Improper integrals \int_{0}^{\infty} \frac{dx}{(x+1)\sqrt{x}} = \pi has unbounded intervals for both domain and range. A "proper" Riemann integral assumes the integrand is defined and finite on a closed and bounded interval, bracketed by the limits of integration. An improper integral occurs when one or more of these conditions is not satisfied. In some cases such integrals may be defined by considering the
limit of a
sequence of proper
Riemann integrals on progressively larger intervals. If the interval is unbounded, for instance at its upper end, then the improper integral is the limit as that endpoint goes to infinity: : \int_a^\infty f(x)\,dx = \lim_{b \to \infty} \int_a^b f(x)\,dx. If the integrand is only defined or finite on a half-open interval, for instance , then again a limit may provide a finite result: : \int_a^b f(x)\,dx = \lim_{\varepsilon \to 0} \int_{a+\epsilon}^{b} f(x)\,dx. That is, the improper integral is the
limit of proper integrals as one endpoint of the interval of integration approaches either a specified
real number, or , or . In more complicated cases, limits are required at both endpoints, or at interior points.
Multiple integration Just as the definite integral of a positive function of one variable represents the
area of the region between the graph of the function and the
x-axis, the
double integral of a positive function of two variables represents the
volume of the region between the surface defined by the function and the plane that contains its domain. For example, a function in two dimensions depends on two real variables,
x and
y, and the integral of a function
f over the rectangle
R given as the
Cartesian product of two intervals R=[a,b]\times [c,d] can be written : \int_R f(x,y)\,dA where the differential indicates that integration is taken with respect to area. This
double integral can be defined using
Riemann sums, and represents the (signed) volume under the graph of over the domain
R. Under suitable conditions (e.g., if
f is continuous),
Fubini's theorem states that this integral can be expressed as an equivalent iterated integral : \int_a^b\left[\int_c^d f(x,y)\,dy\right]\,dx. This reduces the problem of computing a double integral to computing one-dimensional integrals. Because of this, another notation for the integral over
R uses a double integral sign: Various different line integrals are in use. In the case of a closed curve it is also called a
contour integral. The function to be integrated may be a
scalar field or a
vector field. The value of the line integral is the sum of values of the field at all points on the curve, weighted by some scalar function on the curve (commonly
arc length or, for a vector field, the
scalar product of the vector field with a
differential vector in the curve). This weighting distinguishes the line integral from simpler integrals defined on
intervals. Many simple formulas in physics have natural continuous analogs in terms of line integrals; for example, the fact that
work is equal to
force, , multiplied by displacement, , may be expressed (in terms of vector quantities) as: : W=\mathbf F\cdot\mathbf s. For an object moving along a path in a
vector field such as an
electric field or
gravitational field, the total work done by the field on the object is obtained by summing up the differential work done in moving from to . This gives the line integral : W=\int_C \mathbf F\cdot d\mathbf s. A
surface integral generalizes double integrals to integration over a
surface (which may be a curved set in
space); it can be thought of as the
double integral analog of the
line integral. The function to be integrated may be a
scalar field or a
vector field. The value of the surface integral is the sum of the field at all points on the surface. This can be achieved by splitting the surface into surface elements, which provide the partitioning for Riemann sums. For an example of applications of surface integrals, consider a vector field on a surface ; that is, for each point in , is a vector. Imagine that a fluid flows through , such that determines the velocity of the fluid at . The
flux is defined as the quantity of fluid flowing through in unit amount of time. To find the flux, one need to take the
dot product of with the unit
surface normal to at each point, which will give a scalar field, which is integrated over the surface: : \int_S {\mathbf v}\cdot \,d{\mathbf S}. The fluid flux in this example may be from a physical fluid such as water or air, or from electrical or magnetic flux. Thus surface integrals have applications in physics, particularly with the
classical theory of electromagnetism.
Contour integrals In
complex analysis, the integrand is a
complex-valued function of a complex variable instead of a real function of a real variable . When a complex function is integrated along a curve \gamma in the complex plane, the integral is denoted as follows : \int_\gamma f(z)\,dz. This is known as a
contour integral.
Integrals of differential forms A
differential form is a mathematical concept in the fields of
multivariable calculus,
differential topology, and
tensors. Differential forms are organized by degree. For example, a one-form is a weighted sum of the differentials of the coordinates, such as: : E(x,y,z)\,dx + F(x,y,z)\,dy + G(x,y,z)\, dz where
E,
F,
G are functions in three dimensions. A differential one-form can be integrated over an oriented path, and the resulting integral is just another way of writing a line integral. Here the basic differentials
dx,
dy,
dz measure infinitesimal oriented lengths parallel to the three coordinate axes. A differential two-form is a sum of the form : G(x,y,z) \, dx\wedge dy + E(x,y,z) \, dy\wedge dz + F(x,y,z) \, dz\wedge dx. Here the basic two-forms dx\wedge dy, dz\wedge dx, dy\wedge dz measure oriented areas parallel to the coordinate two-planes. The symbol \wedge denotes the
wedge product, which is similar to the
cross product in the sense that the wedge product of two forms representing oriented lengths represents an oriented area. A two-form can be integrated over an oriented surface, and the resulting integral is equivalent to the surface integral giving the flux of E\mathbf i+F\mathbf j+G\mathbf k. Unlike the cross product, and the three-dimensional vector calculus, the wedge product and the calculus of differential forms makes sense in arbitrary dimension and on more general manifolds (curves, surfaces, and their higher-dimensional analogs). The
exterior derivative plays the role of the
gradient and
curl of vector calculus, and
Stokes' theorem simultaneously generalizes the three theorems of vector calculus: the
divergence theorem,
Green's theorem, and the
Kelvin-Stokes theorem.
Summations The discrete equivalent of integration is
summation. Summations and integrals can be put on the same foundations using the theory of
Lebesgue integrals or
time-scale calculus.
Functional integrals An integration that is performed not over a variable (or, in physics, over a space or time dimension), but over a
space of functions, is referred to as a
functional integral. == Applications ==