Math 135 Business Calculus Spring 2009

Class Notes
1.4 Differentiation Using Limits of Difference Quotients
° ¢ ° ¢
In the previous section, we saw that a secant line joining the points x, f (x) and x + h, f (x + h) on
the graph of a function y = f (x) has slope
f (x + h) − f (x)
msecant = .
h
This difference quotient also represents the average rate of change of f (x) over the interval [x, x + h].
In this section, we’ll see that by taking the limit of this difference quotient as h → 0, we obtain
the slope of the tangent line to the graph or the instantaneous rate of change of f (x) at x.
TANGENT LINES
A tangent to a curve is sometimes described as a line that touches the curve in exactly one point. For
a circle, results from geometry tell us that a tangent line to a point on the circle is perpendicular to a
radius intersecting the circle at that point, as shown in the figure below on the left.

L L

P M

For more complicated curves, the above description is inadequate. The above figure on the right
displays two lines L and M passing through a point P on a curve. The line M intersects only once,
but it certainly does not look like what is thought of as a tangent. In contrast, the line L looks like a
tangent, but it intersects twice.
In order to define what we mean by the tangent line and in order to determine the tangent line,
we need to use a limiting process. Suppose we have a function y = f (x) and we want to determine the
tangent line at a point P on the curve. We start by drawing a secant line to the curve passing through
P and another point Q on the curve. The secant line provides an approximation to the tangent line.
The closer the point Q is to the point P , the better the secant line will approximate the tangent line.
y y

f (x) f (x)

f (x + h) Q (x + h, f (x + h)) Q1
Secant line Secant lines
Q2

Tangent line Q3

Q4 Tangent line
P
f (x) P(x, f (x))

x x

By letting the point Q slide down the curve towards P , the corresponding secant lines will rotate about
the point P . The tangent line will be the limiting position of the secant lines as Q approaches P .

15
16 Chapter 1 Differentiation

The slope of the secant line P Q is given by

f (x + h) − f (x)
msecant = .
h
As the point Q slides down the curve towards P , then the x-values x+h approach x, so h approaches 0.

DEFINITION OF SLOPE OF TANGENT LINE

° ¢
The slope of the tangent line the graph of y = f (x) at the point x, f (x) is
f (x + h) − f (x)
mtangent = lim .
h→0 h
This limit is also the instantaneous rate of change of f (x) at x.
The limit in the above definition occurs so widely, it is given a special name and notation.

DEFINITION OF DERIVATIVE
For a function y = f (x), its derivative at x is the function f 0 defined by
f (x + h) − f (x)
f 0 (x) = lim
h→0 h
0
provided that the limit exists. If f (x) exists, then we say that f is differentiable at x. The notation
f 0 (x) is read “f prime of x.”

PROCEDURE FOR CALCULATING A DERIVATIVE

To calculate the derivative of a function y = f (x):
f (x + h) − f (x)
1. Write out the difference quotient:
h
2. Simplify the difference quotient algebraically. After simplifying, the h in the denominator should
cancel out.
3. Compute the limit algebraically using the Limit Principles.

EXAMPLE Let f (x) = x2 . Find f 0 (x). Then find f 0 (−1) and f 0 (2). What do these represent on
the graph?
y
5

x
–3 –2 –1 1 2 3

–1

–2
 1.4 Differentiation Using Limits of Difference Quotients 17

EXAMPLE Let f (x) = x3 . Find f 0 (x). Then find f 0 (−1) and f 0 (1.5). Find the equation of the
tangent line to the graph at x = −1.
y
6

x
–3 –2 –1 1 2 3
–1

–2

–3

–4

–5

–6

EXAMPLE Let f (x) = 3/x. Find f 0 (x). Then find f 0 (2) and the equation of the tangent line to the
graph at x = 2.
y
5

x
–5 –4 –3 –2 –1 1 2 3 4 5
–1

–2

–3

–4

–5
18 Chapter 1 Differentiation

DIFFERENTIABILITY
In the preceding example, note that since f (0) does not exist for f (x) = 3/x, the difference quotient
f (0 + h) − f (0)
h
0
cannot be computed. Therefore f (0) does not exist. We say that f is not differentiable at 0.
In general, if a function is not defined at a point, then it is not differentiable there. In fact, if a
function is discontinuous at a point, then it is not differentiable at the point. There are other situations,
however, in which a function is not differentiable.
EXAMPLE Where is the function f (x) = |x| differentiable?

In general, if a function has a sharp point or corner, then it will not be differentiable at that point.
For instance, the following functions are not differentiable at the indicated points.

A function will also fail to be differentiable at a point if it has a vertical tangent. Summarizing, we
then have three situations where a function is not differentiable:
• The graph has a sharp point or corner at that point.
• The graph has a vertical tangent line.
• The function is discontinuous at that point.