Chapter 4

Integration

If things are nice there is probably a good reason why they are nice: and if you do not know at least one
reason for this good fortune, then you still have work to do.
Richard Askey

We are now ready to start integrating complex functions—and we will not stop doing so for the
remainder of this book: it turns out that complex integration is much richer than real integration
(in one variable). The initial reason for this is that we have an extra dimension to play with:
Rb
the calculus integral a f ( x ) dx has a fixed integration path, from a to b along the real line. For
complex functions, there are many different ways to go from a to b...

4.1 Definition and Basic Properties

At first sight, complex integration is not really different from real integration. Let a, b ∈ R and let
g : [ a, b] → C be continuous. Then we define
Z b Z b Z b
g(t) dt := Re g(t) dt + i Im g(t) dt . (4.1)
a a a

This definition is analogous to that of integration of a parametric curve in R2 . For a function

that takes complex numbers as arguments, we typically integrate over a path γ (in place of a
real interval). If you meditate about the substitution rule for real integrals (Theorem A.6), the
following definition, which is based on (4.1), should come as no surprise.

Definition. Suppose γ is a smooth path parametrized by γ(t), a ≤ t ≤ b, and f is a complex

function which is continuous on γ. Then we define the integral of f on γ as
Z Z Z b
f = f (z) dz := f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt .
γ γ a

54
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 55

This definition immediately extends to paths that are piecewise smooth: Suppose γ is parame-
trized by γ(t), a ≤ t ≤ b, which is smooth on the intervals [ a, c1 ], [c1 , c2 ], . . . , [cn−1 , cn ], [cn , b].1
Then, assuming again that f is continuous on γ, we define
Z Z c1 Z c2 Z b
f := f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt + f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt + · · · + f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt .
γ a c1 cn

Example 4.1. To see this definition in action, we compute the integral of the function f : C → C
given by f (z) = z2 over several paths from 0 to 1 + i.

(a) Let γ be the line segment from 0 to 1 + i. A parametrization of this path is γ(t) = t + it, 0 ≤
t ≤ 1. Here γ0 (t) = 1 + i and f (γ(t)) = (t − it)2 , and so
Z 1 Z 1
2
Z
f = (t − it)2 (1 + i ) dt = 2(1 − i ) t2 dt = (1 − i ) .
γ 0 0 3

(b) Let γ be the arc of the parabola y = x2 from 0 to 1 + i. A parametrization of this path is
γ(t) = t + it2 , 0 ≤ t ≤ 1. Now we have γ0 (t) = 1 + 2it and

2
f (γ(t)) = t − it2 = t2 − t4 − 2it3 ,

whence
Z 1 Z 1
14 i
Z
f = (t2 − t4 − 2it3 ) (1 + 2it) dt = (t2 + 3t4 − 2it5 ) dt = − .
γ 0 0 15 3

(c) Let γ be the union of the two line segments γ1 from 0 to 1 and γ2 from 1 to 1 + i. Parametriza-
tions are γ1 (t) = t, 0 ≤ t ≤ 1, and γ2 (t) = 1 + it, 0 ≤ t ≤ 1. Hence
Z Z 1 Z 1 Z
1
Z Z 1
f = f+ f = t2 dt + (1 − it)2 i dt = + i (1 − 2it − t2 ) dt
γ γ1 γ 0 0 3 0
 2 
1 1 1 4 2
= + i 1 − 2i − = + i.
3 2 3 3 3

It is apparent but nevertheless noteworthy that these integrals evaluate to different results; in
particular—unlike in calculus—a complex integral does not simply depend on the endpoints of
the path of integration.
On the other hand, the complex integral has some standard properties, most of which follow
from their real siblings in a straightforward way. Our first observation is that the actual choice of
parametrization of γ does not matter. More precisely, if γ(t), a ≤ t ≤ b and σ(t), c ≤ t ≤ d are
parametrizations of a curve then we say that σ is a reparametrization of γ if there is an increasing
piecewise smooth map of [c, d] onto [ a, b] that takes γ to σ, in the sense that σ = γ ◦ τ.
1 Our footnote on p. 12 about the subtlety of the definition of a smooth path applies also here, at the subdivision

points ci . Note that we do not require that the left and right derivatives match at these points.
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 56

Proposition 4.2. If γ(t), a ≤ t ≤ b is a piecewise smooth parametrization of a curve and σ(t), c ≤ t ≤ d

is a reparametrization of γ then
Z d Z b
f (σ(t)) σ0 (t) dt = f (γ(t)) γ0 (t) dt .
c a

Example 4.3. To appreciate this statement, consider the two parametrizations

γ(t) = eit , 0 ≤ t ≤ 2π , and σ(t) = e2πi sin(t) , 0 ≤ t ≤ π

2 ,
R
of the unit circle. Then we could write γ
f in the two ways
Z Z 2π   Z Z π  
2
f = i f eit eit dt and f = 2πi f e2πi sin(t) e2πi sin(t) cos(t) dt .
γ 0 γ 0

A quick substitution shows that the two integrals on the respective right-hand sides are indeed
equal.

Proposition 4.2 says that a similar equality will hold for any integral and any parametrization.
Its proof is left as Exercise 4.9, which also shows that the following definition is unchanged under
reparametrization.

