Binomial theorem Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
In mathematics, the binomial theorem is an important formula giving the expansion of powerss of sums. Its simplest version readsFor example, here are the cases n=2, n=3 and n=4:
- (x + y)2 = x2 + 2xy + y2
- (x + y)3 = x3 + 3x2y + 3xy2 + y3
- (x + y)4 = x4 + 4x3y + 6x2y2 + 4xy3 + y4
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2 "Binomial type" 3 See also |
Isaac Newton generalized the formula to other exponents by considering an infinite series:
Newton's generalized binomial theorem
where r can be any complex number (in particular r can be any real number, not necessarily positive and not necessarily an integer), and the coefficients are given by
For a more extensive account of Newton's generalized binomial theorem, see binomial series.
The sum in (2) converges and the equality is true whenever the real or complex numbers x and y are "close together" in the sense that the absolute value | x/y | is less than one.
The geometric series is a special case of (2) where we choose y = 1 and r = −1.
Formula (2) is also valid for elements x and y of a Banach algebra as long as xy = yx, y is invertible and ||x/y|| < 1.
The binomial theorem can be stated by saying that the polynomial sequence
"Binomial type"
is of binomial type.
