Saturday, May 13, 2017

inverse of x*e^x

We are asked to find the inverse of xe^x :
One way to find an inverse is to start with the equation y=f(x); then exchange x and y and solve the result for y.
y=xe^x
-----------
x=ye^y
To get rid of the exponent, take the natural logarithm of each side:
lnx=ln(ye^y)
Use properties of logarithms to simplify the right hand side:
lnx=lny+y
Note that we cannot write this as a function of x using elementary functions.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The inverse  is called the Lambert W-function. If we assume that x is real and x>-1 we get a single valued function. Without this restriction, y=xe^x does not have an inverse function as it fails the horizontal line test.
The graph of y=xe^x :

We can draw the inverse relation by reflecting the graph over the line y=x.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Why is the fact that the Americans are helping the Russians important?

In the late author Tom Clancy’s first novel, The Hunt for Red October, the assistance rendered to the Russians by the United States is impor...