Definition. The length of a smooth path γ is

Z b
γ0 (t) dt

length(γ) :=
a

for any parametrization γ(t), a ≤ t ≤ b. Naturally, the length of a piecewise smooth path is the
sum of the lengths of its smooth components.

Example 4.4. Let γ be the line segment from 0 to 1 + i, which can be parametrized by γ(t) = t + it
for 0 ≤ t ≤ 1. Then γ0 (t) = 1 + i and so
Z 1 Z 1√ √
length(γ) = |1 + i | dt = 2 dt = 2.
0 0

Example 4.5. Let γ be the unit circle, which can be parametrized by γ(t) = eit for 0 ≤ t ≤ 2π.
Then γ0 (t) = i eit and
Z 2π Z 2π
length(γ) = |i eit | dt = dt = 2π .
0 0

Now we observe some basic facts about how the line integral behaves with respect to function
addition, scalar multiplication, inverse parametrization, and path concatenation; we also give an
upper bound for the absolute value of an integral, which we will make use of time and again.

Proposition 4.6. Suppose γ is a piecewise smooth path, f and g are complex functions which are contin-
uous on γ, and c ∈ C.
Z Z Z
(a) ( f + c g) = f +c g.
γ γ γ
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 57

(b) If γ is parametrized by γ(t), a ≤ t ≤ b, we define the path −γ by −γ(t) := γ( a + b − t), a ≤

t ≤ b. Then Z Z
f = − f.
−γ γ

(c) If γ1 and γ2 are piecewise smooth paths so that γ2 starts where γ1 ends, we define the path γ1 γ2 by
following γ1 to its end and then continuing on γ2 to its end. Then
Z Z Z
f = f+ f.
γ1 γ2 γ1 γ2

Z 
 
(d)  f  ≤ max | f (z)| · length(γ) .
γ z∈γ

The path −γ defined in (b) is the path that we obtain by traveling through γ in the opposite
direction.

Proof. (a) follows directly from the definition of the integral and Theorem A.4, the analogous
theorem from calculus.

(b) follows with the real change of variables s = a + b − t:

Z Z b Z b
0
f = f (γ( a + b − t)) (γ( a + b − t)) dt = − f (γ( a + b − t)) γ0 ( a + b − t) dt
−γ a a
Z a Z b Z
= f (γ(s)) γ0 (s) ds = − f (γ(s)) γ0 (s) ds = − f.
b a γ

(c) We need a suitable parametrization γ(t) for γ1 γ2 . If γ1 has domain [ a1 , b1 ] and γ2 has domain
[ a2 , b2 ] then we can use
(
γ1 (t) if a1 ≤ t ≤ b1 ,
γ(t) :=
γ2 (t − b1 + a2 ) if b1 ≤ t ≤ b1 + b2 − a2 ,

with domain [ a1 , b1 + b2 − a2 ]. Now we break the integral over γ1 γ2 into two pieces and apply the
change of variables s = t − b1 + a2 :
Z Z b1 +b2 − a2
f = f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt
γ1 γ2 a1
Z b1 Z b1 +b2 − a2
= f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt + f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt
a1 b1
Z Z
= f+ f.
γ1 γ2

The last step follows since γ restricted to [ a1 , b1 ] is γ1 and γ restricted to [b1 , b1 + b2 − a2 ] is a

reparametrization of γ2 .
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 58
  R  R 
f =  γ f  eiφ and thus, since  γ f  ∈ R,
R R
(d) Let φ = Arg f . Then
   
γ γ
Z  Z  Z b  Z b  
f  = e−iφ f = Re e−iφ f (γ(t))γ0 (t) dt = Re f (γ(t))e−iφ γ0 (t) dt
 

a a
 γ γ
Z b  Z b
 f (γ(t))e−iφ γ0 (t) dt = | f (γ(t))| γ0 (t) dt
 
≤
 
a a
Z b
γ0 (t) dt = max | f (z)| · length(γ) .

≤ max | f (γ(t))|
a≤t≤b a z∈γ

Here we have used Theorem A.5 for both inequalities.

Example 4.7. In Exercise 4.4, you are invited to show

dz
Z
= 2πi ,
γ z−w

where γ is any circle centered at w ∈ C, oriented counter-clockwise. Thus Proposition 4.6(b) says
that the analogous integral over a clockwise circle equals −2πi. Incidentally, the same example
shows that the inequality in Proposition 4.6(d) is sharp: if γ has radius r, then
Z   
 dz   1 
 length(γ) = 1 · 2πr .
2π =   ≤ max  
γ z − w  z ∈ γ z − w  r

4.2 Antiderivatives
The central result about integration of a real function is the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus
(Theorem A.3), and our next goal is to discuss complex versions of this theorem. The Fundamental
Theorem of Calculus makes a number of important claims: that continuous functions are integrable,
their antiderivatives are continuous and differentiable, and that antiderivatives provide easy ways
to compute values of definite integrals. The difference between the real case and the complex case
is that in the latter, we need to think about integrals over arbitrary paths in C.

Definition. If F is holomorphic in the region G ⊆ C and F 0 (z) = f (z) for all z ∈ G, then F is an
antiderivative of f on G, also known as a primitive of f on G.

Example 4.8. We have already seen that F (z) = z2 is entire and has derivative f (z) = 2z. Thus, F
is an antiderivative of f on any region G ⊆ C. The same goes for F (z) = z2 + c, where c ∈ C is
any constant.

