Interest and Exponential Growth
The Compound Interest Equation
P = C (1 + r/n) nt
where
P = future value
C = initial deposit
r = interest rate (expressed as a fraction: eg. 0.06)
n = # of times per year interest in compounded
t = number of years invested
Simplified Compound Interest Equation
When interest is only compounded once per yer (n=1), the equation simplifies to:
P = C (1 + r) t
Continuous Compound Interest
When interest is compounded continually (i.e. n --> ), the compound interest equation takes the form:
P = C e rt