Complex Numbers

•Definition
•Complex Plane
•Rectangular form
•Polar form
•Conversions
•Working with Complex Numbers
Complex numbers are used extensively in mathematics,
the physical sciences, and engineering.

You will encounter them in courses such as

Communications, Signal Processing, Control Theory,
Physical Optics, Electromagnetic Theory and Circuit
Analysis.

They provide us with a unique set of tools for describing

several physical processes and often simplify mathematical
operations.

The goal for now is to introduce Complex numbers and

become familiar with some basic operations.
DEFINITION:
A complex number is any number that consists of both “real” and
“imaginary” parts. In rectangular form it is expressed as:

Z = a + jb

where a and b are “real” numbers and j is defined as the square root
of negative one (an “imaginary” number). Thus, a is the “real” part of
the number and the product jb forms the “imaginary” part. Note it is
not uncommon to see “i” used in place of “j”.

Z = 2 + j3
Z = 2 + i3
 DEFINITION:

The imaginary number j (also known as i) is equal to the square

root of negative one.

j = − 1 and j 2 = (− 1)

OPERATIONAL DEFINITION:

j is an operator that produces a 90 degree counter-clockwise

rotation, or phase shift, to a quantity it operates on.

The operational definition will be clarified when complex numbers are

presented in polar form
 The Complex Plane

The complex plane is actually very similar to the two dimensional coordinate
system that we are used to using. Except one dimension represents the real
part of the number and the other dimension represents the imaginary part.

Imaginary (b)
b>0
2nd Quadrant 1st Quadrant b>0
a<0
a>0
Real (a)

b<0 b<0
3rd Quadrant 4th Quadrant
a<0 a>0

Z = a + jb
 Plotting in Rectangular Coordinates

Graphically Z is located by moving the specified distance along the real

and imaginary axes.

PLOT
Im

Z1 = 2 + j2 3
2
Z2 = -1 + j3 1
Re
Z3 = 2 – j3 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1-1 1 2 3 4 5

-2
-3
 Complex Numbers in Polar Coordinates

In polar form each point in space can be represented using a distance from
the origin, called a magnitude, or radius and an angle from a given
reference, in our case the positive real axis. Complex numbers in polar form
are expressed as:

jθ
Z = Me
Where M is our magnitude, theta is our angle, e ≈ 2.718281828459.

We will not use “e” directly in any calculations, at this point it is better
to think of it as part of our bookkeeping system that has some nice
Mathematical relationships

Z = 5e j 30

Z = 3e − j 60
Plot of Z = 3ej135° on the complex plane.

Im

Z 3
2
135°
1

Re
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5
-1
-2
-3
Plot:

Z1 = 2e j 45o
Z 2 = 3e j 90 o
Z 3 = 4e j 360 o

Im

3
2

Re
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5
-1

-2

-3
 Converting Between Coordinate Systems
Some mathematical operations are easier to perform in one coordinate
system than the other, so we must know how to convert between them

Rectangular to Polar Conversion

Rectangular to polar conversion is accomplished using the following

relationships.
⎛b⎞
M = a +b 2 2 θ = tan −1 ⎜ ⎟
⎝a⎠

Given: Note:

Z = a + jb M
b
θ
a
When converting between rectangular and polar coordinate systems, there are
two important things to keep in mind.

1. Magnitudes are always positive.

2. When calculating the angle theta most calculators will return an angle in the
first or fourth quadrant, between (90) and (–90) degrees. If the point lies in the
second or third quadrant, 180 degrees must be added to the result given by the
calculator or the answer will be incorrect.

You can determine the correct quadrant from inspection of:

Imaginary (b)
b>0
2nd Quadrant 1st Quadrant b>0
a<0
a>0
Real (a)

b<0 b<0
3rd Quadrant 4th Quadrant
a<0 a>0

Z = a + jb
Convert to polar form:

EXAMPLE 2.1

CAL EXAMPLE 2.2

MATLAB has a function that allows for the conversion from rectangular
coordinates to polar coordinates. The syntax is as follows:

[theta, M] = CART2POL(a,b)
Where theta is the angle, M is the magnitude, a is the real component, and
b is the imaginary component. It is important to note that MATLAB always
works in radians. Thus the angle it provides will be in radians. This can
be converted to degrees by multiplying by 180 and dividing by pi.