Example 4.9. Since

 
d 1 1
(exp(iz) − exp(−iz)) = (exp(iz) + exp(−iz)) ,
dz 2i 2

F (z) = sin z is an antiderivative of f (z) = cos z on C.

CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 59

Example 4.10. The function F (z) = Log(z) is an antiderivative of f (z) = 1z on C \ R≤0 . Note that
f is holomorphic in the larger region C \ {0}; however, we will see in Example 4.14 that f cannot
have an antiderivative on that region.

Here is the complex analogue of Theorem A.3(b).

Theorem 4.11. Suppose G ⊆ C is a region and γ ⊂ G is a piecewise smooth path with parametrization
γ(t), a ≤ t ≤ b. If f is continuous on G and F is any antiderivative of f on G then
Z
f = F (γ(b)) − F (γ( a)) .
γ

Proof. This follows immediately from the definition of a complex integral and Theorem A.3(b),
since dtd F (γ(t)) = f (γ(t)) γ0 (t):
Z Z b
f = f (γ(t)) γ0 (t) dt = F (γ(b)) − F (γ( a)) .
γ a

Example 4.12. Since F (z) = 1

2 z2 is an antiderivative of f (z) = z in C,

1 1
Z
f = ( 1 + i ) 2 − 02 = i
γ 2 2

for each of the three paths in Example 4.1.

There are several interesting consequences of Theorem 4.11. For starters, if γ is closed (that is,
γ( a) = γ(b)) we effortlessly obtain the following.

Corollary 4.13. Suppose G ⊆ C is open, γ ⊂ G is a piecewise smooth closed path, and f is continuous
on G and has an antiderivative on G. Then
Z
f = 0.
γ

This corollary is immediately useful as a test for existence of antiderivatives:

Example 4.14. The function f : C \ {0} → C given by f (z) = 1z satisfies γ f = 2πi for the unit
R

circle γ ⊂ C \ {0}, by Exercise 4.4. Since this integral is nonzero, f cannot have an antiderivative
in C \ {0}.

We now turn to the complex analogue of Theorem A.3(a).

Theorem 4.15. Suppose G ⊆ C is a region and z0 ∈ G. Let f : G → C be a continuous function such

that γ f = 0 for any closed piecewise smooth path γ ⊂ G. Then the function F : G → C defined by
R

Z
F (z) := f,
γz

where γz is any piecewise smooth path in G from z0 to z, is an antiderivative for f on G.

CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 60

Proof. There are two statements that we have to prove: first, that our definition of F is sound—that
is, the integral defining F does not depend on which path we take from z0 to z—and second, that
F 0 (z) = f (z) for all z ∈ G.
Suppose G ⊆ C is a region, z0 ∈ G, and f : G → C is a continuous function such that γ f = 0
R
R
for any closed piecewise smooth path γ ⊂ G. Then σ f evaluates to the same number for any
piecewise smooth path σ ⊂ G from z0 to z ∈ G, because any two such paths σ1 and σ2 can be
concatenated to a closed path first tracing through σ1 and then through σ2 backwards, which by
assumption yields a zero integral:
Z Z Z
f − f = f = 0.
σ1 σ2 σ1 −σ2

This means that Z

F (z) := f
γz

is well defined. By the same argument,

Z Z Z
F (z + h) − F (z) = f − f = f
γz + h γz γ

R any path γ ⊂ G from z to z + h. The constant function 1 has the antiderivative z on C, and so
for
γ
1 = h, by Theorem 4.11. Thus

F (z + h) − F (z) 1 f (z) 1
Z Z Z
− f (z) = f (w) dw − dw = ( f (w) − f (z)) dw .
h h γ h γ h γ

If |h| is sufficiently small then the line segment λ from z to z + h will be contained in G, and so,
by applying the assumptions of our theorem for the third time,

F (z + h) − F (z) 1 1
Z Z
− f (z) = ( f (w) − f (z)) dw = ( f (w) − f (z)) dw . (4.2)
h h γ h λ

We will show that the right-hand side goes to zero as h → 0, which will conclude the theorem.
Given e > 0, we can choose δ > 0 such that

|w − z| < δ =⇒ | f (w) − f (z)| < e

because f is continuous at z. (We also choose δ small enough so that (4.2) holds.) Thus if |h| < δ,
we can estimate with Proposition 4.6(d)
 Z 
1  1
 h λ ( f (w) − f (z)) dw ≤ |h| max | f (w) − f (z)| length(λ) = max | f (w) − f (z)| < e .
 
w∈λ w∈λ

There are several variations of Theorem 4.15, as we can play with the assumptions about paths
in the statement of the theorem. We give one such variation, namely, for polygonal paths, i.e.,
paths that are composed as unions of line segments. You should convince yourself that the proof
of the following result is identical to that of Theorem 4.15.
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 61

Corollary 4.16. Suppose G ⊆ C is a region and z0 ∈ G. Let f : G → C be a continuous function such

that γ f = 0 for any closed polygonal path γ ⊂ G. Then the function F : G → C defined by
R

Z
F (z) := f,
γz

where γz is any polygonal path in G from z0 to z, is an antiderivative for f on G.

If you compare our proof of Theorem 4.15 to its analogue in R, you will see similarities, as
well as some complications due to the fact that we now have to operate in the plane as opposed to
the real line. Still, so far we have essentially been “doing calculus” when computing integrals. We
will now take a radical departure from this philosophy by studying complex integrals that stay
invariant under certain transformations of the paths we are integrating over.

