What is the derivative of y=arcsin(3x )?

1 Answer
Oct 16, 2016

dy/dx=3/sqrt(1-9x^2)

Explanation:

An alternative method that doesn't require knowing the derivative of arcsin(x):

y=arcsin(3x)

sin(y)=3x

Differentiate both sides with respect to x. The derivative of sin(x) is cos(x), so the derivative of sin(y) is cos(y)dy/dx. The derivative of 3x is 3.

cos(y)dy/dx=3

Solving for the derivative, dy/dx:

dy/dx=3/cos(y)

We know that sin(y)=3x, so we can rewrite the function using all x terms using the identity cos(y)=sqrt(1-sin^2(y)), which comes from the Pythagorean Identity:

dy/dx=3/sqrt(1-sin^2(y))

Since sin(y)=3x:

dy/dx=3/sqrt(1-(3x)^2)

dy/dx=3/sqrt(1-9x^2)