Calculus
Lesson
51
Comparison
of Series
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Next test of convergence: Comparison (two methods).
Direct Comparison: let for all n, then
if converges, then
converges.
if diverges, then
diverges.
This is basically a squeeze theorem!
Example:
To check, note that it looks like
,
so that's what we'll compare it to.
Since converges
and we know
,
we also know converges.
Example:
We could compare it to
,
which diverges.
However, since , so the test
doesn't tell us anything.
But, we CAN compare the series to diverges and
for , so
diverges.
There's also the Limit Comparison Test: for
if then
and
either both converge or
both diverge.
Examples:
take limit with
take limit with
take limit with
take limit with harmonic
(generalized harmonic)
Back to Dr. Nandor's Calculus Notes Page
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