4.3 Cauchy’s Theorem

The central theorem of complex analysis is based on the following concept.

Definition. Suppose γ0 and γ1 are closed paths in the region G ⊆ C, parametrized by γ0 (t), 0 ≤
t ≤ 1, and γ1 (t), 0 ≤ t ≤ 1, respectively. Then γ0 is G-homotopic to γ1 if there exists a continuous
function h : [0, 1]2 → G such that, for all s, t ∈ [0, 1],

h(t, 0) = γ0 (t) ,
h(t, 1) = γ1 (t) , (4.3)
h(0, s) = h(1, s) .

We use the notation γ1 ∼G γ2 to mean γ1 is G-homotopic to γ2 .

The function h(t, s) is called a homotopy. For each fixed s, a homotopy h(t, s) is a path
parametrized by t, and as s goes from 0 to 1, these paths continuously transform from γ0 to γ1 .
The last condition in (4.3) simply says that each of these paths is also closed.

Example 4.17. Figure 4.1 attempts to illustrate that the unit circle is (C \ {0})-homotopic to the
square with vertices ±3 ± 3i. Indeed, you should check (Exercise 4.20) that



 1 + 8it if 0 ≤ t ≤ 18 ,
if 81 ≤ t ≤ 38 ,

2 − 8t + i



h(t, s) := (1 − s)e2πit + 3s × −1 + 4i (1 − 2t) if 3
8 ≤ t ≤ 58 , (4.4)

5 7
8t − 6 − i ≤t≤ ,



 if 8 8


1 + 8i (t − 1) 7
if 8 ≤t≤1

gives a homotopy. Note that h(t, s) 6= 0 for any 0 ≤ t, s ≤ 1 (hence “(C \ {0})-homotopic”).

Exercise 4.23 shows that ∼G is an equivalence relation on the set of closed paths in G. The
definition of homotopy applies to parametrizations of curves; but Exercise 4.24, together with
transitivity of ∼G , shows that homotopy is invariant under reparametrizations.
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 62

Figure 4.1: This square and circle are (C \ {0})-homotopic.

Theorem 4.18 (Cauchy’s Theorem). Suppose G ⊆ C is a region, f is holomorphic in G, γ0 and γ1 are

piecewise smooth paths in G, and γ0 ∼G γ1 . Then
Z Z
f = f.
γ0 γ1

As a historical aside, it is assumed that Johann Carl Friedrich Gauß (1777–1855) knew a
version of this theorem in 1811 but published it only in 1831. Cauchy (of Cauchy–Riemann
equations fame) published his version in 1825, Karl Theodor Wilhelm Weierstraß (1815–1897) his
in 1842. Theorem 4.18 is often called the Cauchy–Goursat Theorem, since Cauchy assumed that
the derivative of f was continuous, a condition that was first removed by Edouard Jean-Baptiste
Goursat (1858–1936).
Before discussing the proof of Theorem 4.18, we give a basic, yet prototypical application of it:

Example 4.19. We claim that

dz
Z
= 2πi (4.5)
γ z
where γ is the square in Figure 4.1, oriented counter-clockwise. We could, of course, compute
this integral by hand, but it is easier to apply Cauchy’s Theorem 4.18 to the function f (z) = 1z ,
which is holomorphic in G = C \ {0}. We showed in (4.4) that γ is G-homotopic to the unit circle.
Exercise 4.4 says that integrating f over the unit circle gives 2πi and so Cauchy’s Theorem 4.18
implies (4.5).

Proof of Theorem 4.18. The full proof of Cauchy’s Theorem is beyond the scope of this book.
However, there are several proofs under more restrictive hypotheses than Theorem 4.18. We shall
present a proof under the following extra assumptions:

• The derivative f 0 is continuous in G.

• The homotopy h from γ0 to γ1 has piecewise, continuous second derivatives.

CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 63

Technically, this is the assumption on h:




 h1 (t, s) if 0 ≤ t ≤ t1 ,

h2 (t, s) if t1 ≤ t ≤ t2 ,

h(t, s) = ..


 .

if tn−1 ≤ t ≤ 1 ,

h (t, s)
n

where each h j (t, s) has continuous second partials2 . (Example 4.17 gives one instance.) Now we
turn to the proof under these extra assumptions.
For 0 ≤ s ≤ 1, let γs be the path parametrized by h(t, s), 0 ≤ t ≤ 1. Consider the function
I : [0, 1] → C given by Z
I (s) := f,
γs
R R
so that I (0) = γ0 f and I (1) = γ1 f . We will show that I is constant; in particular, I (0) = I (1),
which proves the theorem. By Leibniz’s rule (Theorem A.9),

d 1
Z 1  
d
Z
∂h ∂ ∂h
I (s) = f (h(t, s)) dt = f (h(t, s)) dt
ds ds 0 ∂t 0 ∂s ∂t
∂2 h
Z 1 
0 ∂h ∂h
= f (h(t, s)) + f (h(t, s)) dt
0 ∂s ∂t ∂s ∂t
∂2 h
Z 1  Z 1  
0 ∂h ∂h ∂ ∂h
= f (h(t, s)) + f (h(t, s)) dt = f (h(t, s)) dt .
0 ∂t ∂s ∂t ∂s 0 ∂t ∂s
Note that we used Theorem A.7 to switch the order of the second partials in the penultimate
step—here is where we need our assumption that h has continuous second partials. Also, we
needed continuity of f 0 in order to apply Leibniz’s rule. If h is piecewise defined, we split up the
integral accordingly.
Finally, by the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus (Theorem A.3), applied separately to the
real and imaginary parts of the above integrand,
Z 1  
d ∂ ∂h ∂h ∂h
I (s) = f (h(t, s)) dt = f (h(1, s)) (1, s) − f (h(0, s)) (0, s) = 0 ,
ds 0 ∂t ∂s ∂s ∂s

where the last step follows from h(0, s) = h(1, s) for all s.