EXAMPLE 2.3
Polar to Rectangular Conversion

Polar to rectangular conversion is accomplished using the following

relationships.

a = M cos(θ ) b = M sin(θ )

Z = a + jb = M cos(θ ) + jM sin(θ )

Given: Note: Im

jθ
Z = Me
Z

M b
θ
Re
a
Convert to rectangular form:

EXAMPLE 2.4

CAL EXAMPLE 2.5

MATLAB has a function that allows for the conversion from polar coordinates
to rectangular coordinates. The syntax is as follows:

[a, b] = POL2CART(theta, M)

Where theta is the angle, M is the magnitude, a is the real component, and b
is the imaginary component. It is important to note that MATLAB always
works in radians. Thus it is important to supply the angle, theta, in radians.
An angle in degrees can be converted to radians by multiplying by pi and
dividing by 180.

EXAMPLE 2.6
 Useful Relationships

Euler’s Equation

± jθ
e = cos(θ ) ± j sin(θ )
This equation also may be encountered in an alternate form such as:

e jθ + e − jθ e jθ − e − jθ
cos(θ ) = sin(θ ) =
2 j2
1). Z = M cos(θ ) + jM sin(θ )

Z = Me jθ

Me jθ = M cos(θ ) + jM sin(θ )

e jθ = cos(θ ) + j sin(θ )

2). e − jθ = cos(−θ ) + j sin(−θ )

cos( −θ ) = cos(θ )
odd even
sin( −θ ) = − sin(θ )

e − jθ = cos(θ ) − j sin(θ )
 e jθ = cos(θ ) + j sin(θ ) e − jθ = cos(θ ) − j sin(θ )

3). e jθ + e − jθ = (cos(θ ) + j sin(θ ) ) + (cos(θ ) − j sin(θ ) )

e jθ + e − jθ
cos(θ ) =
2

4). e jθ − e − jθ = (cos(θ ) + j sin(θ ) ) − (cos(θ ) − j sin(θ ) )

e jθ − e − jθ
sin(θ ) =
j2
De Moivre’s Identity

(cos(θ ) + j sin(θ ) ) = cos( nθ ) + j sin( nθ )

n

e ± jθ = cos(θ ) ± j sin(θ )

(e ) = (cos(θ ) ± j sin(θ ))
± jθ n n

j ( nθ )
= (cos(θ ) + j sin(θ ) )
n
e

cos( nθ ) + j sin( nθ ) = (cos(θ ) + j sin(θ ) )

n
Next we will look at the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of
complex numbers,

First, we must define the Complex Conjugate which will be needed for some of
the operations.

Complex Conjugate

A complex number in which the real portion of the number remains the
same, but j is replaced by –j. The complex Conjugate of Z is denoted
Z*

Given: Z = a + jb

Z * = a − jb
Note ZZ* = Real number
EXAMPLE 2.7
Complex Addition

Complex addition is the process of adding two complex numbers in which

the real and imaginary parts of the number are added separately.

Let x = a + jb y = c + jd

Then
x + y = ( a + c ) + j (b + d )

Find the sum of the complex numbers x = 3 + j6 and y = 1 - j2

Complex Subtraction

Complex subtraction is the process of subtracting two complex numbers in

which the real and imaginary parts of the number are subtracted
separately.

Let x = a + jb y = c + jd

Then
x − y = ( a − c ) + j (b − d )

Find x - y given x = 4 – j2 and y = 2 – j5.

Addition and subtraction are carried out on Complex
numbers in Rectangular coordinates only.

Multiplication and division can be preformed in both

Rectangular and Polar coordinate systems.

As we will see most of the time, especially true for division,

it is easier to carry out the operations with the Complex
numbers in Polar form.
 Complex Multiplication

Complex Multiplication (Rectangular Coordinates)

Complex multiplication in the rectangular coordinate system

works much in the same way as the multiplication of
polynomials. F.O.I.L.
x = a + jb y = c + jd
xy = (ac− bd) + j(ad + bc)

EXAMPLE 2.8
Complex Multiplication (Polar Coordinates)

Complex multiplication in the polar coordinate system consist of

multiplying the magnitudes and summing the angles.
jθ y
x = Me jθ x y = Ne

xy = (MN)e
j (θ x +θ y )

EXAMPLE 2.9
 Complex Division
Complex Division (Rectangular Coordinates)

Complex division in the rectangular coordinate system is a fairly complex

task. In order to separate the numerator into its real and complex parts,
the numerator and denominator must be multiplied by the complex
conjugate of the denominator.

x = a + jb y = c + jd

x ⎛ a + jb ⎞⎛ c − jd ⎞ (ac + bd ) (bc − ad )
= ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ = 2 +j 2
y ⎝ c + jd ⎠⎝ c − jd ⎠ (c + d )
2
(c + d 2 )

Recall from algebra multiplying both the numerator and denominator by the
same value does not change the end result.

