This applet investigates nth roots of complex numbers
GCE Further Mathematics - Complex numbers - OCR, Edexcel, AQA, MEI FP1
Instructions below
See also:
Complex numbers
Complex transformations
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On this Argand diagram, the complex number z is represented by a green
dot, which can be dragged around the plane with your mouse to change its value.
This number z is written in 3 different forms at the top left of the
screen.
Also shown are the nth roots of that number, where n is a
positive integer between 2 and 30. You can change n by clicking "Root+"
or "Root-" at the bottom. These roots are shown as pink dots. The
blue dot is the "first" root, calculated by putting r = 0
in the equation for Arg(z).
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The other roots are calculated by putting
0 < r < n - 1 in the expression for the argument.
How to calculate the modulus and argument of each root is demonstrated at the bottom. As you investigate you should see a simple pattern emerge.
Here are a question you might want to think about:- Why do the nth roots of a number always add up to zero?
Play around! You should quickly develop a feel for the behaviour of complex roots.
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