Definition. Let G ⊆ C be a region. If the closed path γ is G-homotopic to a point (that is, a
constant path) then γ is G-contractible, and we write γ ∼G 0. (See Figure 4.2 for an example.)

The fact that an integral over a point is zero has the following immediate consequence.

Corollary 4.20. Suppose G ⊆ C is a region, f is holomorphic in G, γ is piecewise smooth, and γ ∼G 0.

Then Z
f = 0.
γ
2As we have seen with other “piecewise” definitions, the behavior of h at the subdivision lines t = ti needs to be
understood in terms of limits.
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 64

Figure 4.2: This ellipse is (C \ R)-contractible.

This corollary is worth meditating over. For example, you should compare it with Corol-
lary 4.13: both results give a zero integral, yet they make truly opposite assumptions (one about
the existence of an antiderivative, the other about the existence of a derivative).
Naturally, Corollary 4.20 gives many evaluations of integrals, such as this:
Example 4.21. Since Log is holomorphic in G = C \ R≤0 and the ellipse γ in Figure 4.2 is
G-contractible, Corollary 4.20 gives
Z
Log(z) dz = 0 .
γ

Exercise 4.25(a) says that any closed path is C-contractible, which yields the following special
case of Corollary 4.20.
Corollary 4.22. If f is entire and γ is any piecewise smooth closed path, then
Z
f = 0.
γ

The theorems and corollaries in this section are useful not just for showing that certain integrals
are zero:
Example 4.23. We’d like to compute
dz
Z

γ z2 − 2z
where γ is the unit circle, oriented counter-clockwise. (Try computing it from first principles.) We
use a partial fractions expansion to write
dz 1 dz 1 dz
Z Z Z
= − .
γ z2 − 2z 2 γ z−2 2 γ z
The first integral on the right-hand side is zero by Corollary 4.20 applied to the function f (z) = z−1 2
(note that f is holomorphic in C \ {2} and γ is (C \ {2})-contractible). The second integral is 2πi
by Exercise 4.4, and so
dz
Z
2 − 2z
= −πi .
γ z
Sometimes Corollary 4.20 itself is known as Cauchy’s Theorem. See Exercise 4.26 for a related
formulation of Corollary 4.20, with a proof based on Green’s Theorem.
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 65

4.4 Cauchy’s Integral Formula

We recall our notations

C [ a, r ] = {z ∈ C : |z − a| = r }
D [ a, r ] = {z ∈ C : |z − a| < r }
D [ a, r ] = {z ∈ C : |z − a| ≤ r }

for the circle, open disk, and closed disk, respectively, with center a ∈ C and radius r > 0. Unless
stated otherwise, we orient C [ a, r ] counter-clockwise.
Theorem 4.24. If f is holomorphic in an open set containing D [w, R] then
1 f (z)
Z
f (w) = dz .
2πi C [w,R] z−w
This is Cauchy’s Integral Formula for the case that the integration path is a circle; we will prove
the general statement at the end of this chapter. However, already this special case is worth
meditating over: the data on the right-hand side of Theorem 4.24 is entirely given by the values
that f (z) takes on for z on the circle C [w, R]. Thus Cauchy’s Integral Formula says that this data
determines f (w). This has the flavor of mean-value theorems, which the following corollary makes
even more apparent.
Corollary 4.25. If f = u + iv is holomorphic in an open set containing D [w, R] then
Z 2π
1  
f (w) = f w + R eit dt ,
2π 0
Z 2π Z 2π
1   1  
u(w) = u w + R eit dt and v(w) = v w + R eit dt .
2π 0 2π 0

Proofs of Theorem 4.24 and Corollary 4.25. By assumption, f is holomorphic in an open set G that
f (z)
contains D [w, R], and so z−w is holomorphic in H := G \ {w}. For any 0 < r < R,

C [w, r ] ∼ H C [w, R] ,

and so Cauchy’s Theorem 4.18 and Exercise 4.4 give

Z  Z 
f (z) f (z) dz 
   Z
 C[w,R] z − w dz − 2πi f (w) =  C[w,r] z − w dz − f (w) C[w,r] z − w 
  
Z 
 f (z) − f (w) 
= 
 dz
C [w,r ] z−w
 
 f (z) − f (w) 
≤ max   length (C [w, r ]) (4.6)
z∈C [w,r ] z−w 
| f (z) − f (w)|
= max 2πr
z∈C [w,r ] r
= 2π max | f (z) − f (w)| .
z∈C [w,r ]
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 66

Here the inequality comes from Proposition 4.6(d).

