Matlab or Matrix Laboratory is a high-level programming language consisting of an interactive environment mainly used for numeric computation, programming, and visualization. It has been developed by MathWorks. The basic functions of Matlab are plotting of functions and data, the creation of user interfaces, matrix manipulations. It also provides support for interfacing with other programming languages in C, C++, Fortran, and Java. Besides, it is also used to analyze data, create models and applications, and also develop algorithms. Along with all this, introduction to Matlab also provides numerous built-in functions for mathematical operations involving numerous calculations, performing numerical methods, generating plots, and a lot of other functions. Matlab also has a very good scope in the automotive domain using Rapid control Prototyping or RCP used extensively in medical, automotive, and aerospace domains.
Main components / highlights:
In the above section, we studied the introduction to Matlab, so now we’re going to learn the components of Matlab. Matlab provides a lot of functionalities that can help in computational mathematics. Below are the most common functions and mathematical calculations used in Matlab –
- Dealing with Matrices and Arrays
- 2-D and 3-D Plotting and graphics
- Linear Algebra
- Algebraic Equations
- Non-linear Functions
- Statistics
- Data Analysis
- Calculus and Differential Equations
- Numerical Calculations
- Integration
- Transforms
- Curve Fitting
- Various other special functions
Characteristics:
Matlab is a versatile tool designed for computational mathematics and supports lots of other operations. Below given are a few of the characteristics that make Matlab an intelligent tool –
- Matlab contents are a huge library of built-in functions providing support for various mathematical functions like filtering, optimization, Fourier analysis, linear algebra, statistics, numerical integration, and solving differential equations.
- Matlab is a high-level language used for visualization, application development, and numerical computation.
- Matlab provides support for creating custom plots and data visualization with its built-in support for graphics.
- Matlab also supports an iterative environment helping to design and problem solving along with iterative exploration.
- Matlab provides integration support with other languages like C, Java, Microsoft Excel, and .NET for integrating Matlab-based algorithms with external applications.
- With its uniquely designed programming interface, Matlab helps its users with development tools for maximizing performance and improving code maintainability.
- Matlab also supports building applications with custom graphical interfaces.
Applications of Matlab:
As we discussed in the introduction to Matlab, we will now learn about Matlab’s applications which are as follows: Matlab is widely used in the industry as a tool for mathematical computation and different streams of studies like physics chemistry, engineering, mathematics, Etc. The various applications involving Matlab are below –
- Computational Finance
- Control systems
- Signal Processing and communication
- Test and Measurement
- Image and video processing
- Computational biology