Basic Mathematics for Business and Social Sciences Autumn 2023

Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions

Lecturer: Lily PAN

5.1 Exponential Functions

Definition 1. An exponential function is a function of the form

f (x) = cax , where c 6= 0, a > 0 and a 6= 1.

Note that

• f (0) = c

• f (x + 1) = cax+1 = cax · a = af (x).

The constants c and a are called the initial value and growth factor of f (x) respectively.

We consider the graph of f (x) = ax in two different cases.

1. For constants 1 < a < b,

For a > 1,

• lim ax = 0 and lim ax =∞

x→−∞ x→∞
• x
a is increasing.

5-1
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-2

2. For constants 0 < a < b < 1,

For 0 < a < 1,

• lim ax = ∞ and lim ax =0

x→−∞ x→∞
• x
a is decreasing.

Below is a list of properties for exponential functions.

Properties of f (x) = ax (a > 0 and a 6= 1)

• f has domain R and range (0, ∞).

• f is one-to-one. (Refer to “5.2 One-to-one function”)

• Its graph has no x-intercept and a y-intercept at 1.

• Its graph has a horizontal asymptote y = 0 but no vertical asymptote.

2 +2x
Example 1. Solve the equation 4x = 64.

Solution.
2 +2x
4x = 64 = 43

Since y = 4x is a one-to-one function, we have

x2 + 2x = 3 ⇒ x = −3 or 1.

Example 2. Solve the equation 32x = 7 · 3x + 18.

Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-3

Solution. Note that 32x = (3x )2 . Hence,

(3x )2 = 7 · 3x + 18
(3x )2 − 7 · 3x − 18 = 0
(3x − 9)(3x + 2) = 0
3x = 9 or 3x = −2 (No solution as 3x > 0)
3x = 32

Since 3x is a one-to-one function, we have x = 2.



Remark. In the last example, 3x = 32 =⇒ x = 2 because 3x is a one-to-one function. If

a function f (x) is not one-to-one, f (x) = f (a) does not imply x = a. For example, given
x2 = 4 = 22 , we cannot conclude x = 2. x may be −2 instead. This is due to the fact that
x2 is not one-to-one.

5.2 Inverse Functions

One-to-one Function

Definition 2. A function f (x) is called one-to-one if f (x1 ) 6= f (x2 ) for x1 6= x2 .

Example 3. Let f (x) = x2 . Note that f (2) = 4 = f (−2). In other words, f sends both 2
and −2 to 4.

Therefore, f is not one-to-one.

The definition of one-to-one functions above can be rephrased as follows:

f (x) is one-to-one if f (x1 ) = f (x2 ) =⇒ x1 = x2

Example 4. Let g(x) = 2x + 3. If g(x1 ) = g(x2 ), then

2x1 + 3 = 2x2 + 3
=⇒ 2x1 = 2x2
=⇒ x1 = x2

Therefore g is one-to-one.
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-4

Horizontal Line Test

It is also possible to determine whether a function is one-to-one from its graph.

Horizontal Line Test If every horizontal line has at most one intersection with
the graph of f (x), then f is one-to-one.

The graph y = x2 has two intersections with the horizontal line y = 4. It fails the horizontal
line test and so x2 is not one-to-one.

The graph y = 2x + 3 has one intersection with every horizontal line. Hence, it passes the
horizontal line test and so 2x + 3 is one-to-one.

An important property for one-to-one functions is the existence of inverses.

If f is one-to-one, then its inverse f −1 can be defined.

In general,
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-5

For an one-to-one function f ,

Df −1 = Rf and Rf −1 = Df
(f −1 ◦ f )(x) = x for x ∈ Df
(f ◦ f −1 )(x) = x for x ∈ Df −1

x
Example 5. Let f (x) = .
2

Its graph passes the horizontal line test. It implies that f is one-to-one and so f −1 can be
defined. Note that f divides a number by 2. Its inverse f −1 does the reverse process of
multiplying a number by 2 and so f −1 (x) = 2x.
f (× 21 ) x
−−
x)−−−−
−−
−−−−
−−−−
−*
−
f −1 (×2) 2

Also, note that Df −1 = Rf = (−∞, ∞) and Rf −1 = Df = (−∞, ∞).