Now let e > 0. Because f is continuous at w, there exists δ > 0 such that |z − w| < δ implies
e
| f (z) − f (w)| < .
2π
In particular, this will hold for z ∈ C [w, 2δ ], and so (4.6) implies, with r = 2δ ,
Z 
 f (z) 
 C[w,R] z − w dz − 2πi f (w) < e .
 

Since we can choose e as small as we’d like, the left-hand side must be zero, which proves
Theorem 4.24.
Corollary 4.25 now follows by definition of the complex integral:

f w + R eit
Z 2π
Z 2π 
1 it 1 it

f (w) = iR e dt = f w + R e dt ,
2πi 0 w + R eit − w 2π 0
which splits into real and imaginary parts as
Z 2π Z 2π
1 
it
 1  
u(w) + i v(w) = u w+Re dt + i v w + R eit dt .
2π 0 2π 0

Theorem 4.24 can be used to compute integrals of a certain nature.

Example 4.26. We’d like to determine

dz
Z
.
C [i,1] z2+1

The function f (z) = 1

z +i is holomorphic in C \ {−i }, which contains D [i, 1]. Thus we can apply
Theorem 4.24:
1
dz 1
Z Z
z +i
= dz = 2πi f (i ) = 2πi = π.
C [i,1] z2 + 1 C [i,1] z−i 2i
Now we would like to extend Theorem 4.24 by replacing C [w, R] with any simple closed
piecewise smooth path γ around w. Intuitively, Cauchy’s Theorem 4.18 should supply such
an extension: assuming that f is holomorphic in a region G that includes γ and its inside, we
f (z)
can find a small R such that D [w, R] ⊆ G, and since z−w is holomorphic in H := G \ {w} and
γ ∼ H C [w, R], Theorems 4.18 and 4.24 yield

1 f (z)
Z
f (w) = dz .
2πi γ z−w

This all smells like good coffee, except ... we might be just dreaming. The argument may be
intuitively clear, but intuition doesn’t prove anything. We’ll look at it carefully, fill in the gaps,
and then we’ll see what we have proved.
First, we need a notion of the inside of a simple closed path. The fact that any such path γ
divides the complex plane into two connected open sets of γ (the bounded one of which we
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 67

call the inside or interior of γ) is one of the first substantial theorems ever proved in topology,
the Jordan Curve Theorem, due to Camille Jordan (1838–1922).3 In this book we shall assume the
validity of the Jordan Curve Theorem.
Second, we need to specify the orientation of γ, since if the formula gives f (w) for one
orientation then it will give − f (w) for the other orientation.

Definition. A piecewise smooth simple closed path γ is positively oriented if it is parametrized so

that its inside is on the left as our parametrization traverses γ. An example is a counter-clockwise
oriented circle.

Third, if γ is positively oriented and D [w, R] is a closed disk inside γ then we need a homotopy
from γ to the counterclockwise circle C [w, R] that stays inside γ and away from D [w, R]. This
is provided directly by another substantial theorem of topology, the Annulus Theorem, although
there are other methods. Again, in this book we shall assume the existence of this homotopy.
These results of topology seem intuitively obvious but are surprisingly difficult to prove. If
you’d like to see a proof, we recommend that you take a course in topology.
There is still a subtle problem with our proof. We assumed that γ is in G, but we also need
the interior of γ to be contained in G, since we need to apply Cauchy’s Theorem to the homotopy
between γ and C [w, R]. We could just add this as an assumption to our theorem, but the following
formulation will be more convenient later.

Theorem 4.27 (Cauchy’s Integral Formula). Suppose f is holomorphic in the region G and γ is a
positively oriented, simple, closed, piecewise smooth path, such that w is inside γ and γ ∼G 0. Then

1 f (z)
Z
f (w) = dz .
2πi γ z−w

So all that we need to finish the proof of Theorem 4.27 is one more fact from topology. But we
can prove this one:

Proposition 4.28. Suppose γ is a simple, closed, piecewise smooth path in the region G. Then G contains
the interior of γ if and only if γ ∼G 0.

Proof. One direction is easy: If G contains the interior of γ and D [w, R] is any closed disk in the
interior of γ then there is a G-homotopy from γ to C [w, R], and C [w, R] ∼G 0.
In the other direction we argue by contradiction: Assume γ ∼G 0 but G does not contain the
interior of γ. So we can find a point w in the interior of γ which is not in G.
Define g(z) = z−1wR for z 6= w. Now g is holomorphic on G and γ ∼G 0, so Corollary 4.20
applies, and we have γ g(z) dz = 0. On the other hand, choose R > 0 so that D [w, R] is inside γ.
There is a homotopy
R in C \ { w } from γ to C [w, R], so Cauchy’s Theorem 4.18, plus Exercise 4.4,
shows that γ g(z) dz = 2πi.
This contradiction finishes the proof.

Notice that, instead of using topology to prove a theorem about holomorphic functions, we
just used holomorphic functions to prove a theorem about topology.
3 This is the Jordan of Jordan normal form fame, but not the one of Gauß–Jordan elimination.
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 68

Example 4.29. Continuing Example 4.26, Theorem 4.27 says that

dz
Z
= π
γ z2 +1
for any positively oriented, simple, closed, piecewise smooth path γ that contains i on its inside
and that is (C \ {−i })-contractible.
Example 4.30. To compute
exp(z)
Z
dz
C [0,3] z2 − 2z
we use the partial fractions expansion from Example 4.23:
exp(z) 1 exp(z) 1 exp(z)
Z Z Z
2
dz = dz − dz .
C [0,3] z − 2z 2 C [0,3] z−2 2 C [0,3] z
For the two integrals on the right-hand side, we can use Theorem 4.24 with the function f (z) =
exp(z), which is entire, and so (note that both 2 and 0 are inside γ)
exp(z) 1 1
Z
dz = 2πi · exp(2) − 2πi · exp(0) = πi e2 − 1 .


