Calculus/Arc length

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Arc length

Suppose that we are given a function that is continuous on an interval and we want to calculate the length of the curve drawn out by the graph of from to . If the graph were a straight line this would be easy — the formula for the length of the line is given by Pythagoras' theorem. And if the graph were a piecewise linear function we can calculate the length by adding up the length of each piece.

The problem is that most graphs are not linear. Nevertheless we can estimate the length of the curve by approximating it with straight lines. Suppose the curve is given by the formula for . We divide the interval into subintervals with equal width and endpoints . Now let so is the point on the curve above . The length of the straight line between and is

So an estimate of the length of the curve is the sum

As we divide the interval into more pieces this gives a better estimate for the length of . In fact we make that a definition.

Length of a Curve

The length of the curve for is defined to be

The Arclength Formula[edit | edit source]

Suppose that is continuous on . Then the length of the curve given by between and is given by

And in Leibniz notation

Proof: Consider . By the Mean Value Theorem there is a point in such that

So

Putting this into the definition of the length of gives

Now this is the definition of the integral of the function between and (notice that is continuous because we are assuming that is continuous). Hence

as claimed.

Example: Length of the curve from to

As a sanity check of our formula, let's calculate the length of the "curve" from to . First let's find the answer using the Pythagorean Theorem.

and

so the length of the curve, , is

Now let's use the formula

Exercises[edit | edit source]

1. Find the length of the curve from to .
:
:
2. Find the length of the curve from to .
:
:

Solutions

Arclength of a parametric curve[edit | edit source]

For a parametric curve, that is, a curve defined by and , the formula is slightly different:

Proof: The proof is analogous to the previous one: Consider and .

By the Mean Value Theorem there are points and in such that

and

So

Putting this into the definition of the length of the curve gives

This is equivalent to:

Exercises[edit | edit source]

3. Find the circumference of the circle given by the parametric equations , , with running from to .
:
:
4. Find the length of one arch of the cycloid given by the parametric equations , , with running from to .
:
:

Solutions

← Volume of solids of revolution Calculus Surface area →
Arc length