EXAMPLE 2.10
Complex Division (Polar Coordinates)

Complex division in the polar coordinate system is far easier than

division in the rectangular coordinate system. The magnitudes are
simply divided and the angles are subtracted.
jθ y
x = Me jθ x y = Ne
x ⎛ M ⎞ j (θ x −θ y )
= ⎜ ⎟e
y ⎝N⎠

EXAMPLE 2.11
 Simple AC Circuits
After Complex Numbers

For DC circuits we use ohm’s law

For AC circuit we must consider the circuit impedance
The impedance includes
circuit resistance and reactance
capacitive reactance
inductive reactance

which you can think of as frequency dependant resistance

 In Complex Notation

V
I= I = I 0 e j (ωt −θ ) V = V0 e j (ωt ) Z = R+ X
Z
1
R=R X = XL + XC X L = jω L XC =
jωC
ω = angular frequency, or 2π f C = capacitance L = inductance

I:

I :
 Consider a simple RC Low-pass filter circuit,

Writing expressions for v(in) and v(out);

v(in) = iR + iX C

v(out) = iX C
The goal is to find out how the RC circuit changes the input signal, one
way to accomplish this is to examine the ratio,

v(out)
v(in)
Notice this is a gain (G) expression if,

v(out) v(out)
≥ 1, G ≥ 1, < 1, G < 1
v(in) v(in)

So let’s write it out,

v(out) iX C XC 1
= = =
v(in) iR + iX C R + X C 1 + R X C

1
recall : X C = , then
jω C

v(out) 1
= .
v(in) 1 + jω RC
Notice the expression includes a complex term; we are interested in the
ratio of amplitudes, which is found by taking the magnitude of the
expression.
12
v(out) ⎡⎛ 1 ⎞⎛ 1 ⎞⎤
= ⎢⎜ ⎟⎜ ⎟⎥
v(in) ⎣⎝ 1 + j ω RC ⎠⎝ 1 − j ω RC ⎠⎦

v(out) 1
=
v(in) 1 + ω 2 R 2C2

So the final expression for the low-pass filter is:

v(out) 1
=
v(in) 1 + ω 2 R 2C2

For a fixed value of RC what happens as the input frequency gets large?
 An RC low-pass filter is a device that passes low frequency signals
and blocks high frequency signals.

It is characterized by a defined cutoff frequency:

1
fc =
2π RC

The output amplitude with respect to the input at the cutoff frequency is

v ( out )
= 0.707 WHY?
v ( in )
Plot of frequency response
 An RC high-pass filter is a device that passes high frequency signals
and blocks low frequency signals.

It is characterized by a defined cutoff frequency:

1
fc =
2π RC

The output amplitude with respect to the input at the cutoff frequency is

v ( out )
= 0.707
v ( in )
The same analysis applies to a RC high-pass filter
configuration, the resulting expression is:

v(out) ω RC
=
v(in) 1 + ω 2 R 2C2

Now what happens as the frequency gets large?

v(out) ω RC ω RC
= =
v(in) 1 + ω 2 R 2 C2 ω RC

v(out)
=1
v(in)
Plot of frequency response
 R L
+ - + -

I(t)
+
V(t) C
-

Apply KVL

V(t) = VR + VL + VC

VR =

VL =

VC =

V(t) =

1/j = -j

V(t) =
 ⎛ ⎡ 1 ⎤⎞
V(t) = I(t) ⎜ R + j ⎢ω L -
⎝ ⎣ ω C ⎥⎦ ⎟⎠

Find I(t):

B
 ⎛ ⎡ 1 ⎤⎞ V(t) ⎛ ⎡ 1 ⎤⎞
V(t) = I(t) ⎜ R + j ⎢ω L - R - j ⎢ω L -
ω C ⎥⎦ ⎟⎠ ⎜ ωC ⎥⎦ ⎟⎠
I(t) =
⎝ ⎣ B ⎝ ⎣

Plot VR,VLC Plot IR,ILC Plot V,I

case 1: ω L > 1 ω C

case 2: ω L < 1 ω C
 ELI the
ICE Man
 Expression Simplification Guidelines

1. Addition and subtraction can only be performed in rectangular

coordinates.

2. Multiplication and division can be performed in either coordinate

system. However, the polar system is easier to work with, and thus,
is the preferred system.

3. Always simplify powers of j. If a power of j is encountered it should

always be simplified to one of the four base representations (j, -1, -j,
1). PAD

4. Keep the final goal in mind. If the problem being solved requires
magnitude and phase angle, then we want our final number in polar
form. If the problem needs real and imaginary parts, then we need
the number in rectangular format.
 What you should know

1. Know the definition of a complex number

2. Know how to represent a complex number in
rectangular and polar form
3. Know how to convert between rectangular and polar
form
4. Know how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide
complex numbers