2
z − 2z 2 2
C [0,3]

Exercises
4.1. Find the length of the following paths:
(a) γ(t) = 3t + i, −1 ≤ t ≤ 1 (c) γ(t) = i sin(t), −π ≤ t ≤ π

(b) γ(t) = i + eiπt , 0 ≤ t ≤ 1 (d) γ(t) = t − i e−it , 0 ≤ t ≤ 2π

Draw pictures of each path and convince yourself that the lengths you computed are sensible.
(The last path is a cycloid, the trace of a fixed point on a wheel as it makes one rotation.)

4.2. Compute the lengths of the paths from Exercise 1.33:

(a) the circle C [1 + i, 1]

(b) the line segment from −1 − i to 2i

(c) the top half of the circle C [0, 34]

(d) the rectangle with vertices ±1 ± 2i

4.3. Integrate the function f (z) = z over the three paths given in Example 4.1.

4.4. Compute γ dz
R
z where γ is the unit circle, oriented counterclockwise. More generally, show
that for any w ∈ C and r > 0,
dz
Z
= 2πi .
C [w,r ] z − w

4.5. Integrate the following functions over the circle C [0, 2]:
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 69

1
(a) f (z) = z + z (c) f (z) = z4

(b) f (z) = z2 − 2z + 3 (d) f (z) = xy

R R R R
4.6. Evaluate the integrals γ x dz, γ y dz, γ z dz and γ z dz along each of the following paths.
(Hint: You can get the second two integrals after you calculate the first two by writing z and z as
x ± iy.)
(a) γ is the line segment from 0 to 1 − i

(b) γ = C [0, 1]

(c) γ = C [ a, r ] for some a ∈ C

R
4.7. Evaluate γ
exp(3z) dz for each of the following paths:
(a) γ is the line segment from 1 to i

(b) γ = C [0, 3]

(c) γ is the arc of the parabola y = x2 from x = 0 to x = 1

R
4.8. Compute γ
f for the following functions f and paths γ:
(a) f (z) = z2 and γ(t) = t + it2 , 0 ≤ t ≤ 1.

(b) f (z) = z and γ is the semicircle from 1 through i to −1.

(c) f (z) = exp(z) and γ is the line segment from 0 to a point z0 .

(d) f (z) = |z|2 and γ is the line segment from 2 to 3 + i.

(e) f (z) = z + 1z and γ is parametrized by γ(t), 0 ≤ t ≤ 1, and satisfies Im γ(t) > 0, γ(0) =
−4 + i, and γ(1) = 6 + 2i.
(f) f (z) = sin(z) and γ is some piecewise smooth path from i to π.

4.9. Prove Proposition 4.2 and the fact that the length of γ does not change
R under reparametrization.
(Hint: Assume γ, σ, and τ are smooth. Start with the definition of σ f , apply the chain rule to
σ = γ ◦ τ, and then use the change of variables formula, Theorem A.6.)

4.10. Prove the following integration by parts statement: Let f and g be holomorphic in G, and
suppose γ ⊂ G is a piecewise smooth path from γ( a) to γ(b). Then
Z Z
0
f g = f (γ(b)) g(γ(b)) − f (γ( a)) g(γ( a)) − f 0g .
γ γ

1
R 2π
4.11. Let I (k ) := 2π 0
eikt dt.
(a) Show that I (0) = 1.

(b) Show that I (k ) = 0 if k is a nonzero integer.

CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 70

(c) What is I ( 12 )?
R 1
4.12. Compute C [0,2]
z 2 dz .

4.13. Show that γ zn dz = 0 for any closed piecewise smooth γ and any integer n 6= −1. (If n
R

is negative, assume that γ does not pass through the origin, since otherwise the integral is not
defined.)

4.14. Exercise 4.13 excluded n = −1 for a good reason: ExerciseR4.4 gives a counterexample.
Generalizing these, if m is any integer, find a closed path γ so that γ z−1 dz = 2mπi.

4.15. Taking the previous two exercises one step further, fix z0 ∈ C and let γ be a simple, closed,
positively oriented, piecewise smooth path such that z0 is inside γ. Show that, for any integer n,
(
2πi if n = −1 ,
Z
n
(z − z0 ) dz =
γ 0 otherwise.

z exp(z2 ) dz = 0 for any closed path γ.

R
4.16. Prove that γ

i
4.17. Show that F (z) = 2 Log(z + i ) − 2i Log(z − i ) is an antiderivative of 1
1+ z2
for Re(z) > 0. Is
F (z) equal to arctan z?

