Calculus · real student question

Evaluate the limit of tan(2x)/sin(3x) as x approaches 0.

Question

Evaluate

limx0tan2xsin3x\lim_{x\to 0}\frac{\tan 2x}{\sin 3x}

Step-by-step solution

  1. Check the form. Both tan2x\tan 2x and sin3x\sin 3x vanish at x=0x=0, so the quotient is 00\frac{0}{0}.

  2. Rewrite the tangent. Use tan2x=sin2xcos2x\tan 2x=\frac{\sin 2x}{\cos 2x}, turning the expression into sin2xcos2xsin3x\frac{\sin 2x}{\cos 2x\,\sin 3x}. The cosine is harmless because cos0=10\cos 0=1\neq 0.

  3. Divide numerator and denominator by xx. The quotient becomes sin2xxcos2xsin3xx\frac{\frac{\sin 2x}{x}}{\cos 2x\cdot\frac{\sin 3x}{x}}, so every trigonometric piece is now in the standard sinkxx\frac{\sin kx}{x} shape.

  4. Apply the standard limit. With limx0sinkxx=k\lim_{x\to 0}\frac{\sin kx}{x}=k, the numerator tends to 22 and the factor sin3xx\frac{\sin 3x}{x} tends to 33, while cos2x1\cos 2x\to 1.

  5. Combine. The limit is 213=23\frac{2}{1\cdot 3}=\frac{2}{3}.

  6. Numerical check. At x=106x=10^{-6} the original quotient evaluates to 0.666666670.66666667, agreeing with 23\frac{2}{3}.

Answer

23\frac{2}{3}

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