Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-year-1-of-the-natural-sciences-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2018/paper-1/11/a/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the year 1 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge 2018 Paper 1 11 a Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-18
The factor has modulus and principal argument . Multiplication by adds to its complex argument, while the real factor halves its modulus. HenceTaking the principal logarithm for givesThis complex number lies in the second quadrant. Its modulus follows from the sum of squared components, and its principal argument follows by the second-quadrant correction:All arguments of this fixed add integer multiples of to the displayed one.
If is interpreted as the multivalued complex logarithm, there is instead a family , where and . Then , and the principal argument is for , or for . This records the logarithm-branch choice that the paper leaves implicit.
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