Example 6. Since (−1)4 = 14 , the function x4 is not one-to-one on R. To define its inverse,
we restrict it to a smaller domain so that it becomes one-to-one. Consider g : [0, ∞) −→ R
defined by g(x) = x4 .

The graph of g passes the horizontal line test. Hence, g is one-to-one and has an inverse. Its
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-6

√
inverse is g −1 (x) = 4 x with domain Dg−1 = Rg = [0, ∞) and range Rg−1 = Dg = [0, ∞).
Below are the graphs of g(x) and g −1 (x).

Note that the graph of g and g −1 are reflections of each other across the line y = x. In
general,

Let f (x) be a one-to-one function. The graphs of f (x) and f −1 (x) are reflections of
each other across the line y = x.

It is true because for a point (a, b) on the xy-plane,

(a, b) is on the graph y = f (x) ⇔ b = f (a)

⇔ a = f −1 (b)
⇔ (b, a) is on the graph y = f −1 (x).

Note that (a, b) and (b, a) are reflections of each other across the line y = x.

Finding the Inverse of a One-to-one Function

Here are a few steps to find the inverse of a function:

1. Let y = f (x)

2. Express x in terms of y

3. If x = g(y), then f −1 (x) = g(x).

3x + 1
Example 7. Let f (x) = . Find f −1 (x), its domain and range.
x+2
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-7

3x + 1
Solution. First, let y = f (x) = , then
x+2

y(x + 2) = 3x + 1
xy − 3x = 1 − 2y
1 − 2y
x= = g(y)
y−3
1 − 2x
Therefore, f −1 (x) = g(x) = . Its domain and range are
x−3
Df −1 = R \ {3} and Rf −1 = Df = R \ {−2}.

Remark. 1. We can deduce from f −1 (x) that the range of f (x) is Rf = Df −1 = R \ {3}.

2. We can check our formula of f −1 (x) by computing the composition:

 
3x + 1
f −1 (f (x)) = f −1
x+2
 
1 − 2 3x+1
x+2
= 3x+1
x+2 − 3
x + 2 − 2(3x + 1)
=
3x + 1 − 3(x + 2)
−5x
=
−5
= x.

Hence, our computation is correct.

5.3 Logarithmic Functions

As mentioned above, exponential functions are one-to-one. Hence, their inverses exist.
They will be discussed in this section.

Definition 3. Let a > 0 and a 6= 1. Define

f (x) = loga x

to be the inverse of ax . In other words,

loga x = y ⇐⇒ ay = x.

loga (x) is called the logarithm function with base a.

Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-8

Since logarithmic and exponential functions are inverses of each other, their graphs are
symmetric about the line y = x.

We again consider the graph of f (x) = loga (x) in two different cases.

1. For constants 1 < a < b,

For a > 1,

• lim loga (x) = −∞ and lim loga (x) = ∞.

x→0+ x→∞
• loga (x) is increasing.

2. For constants 0 < a < b < 1,

Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-9

For 0 < a < 1,

• lim loga (x) = ∞ and lim loga (x) = −∞.

x→0+ x→∞
• loga (x) is decreasing.

Below is a list of properties for logarithmic functions.

Properties of f (x) = loga x (a > 0 and a 6= 1)

• f has domain (0, ∞) and range R.

• f is one-to-one.

• Its graph has an x-intercept at 1 but no y-intercept.

• Its graph has no horizontal asymptote but a vertical asymptote x = 0.

