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Regula Falsi Method Theory

The Regula-Falsi method, or false position method, is an iterative technique for finding roots of equations. It improves upon the bisection method by using the slopes of lines between function values to hone in on the root, rather than simply taking the midpoint. The method works by setting the slopes of lines through two points equal to find the x-value that makes the function equal to zero. It is guaranteed to converge to a solution because it always brackets the root within the interval. An example application finds a root of 3x + sin(x) - exp(x) = 0 between 0 and 0.5 using the Regula-Falsi method.

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Anurag Priyadarshi
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716 views3 pages

Regula Falsi Method Theory

The Regula-Falsi method, or false position method, is an iterative technique for finding roots of equations. It improves upon the bisection method by using the slopes of lines between function values to hone in on the root, rather than simply taking the midpoint. The method works by setting the slopes of lines through two points equal to find the x-value that makes the function equal to zero. It is guaranteed to converge to a solution because it always brackets the root within the interval. An example application finds a root of 3x + sin(x) - exp(x) = 0 between 0 and 0.5 using the Regula-Falsi method.

Uploaded by

Anurag Priyadarshi
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

REGULA-FALSI METHOD

The convergce process in the bisection method is very slow. It depends only on
the choice of end points of the interval [a,b]. The function f(x) does not have
any role in finding the point c (which is just  the mid-point of a and b). It is
used only to decide the next smaller interval [a,c] or [c,b]. A better
approximation to c can be obtained by taking the straight line L joining the
points (a,f(a)) and (b,f(b)) intersecting the x-axis. To obtain the value of c we
can equate the two expressions of the slope m of the line L. 

f(b) - f(a) 0 - f(b)


m =   = 
   (b-a)  (c-b)

      => (c-b) * (f(b)-f(a)) = -(b-a) * f(b)

 
 

f(b) * (b-a)
c=b-
 f(b) - f(a)

Now the next smaller interval which brackets the root can be obtained by
checking

f(a) * f(b) < 0 then b = c


                > 0 then a = c
                           = 0 then c is the root.
Selecting c by the above expression is called Regula-Falsi method or False
position method.

Algorithm - False Position Scheme

Given a function f (x) continuos on an interval [a,b] such that f (a) *


f (b) < 0 
Do 
 

a*f(b) -
c
b*f(a)
= 
    f(b) - f(a)
       if f (a) * f (c) < 0 then  b = c 
                                  else  a = c 
while (none of the convergence criterion C1, C2 or C3 is satisfied)

The false position method is again bound to converge because it brackets the
root in the whole of its convergence process.

 
 

Numerical Example :

Find a root of 3x + sin(x) - exp(x) = 0. 

The graph of this equation is given in the


figure. 

From this it's clear that there is a root 


between 0 
and 0.5 and also another  root  between 1.5 
and
2.0. Now let us consider the function  f (x) in  the
interval [0, 0.5] where f (0) * f (0.5)  is less  than
zero and use the regula-falsi scheme to obtain the
zero of f (x) = 0.

Iteration 
a b c f(a) * f(c)
No.
1 0 0.5 0.376  1.38 (+ve)
2 0.376 0.5 0.36 -0.102 (-ve)
3 0.376 0.36 0.36 -0.085 (-ve)

So one of the roots of 3x + sin(x) - exp(x) = 0 is approximately 0.36. Note :


Although the length of the interval is getting smaller in each iteration, it is
possible that it may not go to zero. If the graph y = f(x) is concave near the root
's', one of the endpoints becomes fixed and the other end marches towards the
root. 

Worked out problems


 Exapmple 1  Find a root of x * cos[(x)/ (x-2)]=0  Solution
 Exapmple 2  Find a root of x2 = (exp(-2x) - 1) / x  Solution
 Exapmple 3  Find a root of exp(x2-1)+10sin(2x)-5 = 0  Solution
 Exapmple 4  Find a root of exp(x)-3x2=0  Solution
 Exapmple 5  Find a root of tan(x)-x-1 = 0  Solution
 Exapmple 6  Find a root of sin(2x)-exp(x-1) = 0  Solution
Problems to workout
 

Highlights of the scheme

 
 
Work out with the Regula-Falsi method here

Note : Please enter equation like 3x+sin[x]-exp[x]. Use "[ ]" brackets for transcendentals and "( )" for others
eg., 3x+sin[(x+2)]+(3/4). 'a' and 'b' are the limits within which you are going to find the root. Few examples of
how to enter equations are given below . . . (i) exp[-x]*(x^2+5x+2)+1  (ii) x^4-x-10  (iii) x-sin[x]-(1/2)  (iv) exp[(-
x+2-1-2+1)]*(x^2+5x+2)+1

Solution of Transcendental Equations | Solution of Linear System of Algebraic Equations | Interpolation & Curve
Fitting
Numerical Differentiation & Integration | Numerical Solution of Ordinary Differential Equations
Numerical Solution of Partial Differential Equations
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