The functions f and g are defined by where .
- (a)
Find and state its domain.
- (b)
Find the value of for which .
- (c)
Show that the composite function exists and express the exact range of in the form , where , and are real constants.
- (d)
Without the use of a graphing calculator, solve the inequality
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Worked solution
8(a)
1. Remove the absolute value signs by determining the sign of the expression for the given domain.
By completing the square,
For the given domain ,
Since the expression inside the absolute value is always negative for , we negate it to remove the modulus:
2. Find the rule for the inverse function by letting $y = f(x)$ and making $x$ the subject.
Let .
Since , we have , so we must reject the negative root.
3. Determine the domain of $f^{-1}$ from the range of $f$.
The domain of is exactly the range of .
Since is an increasing function for , its minimum value occurs at the lower bound of the domain:
As , .
Thus, the range of is .
Therefore, the domain of is .
, with domain
8(b)
1. Use the property that intersections of a function and its inverse lie on the line $y = x$ to set up the equation.
For , the expression , so we remove the modulus sign by negating it:
Since is a strictly increasing function on this domain, any intersection of and must lie on the line . Equating to :
2. Solve the resulting quadratic equation and reject the invalid root.
Since must be in the domain of (), we reject .
8(c)
1. Find the range of the inner function $g(x)$.
For and , we have .
Since the exponential function is strictly increasing, .
Thus, .
The range of is .
2. Show that the composite function $fg$ exists.
For to exist, we must show that .
Since for any , the minimum value of satisfies:
Therefore, .
Given that the domain of is , we have .
This satisfies the condition for the composite function to exist.
3. Find the algebraic expression for $fg(x)$.
Substitute into :
Since for all real , the expression inside the modulus () is always strictly negative.
Thus, removing the modulus gives the negation of the expression:
4. Determine the exact range of $fg$.
Let . The function represents an upward-facing parabola with its vertex at .
Since , the function is strictly increasing for all valid inputs in our domain.
From Step 1, for . The minimum value of occurs when :
Minimum value
As , .
Therefore, the exact range of is .
8(d)
1. Analyze the sign of the numerator and deduce the condition for the denominator.
For the function , since for all real , the numerator for all in its domain.
Therefore, for the inequality to hold, the denominator must be strictly positive:
2. Solve the quadratic inequality for the denominator.
Find the roots of the quadratic equation using the quadratic formula:
Since the coefficient of is positive, the parabola opens upwards. Thus, gives:
3. Intersect the solution with the domain of $g(x)$.
The inequality is only valid where the function is defined. The domain of is given as .
We note that , so .
Since , we intersect the domain condition with the intervals or to obtain the final exact range:
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