√
4−x
Example 8. Find domain of f (x) = .
log2 (x − 1)

Solution. For f (x) to be well-defined, we need


4 − x ≥ 0, ⇒ x ≤ 4,


x − 1 > 0, ⇒ x > 1,

log (x − 1) 6= 0,

⇒ x − 1 6= 1, ⇒ x 6= 2.
2

So, the domain is (1, 2) ∪ (2, 4]. 

5.4 Euler’s Number

Definition 4. The Euler’s number e is defined by:

1 n
 
e = lim 1 +
n→∞ n
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-10

Below are some of the terms of the sequence defining e.

n -1000 -100 -10 1 2 10 1000 100000

 n
1
1+ 2.7196... 2.7320... 2.8679... 2 2.25 2.5937... 2.7169... 2.718267...
n

By approximating using a sufficiently large n, we have

e ≈ 2.718281828459045...

The number e and its power ex are equal to the limits of some other sequences and func-
tions:

1 n 1 x 1 x
     
1
e = lim 1+ = lim 1 + = lim 1+ = lim (1 + x) x
n→−∞ n x→∞ x x→−∞ x x→0
 x n

ex = lim 1 +
n→∞ n

Example 9. Evaluate  x
1
lim 1− .
x→+∞ x

Solution.
" (−x) #−1
1 x
 
1
lim 1− = lim 1+ ( set − x = y)
x→+∞ x x→+∞ (−x)
 −1
1 y
 
= lim 1 +
y→−∞ y
= e−1

2 2x
 
Exercise 5.4.1. Evaluate lim 1+ = e4 .
x→+∞ x

Two important bases for exponential and logarithmic functions are 10 and e. The associated
logarithmic functions are:

Common logarithm: log x = log10 x.

Natural logarithm: ln x = loge x.
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-11

5.5 Formulas for Exponential and Logarithmic Functions

Below are some useful formulas. Assume that a, x, y > 0 and a 6= 1.

Formulas for Exponential Functions

a1 = a a0 = 1
ax
ax · ay = ax+y = ax−y
ay
(ax )y = axy

Formulas for Logarithmic Functions

loga a = 1 loga 1 =0
x
loga (xy) = loga x + loga y loga = loga x − loga y
y
loga y
loga (xb ) = b loga x logx y =
loga x

The formulas for logarithmic functions can be derived from those for exponential functions.
For instance,
ab loga x = (aloga x )b = xb =⇒ loga xb = b loga x.

We will do some examples using these formulas.

Example 10. Express log 72 and log 75 in terms of a and b, where a = log 2 and b = log 3.

Solution. Note that 72 = 23 · 32 . Hence

log 72 = log(23 · 32 ) = log 23 + log 32 = 3 log 2 + 2 log 3 = 3a + 2b

2
3 · 102

10
Similarly, 75 = 3 · 52 =3· = . Hence
2 22

log 75 = log 3 + log 102 − log 22 = log 3 + 2 log 10 − 2 log 2 = 2 + b − 2a


r r r
4 10 45
Example 11. Without using calculator, evaluate log3 − log3 + log3 .
3 9 2
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-12

Solution. r r r
4 10 45
log3 − log3 + log3
3 9 2
 1  1  1
4 2 10 2 45 2
= log3 − log3 + log3
3  9  2 
1 4 1 10 1 45
= log3 − log3 + log3
2 3 2  9 2 2
1 4 9 45
= log3 · ·
2 3 10 2
1
= log3 27
2
1
= · 3 log3 3
2
3
=
2


Example 12. Find the implied domain of the function

1 1
f (x) = ln + 5 ln x − ln(100 − x)
x−7 3
and express f (x) in the form of ln(g(x)).

Solution. Since the domain of logarithmic functions is (0, ∞), we need

1 1
>0 and x>0 and (100 − x) 3 > 0.
x−7

x>7 and x>0 and x < 100.

