Definition:Exponential Growth

Definition

A growth pattern for which a physical quantity $y$ at time $t$ is given by the equation:

$y = a e^{b t}$

where:

$a \in \R_{>0}$

$b \in \R_{\ne 0}$

is said to exhibit exponential growth.

Exponential Decay

An exponential growth pattern with the equation:

$y = a e^{b t}$

such that $b < 0$ is said to exhibit exponential decay.

Also see

• Results about exponential growth can be found here.

Sources

• 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): exponential growth or decay
• 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): exponential growth or decay