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NCERT Exemplar · Q41

Q.The sum of the series i+i2+i3+…i+i^2+i^3+\ldots upto 1000 terms is _____.

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The powers of ii repeat in a cycle of four terms, and their sum over one cycle is zero. Since 1000 terms comprise exactly 250 such cycles, the total sum is 0\boxed{0}.

Let's understand the fundamental property of the imaginary unit ii that makes this series easy to sum. The key lies in the cyclic nature of its powers.

The imaginary unit ii is defined such that i2=−1i^2 = -1. From this definition, all higher integer powers of ii follow a repeating pattern. This pattern is crucial for summing series involving powers of ii.

The Cyclic Nature of Powers of ii

Consider the first few positive integer powers of ii:

  • i1=ii^1 = i
  • i2=−1i^2 = -1
  • i3=i2⋅i=(−1)⋅i=−ii^3 = i^2 \cdot i = (-1) \cdot i = -i
  • i4=i2⋅i2=(−1)⋅(−1)=1i^4 = i^2 \cdot i^2 = (-1) \cdot (-1) = 1

Now, let's look at the next set of powers:

  • i5=i4⋅i=1⋅i=ii^5 = i^4 \cdot i = 1 \cdot i = i
  • i6=i4⋅i2=1⋅(−1)=−1i^6 = i^4 \cdot i^2 = 1 \cdot (-1) = -1
  • i7=i4⋅i3=1⋅(−i)=−ii^7 = i^4 \cdot i^3 = 1 \cdot (-i) = -i
  • i8=i4⋅i4=1⋅1=1i^8 = i^4 \cdot i^4 = 1 \cdot 1 = 1

Notice that the values i,−1,−i,1i, -1, -i, 1 repeat every four powers. This is a cycle of length 4.

For any integer nn, the value of ini^n can be determined by the remainder when nn is divided by 4:

  • If n≡1(mod4)n \equiv 1 \pmod{4}, then in=ii^n = i
  • If n≡2(mod4)n \equiv 2 \pmod{4}, then in=−1i^n = -1
  • If n≡3(mod4)n \equiv 3 \pmod{4}, then in=−ii^n = -i
  • If n≡0(mod4)n \equiv 0 \pmod{4}, then in=1i^n = 1

Sum of a Cycle

An important consequence of this cycle is what happens when we sum four consecutive powers of ii:

i1+i2+i3+i4=i+(−1)+(−i)+1i^1 + i^2 + i^3 + i^4 = i + (-1) + (-i) + 1

=(i−i)+(−1+1)= (i - i) + (-1 + 1)

=0+0=0= 0 + 0 = 0

Tip

The sum of any four consecutive integer powers of ii is always zero. For example, i10+i11+i12+i13=(−1)+(−i)+1+i=0i^{10} + i^{11} + i^{12} + i^{13} = (-1) + (-i) + 1 + i = 0.

Now, let's apply this understanding to the given series.

Step-by-step Solution

The series is S=i+i2+i3+…+i1000S = i+i^2+i^3+\ldots+i^{1000}.

  1. Identify the number of terms:

    The series has terms from i1i^1 to i1000i^{1000}, so there are 1000 terms in total.

  2. Group terms into cycles of four:

    Since the sum of every four consecutive powers of ii is 0, we can group the terms of the series into sets of four.

    S=(i1+i2+i3+i4)+(i5+i6+i7+i8)+…+(i997+i998+i999+i1000)S = (i^1+i^2+i^3+i^4) + (i^5+i^6+i^7+i^8) + \ldots + (i^{997}+i^{998}+i^{999}+i^{1000})

  3. Determine the number of full cycles:

    We have 1000 terms, and each cycle consists of 4 terms.

    Number of cycles =Total number of termsTerms per cycle=10004=250= \frac{\text{Total number of terms}}{\text{Terms per cycle}} = \frac{1000}{4} = 250. …

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