xref: /freebsd/lib/msun/man/lgamma.3 (revision ce834215a70ff69e7e222827437116eee2f9ac6f)
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32.\"     from: @(#)lgamma.3	6.6 (Berkeley) 12/3/92
33.\"	$Id: lgamma.3,v 1.5 1997/02/22 15:09:38 peter Exp $
34.\"
35.Dd December 3, 1992
36.Dt LGAMMA 3
37.Os BSD 4.3
38.Sh NAME
39.Nm lgamma ,
40.Nm lgammaf ,
41.Nm gamma ,
42.Nm gammaf
43.Nd log gamma functions, gamma functions
44.Sh SYNOPSIS
45.Fd #include <math.h>
46.Ft extern int
47.Fa signgam ;
48.sp
49.Ft double
50.Fn lgamma "double x"
51.Ft float
52.Fn lgammaf "float x"
53.Ft double
54.Fn gamma "double x"
55.Ft float
56.Fn gammaf "float x"
57.Sh DESCRIPTION
58.Fn lgamma x
59and
60.Fn lgammaf x
61.if t \{\
62return ln\||\(*G(x)| where
63.Bd -unfilled -offset indent
64\(*G(x) = \(is\d\s8\z0\s10\u\u\s8\(if\s10\d t\u\s8x\-1\s10\d e\u\s8\-t\s10\d dt	for x > 0 and
65.br
66\(*G(x) = \(*p/(\(*G(1\-x)\|sin(\(*px))	for x < 1.
67.Ed
68.\}
69.if n \
70return ln\||\(*G(x)|.
71.Pp
72The external integer
73.Fa signgam
74returns the sign of \(*G(x).
75.Pp
76.Fn gamma x
77and
78.Fn gammaf x
79return \(*G(x), with no effect on
80.Fa signgam .
81.Sh IDIOSYNCRASIES
82Do not use the expression
83.Dq Li signgam\(**exp(lgamma(x))
84to compute g := \(*G(x).
85Instead use a program like this (in C):
86.Bd -literal -offset indent
87lg = lgamma(x); g = signgam\(**exp(lg);
88.Ed
89.Pp
90Only after
91.Fn lgamma
92or
93.Fn lgammaf
94has returned can signgam be correct.
95.Pp
96For arguments in its range,
97.Fn gamma
98and
99.Fn gammaf
100is preferred, as for positive arguments
101it is accurate to within one unit in the last place.
102Exponentiation of
103.Fn lgamma
104will lose up to 10 significant bits.
105.Sh RETURN VALUES
106.Fn gamma ,
107.Fn gammaf ,
108.Fn lgamma ,
109and
110.Fn lgammaf
111return appropriate values unless an argument is out of range.
112Overflow will occur for sufficiently large positive values, and
113non-positive integers.
114On the
115.Tn VAX,
116the reserved operator is returned,
117and
118.Va errno
119is set to
120.Er ERANGE
121For large non-integer negative values,
122.Fn gamma
123will underflow.
124.Sh SEE ALSO
125.Xr math 3
126.Sh HISTORY
127The
128.Nm lgamma
129function appeared in
130.Bx 4.3 .
131The
132.Nm gamma
133function appeared in
134.Bx 4.4 .
135The name
136.Fn gamma
137was originally dedicated to the
138.Fn lgamma
139function, so some old code may no longer be compatible.
140