Question:
The sum of the first n terms of an AP is given by Sn = (3n2 – 4n) . Find its
(i) nth term,
(ii) first term and
(iii) common difference.
Solution:
Given:
$S_{n}=3 n^{2}-4 n$
Now,
Sum of one term $=S_{1}=3(1)^{2}-4(1)$
$=3-4$
$=-1$
$\Rightarrow a_{1}=a=-1 \quad \ldots$ (1)
Hence, the first term is $-1$.
Sum of two term $s=S_{2}=3(2)^{2}-4(2)$
$=12-8$
$=4$
$\Rightarrow a_{1}+a_{2}=4 \quad \ldots(2)$
Subtracting (1) from (2), we get
$a_{2}=5$
$\Rightarrow a+d=5$
$\Rightarrow d=6 \quad(\because a=-1)$
Hence, the common difference is 6 .
Therefore,
$a_{n}=a+(n-1) d$
$=-1+(n-1)(6)$
$=-1+6 n-6$
$=6 n-7$
Hence, the $n^{\text {th }}$ term is $(6 n-7)$.
Hence,
(i) nth term is (6n – 7)
(ii) first term is –1
(iii) common difference is 6