Hence, the domain of f is Df = (7, 100). For x ∈ (7, 100),

1 1
f (x) = ln + 5 ln x − ln(100 − x)
x−7 3
1 1
= ln + ln x5 − ln(100 − x) 3
x−7
x5
= ln 1
(x − 7)(100 − x) 3


x5
Remark. Note that the implied domain of ln 1 is (−∞, 0) ∪ (7, 100) 6= Df .
(x − 7)(100 − x) 3
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-13

5.6 More Exercises

The first three examples are solving equations involving exponential functions and logarith-
mic functions.

Example 13. Solve the following pair of simultaneous equations:

 −(x+y)
9 = 27 (1)
4 2x−y = 64 (2)

Solution. From (1), 3−2(x+y) = 33 , i.e., −2(x + y) = 3

3
∴ x+y =− (3)
2
From (2), 42x−y = 43 ,
∴ 2x − y = 3 (4)
Solving (3) and (4), we have x = 21 , y = −2. 

Example 14. Solve the equation 7x+2 = 92x−5 .

Solution. We take log on both sides.

log 7x+2 = log 92x−5

(x + 2) log 7 = (2x − 5) log 9
x(log 7 − 2 log 9) = −2 log 7 − 5 log 9
−2 log 7 − 5 log 9
x=
log 7 − 2 log 9


Remark. In the solution above, we may take logarithm of another base at the beginning.
The answer obtained would be equal to the one above. For example,

−2 ln 7 − 5 ln 9
x=
ln 7 − 2 ln 9
is also the correct answer.
3
Example 15. Solve the equation 2 log2 x − log2 (x + ) = 1.
2
Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-14

Solution. Note the domain is {x | x > 0}.

3
log2 x2 − log2 (x + ) = 1
2
x2
log2 =1
3
x+
2
x2
=2
3
x+
2
2
x − 2x − 3 = 0
x = 3 or x = −1 (rejected, not in the domain)

The solution is x = 3. 

Next two examples are about domains, ranges and inverses.

Example 16. Let f (x) = log(5x − 1). Find f −1 (x), the domains and ranges of f and f −1 .

Solution. Let y = f (x) = log(5x − 1), then

10y = 5x − 1
10y + 1 = 5x
10y + 1
x= = f −1 (y)
5
10x + 1
Therefore, f −1 (x) = .
5
For f (x) to be well-defined, we need 5x − 1 > 0 =⇒ x > 15 . Hence Rf −1 = Df = 1


5, ∞ .
Since f −1 (x) is defined for any real numbers x, Rf = Df −1 = R = (−∞, ∞). 

The graphs of f and f −1 are showed below.

Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-15

1
The graph y = f (x) has a vertical asymptote x = because lim f (x) = −∞. Similarly
5 x→ 15
+

1 1
the graph y = f −1 (x) has a horizontal asymptote y = because lim f −1 (x) = .
5 x→−∞ 5
10ex
Example 17. Let f (x) = . Find f −1 (x), the range of f and f −1 .
1 + ex

10ex
Solution. Let y = f (x) = . Then
1 + ex

y(1 + ex ) = 10ex
ex (y − 10) = −y
y
ex =
10 − y
 
y
x = ln = f −1 (y)
10 − y
 
x
Therefore, f −1 (x) = ln .
10 − x
Note that f (x) is defined for any real numbers x. Hence Rf −1 = Df = R.
For f −1 (x) to be well-defined, we need
x
> 0 =⇒ 0 < x < 10.
10 − x
Hence, Rf = Df −1 = (0, 10). 

The graphs of f and f −1 are showed below.

Chapter 5: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions 5-16

The graph y = f (x) has horizontal asymptotes y = 0 and y = 10 because

lim f (x) = 0 and lim f (x) = 10.

x→−∞ x→∞

The graph y = f −1 (x) has vertical asymptotes x = 0 and x = 10 because

lim f −1 (x) = −∞ and lim f −1 (x) = ∞.

x→0+ x→10−