Trigonometric Functions

Work in progress. This note is still being written and incomplete.

For any complex number zz,

sin⁡z=∑n=0∞(−1)nz2n+1(2n+1)!,cos⁡z=∑n=0∞(−1)nz2n(2n)!\sin z = \sum_{n=0}^{\infty} (-1)^n \frac{z^{2n+1}}{(2n+1)!}, \qquad \cos z = \sum_{n=0}^{\infty} (-1)^n \frac{z^{2n}}{(2n)!}

Exponential Form

eiz=cos⁡z+isin⁡ze^{iz} = \cos z + i\sin z for each z∈Cz \in \mathbb{C}, so

sin⁡z=eiz−e−iz2i,cos⁡z=eiz+e−iz2\sin z = \frac{e^{iz} - e^{-iz}}{2i}, \qquad \cos z = \frac{e^{iz} + e^{-iz}}{2}

Properties

  • sin⁡z\sin z and cos⁡z\cos z are entire functions.
  • Standard real trigonometric identities hold for complex arguments.
  • sin⁡z=sin⁡xcosh⁡y+icos⁡xsinh⁡y\sin z = \sin x \cosh y + i\cos x \sinh y, where z=x+iyz = x + iy
  • cos⁡z=cos⁡xcosh⁡y−isin⁡xsinh⁡y\cos z = \cos x \cosh y - i\sin x \sinh y, where z=x+iyz = x + iy

Other Trigonometric Functions

tan⁡z\tan z, cot⁡z\cot z, sec⁡z\sec z, and csc⁡z\csc z are defined from sin⁡z\sin z and cos⁡z\cos z as in the real case.

Analyticity

sin⁡z\sin z and cos⁡z\cos z are analytic on C\mathbb{C}.

ddzsin⁡z=cos⁡z,ddzcos⁡z=−sin⁡z\frac{\text{d}}{\text{d}z}\sin z = \cos z, \qquad \frac{\text{d}}{\text{d}z}\cos z = -\sin z

The other 4 functions are quotients, so each is analytic wherever its denominator is non-zero.

FunctionAnalytic on
tan⁡z\tan z, sec⁡z\sec zC∖{π2+nπ}\mathbb{C} \setminus \{\frac{\pi}{2} + n\pi\}
cot⁡z\cot z, csc⁡z\csc zC∖{nπ}\mathbb{C} \setminus \{n\pi\}

Here n∈Zn \in \mathbb{Z}.

sin⁡z=0\sin z = 0 iff z=nπz = n\pi, and cos⁡z=0\cos z = 0 iff z=π2+nπz = \frac{\pi}{2} + n\pi. All zeros are real.

Written by October 17, 2026 1 min read
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