Why Does Setting m=0 Matter in Calculating Complex Numbers?

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the significance of setting m=0 in the context of calculating complex numbers, particularly in the examples of (-e)^{iπ} and e^{2 arctanh(i)}. The user’s calculations yield different results compared to the book and Wolfram Alpha, which both simplify to specific values by setting m=0. The consensus is that m can be set to zero when the problem does not specify a particular branch for logarithmic or inverse trigonometric functions, allowing for simplification to standard forms.

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ahmed markhoos
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Hi,I'm facing a problem finding the values of complex numbers, I'll put two examples then I'll explain the issue.

ex1: (-e)^{iπ} , my answer is (-e)^{π^2±2mπ^2} The book answer is (-e)^{π^2}

ex2: e^{2 arctanh(i)} , my answer is e^{[iπ/2±mπ/2]} = ie^{±mπ/2} The book answer is i

just to mention that the book answer are exactly like wolfram alpha's answers, the problem is that the answers were set as m=0 while they didn't do the same thing for other problems, When can I set m=0 and when I cannot do that?
 
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ahmed markhoos said:
When can I set m=0 and when I cannot do that?
Keep the m if you need some logarithm or inverse trigonometric function somewhere, unless the problem statement specifies the branch you are supposed to use.
 
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