Cosine as a Sum of Complex Conjugates

A real cosine can be seen as the sum of two opposite rotating complex comjugate vectors: \( \frac{1}{2}e^{j2\pi ft} \) and \( \frac{1}{2}e^{-j2\pi ft} \).

Try it by yourself — in this example, \( f = 1\,\text{Hz} \).

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As you can see, \( \cos(2\pi ft) = \frac{1}{2}e^{j2\pi ft} + \frac{1}{2}e^{-j2\pi ft} \). The imaginary parts cancel, while the real parts add together.