Key Points

Trigonometric Functions

16 Sections
  • Angle Measurement: Degrees and Radians

    A full circle is 360360^{\circ} or 2π2\pi radians. The key conversion relationship is π radians=180\pi \text{ radians} = 180^{\circ}.

  • Angle Conversion Formulas

    To convert from degrees to radians, multiply by π180\frac{\pi}{180}. To convert from radians to degrees, multiply by 180π\frac{180}{\pi}.

  • Arc Length Formula

    For a circle of radius rr, an arc of length ll subtends a central angle θ\theta (in radians) given by the formula l=rθl = r\theta.

  • Trigonometric Functions on the Unit Circle

    For a point P(a,b)P(a, b) on the unit circle corresponding to an angle xx, the definitions are cosx=a\cos x = a and sinx=b\sin x = b. This leads to the fundamental Pythagorean identity cos2x+sin2x=1\cos^2 x + \sin^2 x = 1.

  • Signs of Trigonometric Functions by Quadrant

    In Quadrant I, all are positive. In II, only sinx\sin x and cscx\csc x are positive. In III, only tanx\tan x and cotx\cot x are positive. In IV, only cosx\cos x and secx\sec x are positive.

  • Domain and Range of Trigonometric Functions

    The domain for sinx\sin x and cosx\cos x is all real numbers R\mathbf{R} and the range is [1,1][-1, 1]. The range of tanx\tan x is R\mathbf{R}.

  • Periodicity of Functions

    The sine and cosine functions are periodic with a period of 2π2\pi, so sin(x+2π)=sinx\sin(x + 2\pi) = \sin x. The tangent function is periodic with a period of π\pi, so tan(x+π)=tanx\tan(x + \pi) = \tan x.

  • Negative Angle Identities

    Cosine is an even function, cos(x)=cosx\cos(-x) = \cos x. Sine and tangent are odd functions, sin(x)=sinx\sin(-x) = -\sin x and tan(x)=tanx\tan(-x) = -\tan x.

  • Sum and Difference Formulas for Cosine

    The identities for cosine are cos(x+y)=cosxcosysinxsiny\cos(x+y) = \cos x \cos y - \sin x \sin y and cos(xy)=cosxcosy+sinxsiny\cos(x-y) = \cos x \cos y + \sin x \sin y.

  • Sum and Difference Formulas for Sine

    The identities for sine are sin(x+y)=sinxcosy+cosxsiny\sin(x+y) = \sin x \cos y + \cos x \sin y and sin(xy)=sinxcosycosxsiny\sin(x-y) = \sin x \cos y - \cos x \sin y.

  • Sum and Difference Formulas for Tangent

    The identity for tangent of a sum is tan(x+y)=tanx+tany1tanxtany\tan(x+y) = \frac{\tan x + \tan y}{1 - \tan x \tan y}. For a difference, it is tan(xy)=tanxtany1+tanxtany\tan(x-y) = \frac{\tan x - \tan y}{1 + \tan x \tan y}.

  • Double Angle Formulas

    Key double angle formulas are sin2x=2sinxcosx\sin 2x = 2\sin x \cos x and cos2x=cos2xsin2x\cos 2x = \cos^2 x - \sin^2 x. The tangent formula is tan2x=2tanx1tan2x\tan 2x = \frac{2\tan x}{1 - \tan^2 x}.

  • Alternative Forms for Cosine Double Angle

    The cos2x\cos 2x formula can also be written as cos2x=2cos2x1\cos 2x = 2\cos^2 x - 1 or cos2x=12sin2x\cos 2x = 1 - 2\sin^2 x.

  • Triple Angle Formulas

    The formulas for triple angles are sin3x=3sinx4sin3x\sin 3x = 3\sin x - 4\sin^3 x and cos3x=4cos3x3cosx\cos 3x = 4\cos^3 x - 3\cos x.

  • Sum-to-Product Formulas

    These convert sums to products, for example: sinx+siny=2sin(x+y2)cos(xy2)\sin x + \sin y = 2\sin(\frac{x+y}{2})\cos(\frac{x-y}{2}) and cosx+cosy=2cos(x+y2)cos(xy2)\cos x + \cos y = 2\cos(\frac{x+y}{2})\cos(\frac{x-y}{2}).

  • Product-to-Sum Formulas

    These convert products to sums, for example: 2cosxcosy=cos(x+y)+cos(xy)2\cos x \cos y = \cos(x+y) + \cos(x-y) and 2sinxcosy=sin(x+y)+sin(xy)2\sin x \cos y = \sin(x+y) + \sin(x-y).

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