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Algebra Difficulty 3.5 AMC 10/12 Find the answer

The maximum value of the function f(x)=sin2x+cos2xf\left(x\right)=\sin 2x+\cos 2x on the interval [0,π2][0,\frac{π}{2}] is ______.

A number or a short expression. Fractions can be typed as 3/2, and spacing doesn't matter.

Solution

To find the maximum value of the function f(x)=sin2x+cos2xf\left(x\right)=\sin 2x+\cos 2x on the interval [0,π2][0,\frac{π}{2}], we can use trigonometric identities and properties of trigonometric functions.

First, we express the function in a more convenient form using the sum-to-product identity:
f(x)=sin2x+cos2x=2(12sin2x+12cos2x) f\left(x\right)=\sin 2x+\cos 2x = \sqrt{2}\left(\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}\sin 2x + \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}\cos 2x\right)
Recognizing that 12=cosπ4\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} = \cos\frac{π}{4} and sinπ4=12\sin\frac{π}{4} = \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}, we can rewrite the function as:
f(x)=2(sinπ4sin2x+cosπ4cos2x) f\left(x\right) = \sqrt{2}\left(\sin\frac{π}{4}\sin 2x + \cos\frac{π}{4}\cos 2x\right)
Using the angle sum identity for sine, we get:
f(x)=2sin(2x+π4) f\left(x\right) = \sqrt{2}\sin\left(2x+\frac{π}{4}\right)

Next, we determine the range of 2x+π42x+\frac{π}{4} given x[0,π2]x∈[0,\frac{π}{2}]:
2x+π4[π4,5π4] 2x+\frac{π}{4}∈\left[\frac{π}{4},\frac{5π}{4}\right]
This range includes the angle π2\frac{π}{2}, at which the sine function reaches its maximum value of 11.

Therefore, when 2x+π4=π22x+\frac{π}{4}=\frac{π}{2}, the function f(x)f\left(x\right) reaches its maximum value, which is:
f(x)=2sin(π2)=2 f\left(x\right) = \sqrt{2}\sin\left(\frac{π}{2}\right) = \sqrt{2}
Thus, the maximum value of the function f(x)f\left(x\right) on the interval [0,π2][0,\frac{π}{2}] is 2\boxed{\sqrt{2}}.

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Source: NuminaMath-1.5, licensed Apache-2.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic and difficulty added by this site.