This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2021) |
Part of a series of articles about |
Calculus |
---|
In mathematics, specifically in calculus and complex analysis, the logarithmic derivative of a function f is defined by the formula where is the derivative of f.[1] Intuitively, this is the infinitesimal relative change in f; that is, the infinitesimal absolute change in f, namely scaled by the current value of f.
When f is a function f(x) of a real variable x, and takes real, strictly positive values, this is equal to the derivative of ln(f), or the natural logarithm of f. This follows directly from the chain rule:[1]