4.18. Compute the following integrals, where γ is the line segment from 4 to 4i.
Z
z+1
Z 1
(a) dz (c) z− 2 dz
γ z γ

dz
Z Z
(b) 2
(d) sin2 (z) dz
γ z +z γ

4.19. Compute the following integrals. (Hint: One of these integrals is considerably easier than
the other.)
Z
(a) zi dz where γ1 (t) = eit , − π2 ≤ t ≤ π
2.
γ1
Z
(b) zi dz where γ2 (t) = eit , π
2 ≤t≤ 3π
2 .
γ2

4.20. Show that (4.4) gives a homotopy between the unit circle and the square with vertices ±3 ± 3i.

4.21. Use Exercise 1.34 give a homotopy that is an alternative to (4.4) and does not need a piecewise
definition.

4.22. Suppose a ∈ C and γ0 and γ1 are two counterclockwise circles so that a is inside both of
them. Give a homotopy that proves γ0 ∼C\{a} γ1 .

4.23. Prove that ∼G is an equivalence relation.

CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 71

4.24. Suppose that γ is a closed path in a region G, parametrized by γ(t), t ∈ [0, 1], and τ is
a continuous increasing function from [0, 1] onto [0, 1]. Show that γ is G-homotopic to the
reparametrized path γ ◦ τ. (Hint: Make use of τs (t) = sτ (t) + (1 − s)t for 0 ≤ s ≤ 1.)

4.25.
(a) Prove that any closed path is C-contractible.
(b) Prove that any two closed paths are C-homotopic.

4.26. This exercise gives an alternative proof of Corollary 4.20 via Green’s Theorem A.10. Suppose
G ⊆ C is a region, f is holomorphic in G, f 0 is continuous, γ is a simple piecewise smooth closed
curve, and γ ∼G 0. Explain that we may write
Z Z Z Z
f (z) dz = (u + i v)(dx + i dy) = u dx − v dy + i v dx + u dy
γ γ γ γ

and show that these integrals vanish, by using Green’s Theorem A.10 together with Proposi-
tion 4.28, and then the Cauchy–Riemann equations (2.2).

4.27. Fix a ∈ C. Compute

dz
Z
I (r ) : = .
C [0,r ] z−a
You should get different answers for r < | a| and r > | a|. (Hint: In one case γr is contractible in
C \ { a}. In the other you can combine Exercises 4.4 and 4.22.)

4.28.
R Suppose p(z) is a polynomial in z and γ is a closed piecewise smooth path in C. Show that
γ
p = 0.

4.29. Show that

dz
Z
= 0
C [0,2] z3+1
by arguing that this integral does not change if we Rreplace C [0, 2] by C [0, r ] for any r > 1, then use
Proposition 4.6(d) to obtain an upper bound for | C[0,r] z3dz
+1
| that goes to 0 as r → ∞.

4.30. Compute the real integral

Z 2π
dφ
0 2 + sin φ
by writing the sine function in terms of the exponential function and making the substitution
z = eiφ to turn the real integral into a complex integral.

4.31. Prove that for 0 < r < 1,

1 − r2
Z 2π
1
dφ = 1 .
2π 0 1 − 2r cos(φ) + r2
−r 2
(The function Pr (φ) := 1−2r 1cos (φ)+r2
is the Poisson kernel4 and plays an important role in the
world of harmonic functions, as we will see in Exercise 6.13.)
4 Named after Siméon Denis Poisson (1781–1840).
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATION 72

4.32. Suppose f and g are holomorphic in the region G and γ is a simple piecewise smooth
G-contractible path. Prove that if f (z) = g(z) for all z ∈ γ, then f (z) = g(z) for all z inside γ.

4.33. Show that Corollary 4.20, for simple paths, is also a corollary of Theorem 4.27.

4.34. Compute
dz
Z
I (r ) : =
C [−2i,r ] z2 + 1
for r 6= 1, 3.

4.35. Find
dz
Z

C [0,r ] z2 − 2z − 8
for r = 1, r = 3 and r = 5. (Hint: Compute a partial-fractions expansion of the integrand.)

4.36. Use the Cauchy Integral Formula (Theorem 4.24) to evaluate the integral in Exercise 4.35
when r = 3.

4.37. Compute the following integrals.

z2 exp(z)
Z Z
(a) dz (c) dz
C [−1,2] 4 − z2 C [0,2] z ( z − 3)

sin z exp(z)
Z Z
(b) dz (d) dz
C [0,1] z C [0,4] z ( z − 3)

4.38. Let f (z) = z21−1 and define the twoR paths γ

R = C [1, 1] oriented counter-clockwise and
σ = C [−1, 1] oriented clockwise. Show that γ f = σ f even though γ 6∼G σ where G = C \ {±1},
the region of holomorphicity of f .

4.39. This exercise gives an alternative proof of Cauchy’s Integral Formula (Theorem 4.27) that
does not depend on Cauchy’s Theorem (Theorem 4.18). Suppose the region G is convex; this
means that, whenever z and w are in G, the line segment between them is also in G. Suppose f
is holomorphic in G, f 0 is continuous, and γ is a positively oriented, simple, closed, piecewise
smooth path, such that w is inside γ and γ ∼G 0.
(a) Consider the function g : [0, 1] → C given by

f (w + t(z − w))
Z
g(t) := dz .
γ z−w

Show that g0 = 0. (Hint: Use Theorem A.9 (Leibniz’s rule) and then find an antiderivative
∂f
for ∂t (w + t(z − w)).)

(b) Prove Theorem 4.27 by evaluating g(0) and g(1).

(c) Why did we assume G is convex?