Section 3.

Implicit Differentiation
Objectives

Distinguish between functions written in implicit form and

explicit form

Use implicit differentiation to find the derivative of a function

Find derivatives of functions using logarithmic differentiation

Implicit and Explicit Functions
Implicit Form Explicit Form
is not written as a function of is explicitly written as a function of

why do we learn implicit differentiation?

If a function is very difficult to express as a function of explicitly, we can use
implicit differentiation.

Ex) find the derivative of

Note that when we differentiate terms involving we must apply the Chain
Rule, because is defined implicitly as a differentiable function of
Ex) Find the derivatives of each function. (Differentiating with respect to
a)
Variables agree: use Simple
Power Rule
Variables agree

b)
Variables disagree:
use Chain Rule
Variables
disagree

c)
Guidelines for Implicit Differentiation
1) Differentiate both sides of the equation with respect to .
2) Collect all terms involving on the left side of the equation and move all
other terms to the right side of the equation.
3) Factor out of the left side of the equation.

4) Solve for by dividing both sides of the equation by the left-hand factor
that does not contain .
Ex) find the derivative of
Step 1] Guidelines for Implicit Differentiation
1) Differentiate both sides
2) Collect all terms involving
3) Factor out
4) Solve for by dividing both sides

Step 2]

Step 3]

Step 4]
When does a function is not differentiable at points?

1) The points with vertical tangents.

2) The points at which the function is not continuous.

Ex) if possible, represent as a differentiable function of .

The graph is a single point. So, the equation does not

define as a differentiable function of

The upper half of the parabola is given by the

differentiable function.
The lower half of this parabola is given by the
differentiable function.
At the point , the slope of the graph is
undefined.

Ex) Determine the slope of the tangent line to the graph of at the
point


Ex) Find of (Finding the Second Derivative Implicitly)
 ( )
Ex) Find the derivative of

It is convenient to use logarithms as aids in differentiating non-logarithmic functions.

Begin by taking the natural logarithms of both sides of the equation.