AQA Core 2

Sequences and series Section 1: Sequences

Notes and Examples
These notes contain subsections on Sequences The limit of a sequence

Sequences
A sequence is a set of numbers in a given order. These numbers may form an algebraic pattern. Sequences which follow a pattern can be defined algebraically in one of two ways: either by using a formula for the nth term, or by using a recurrence relation. In the first case, you are given a direct formula for the nth term of the sequence in terms of n. The terms of the sequence can be found by substituting the numbers 1, 2, 3 for n. (This is sometimes called a deductive definition).

Example 1 A sequence is defined by un n2 3 (i) Write down the first five terms of the sequence. (ii) Find the 20th term of the sequence. Solution (i) Substituting n = 1, n = 2, n = 5 into the expression un n2 3 gives the terms of the sequence: u1 12 3 2

u2 22 3 1
u3 32 3 6

u4 42 3 13
u5 52 3 22 The first five terms of the sequence are 2, 1, 6, 13, 22.
(ii) Substituting k = 20 u20 202 3 400 3 397

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AQA C2 Sequences Section 1 Notes and Examples

For further examples on sequences defined deductively, look at the Flash resources Finding sequences from general terms and Finding general terms.

A recursive definition, (sometimes called an inductive definition or recurrence relation) tells you how to find a term in a sequence from the previous term. The definition must also include the value of the first term of the sequence. You can then find the second term from the first term, the third term from the second term, and so on.

Example 2 A sequence is defined as un1 2un 1 , u1 0 Write down the first six terms of the sequence. Solution Each term is found by doubling the previous term and adding 1. The first term is 0. u1 0

u2 2u1 1 2 0 1 1 u3 2u2 1 2 1 1 3 u4 2u3 1 2 3 1 7 u5 2u4 1 2 7 1 15 u6 2u5 1 2 15 1 31 The first six terms are 0, 1, 3, 7, 15, 31

For further examples on sequences defined inductively, look at the Flash resources Sequences from recurrence relations and Finding recurrence relations.

The limit of a sequence

A sequence may be convergent or divergent. In a convergent sequence, the terms of the sequence get closer and closer to a particular number, called the limit of the sequence. In a divergent sequence, the terms of the sequence do not approach a limit. You can find the limit L of a sequence defined by a recurrence relation by putting un1 un L and solving the resulting equation.

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AQA C2 Sequences Section 1 Notes and Examples

Example 3 State whether each of the following sequences are convergent or divergent, and find the limit of any which are convergent. (i) un1 1 un 4 , u1 0 2 (ii) un1 2un 3 , u1 1 Solution (i) u1 0

u2 1 0 4 4 2 1 u3 2 4 4 6 u4 1 6 4 7 2 1 u5 2 7 4 7.5 This sequence is convergent.

Let the limit of the sequence be L: L 1 L 4 2
1 2

L4

L8
The limit of the sequence is 8. (ii) u1 1

u2 2 1 3 1 u3 2 1 3 5 u4 2 5 3 13 This sequence is divergent.

Note that it is very important that you look at the terms of the sequence to establish whether or not the sequence is convergent, before attempting to find the limit. In part (ii) of Example 3 above, it would be possible to find a limit in the same way as in (i): L 2L 3 L 3 You can see that the sequence does not converge to a limit of 3. However, if the first term of the sequence were chosen as 3, then all terms of the sequence would be 3, so that 3 would, in a sense, be the limit of the sequence. For all other starting values, however, the sequence diverges. For some extension work, investigate the terms of these sequences, and find out what happens when you try to find the limit as in Example 3(i). Can you explain what happens? Does changing the starting value make a difference?

un 1 , u1 2 un 1 2 (ii) un 1 1 , u1 3 un
(i) un 1

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