Maeckes logo

<    1    >


p-adic number

For each prime number p, the p-adic numbers form an extension of the rational numbers.

 


Explanation

The p in "p-adic" is a variable and may be replaced with a prime or an expression representing a prime number. The "adic" of "p-adic" comes from the ending found in words such as dyadic or triadic.

 


Example 1

The 2-adic development of 35 is written as

35 = 1·25 + 0·24 + 0·23 + 0·22 + 1·21 + 1·20 = 1000112

 


History

The p-adic numbers were first described by German mathematician Kurt Hensel in 1897.


Deutsch   Español   Français   Nederlands   中文   Русский