
In
geometry
Geometry (; ) is, with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. It is concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is c ...
, Euler's theorem states that the distance ''d'' between the
circumcenter
In geometry, the circumscribed circle or circumcircle of a polygon is a circle that passes through all the vertices of the polygon. The center of this circle is called the circumcenter and its radius is called the circumradius.
Not every polyg ...
and
incenter
In geometry, the incenter of a triangle is a triangle center, a point defined for any triangle in a way that is independent of the triangle's placement or scale. The incenter may be equivalently defined as the point where the internal angle bise ...
of a
triangle
A triangle is a polygon with three edges and three vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC.
In Euclidean geometry, any three points, when non- colli ...
is given by
or equivalently
where
and
denote the circumradius and inradius respectively (the radii of the
circumscribed circle
In geometry, the circumscribed circle or circumcircle of a polygon is a circle that passes through all the vertices of the polygon. The center of this circle is called the circumcenter and its radius is called the circumradius.
Not every poly ...
and
inscribed circle respectively). The theorem is named for
Leonhard Euler
Leonhard Euler ( , ; 15 April 170718 September 1783) was a Swiss mathematician, physicist, astronomer, geographer, logician and engineer who founded the studies of graph theory and topology and made pioneering and influential discoveries in ma ...
, who published it in 1765. However, the same result was published earlier by
William Chapple in 1746.
From the theorem follows the Euler inequality:
which holds with equality only in the
equilateral
In geometry, an equilateral triangle is a triangle in which all three sides have the same length. In the familiar Euclidean geometry, an equilateral triangle is also equiangular; that is, all three internal angles are also congruent to each oth ...
case.
Stronger version of the inequality
A stronger version is
where
,
, and
are the side lengths of the triangle.
Euler's theorem for the escribed circle
If
and
denote respectively the radius of the
escribed circle opposite to the vertex
and the distance between its center and the center of
the circumscribed circle, then
.
Euler's inequality in absolute geometry
Euler's inequality, in the form stating that, for all triangles inscribed in a given circle, the maximum of the radius of the inscribed circle is reached for the equilateral triangle and only for it, is valid in
absolute geometry
Absolute geometry is a geometry based on an axiom system for Euclidean geometry without the parallel postulate or any of its alternatives. Traditionally, this has meant using only the first four of Euclid's postulates, but since these are not su ...
.
See also
*
Fuss' theorem
In Euclidean geometry, a bicentric quadrilateral is a convex quadrilateral that has both an incircle and a circumcircle. The radii and center of these circles are called ''inradius'' and ''circumradius'', and ''incenter'' and ''circumcenter'' r ...
for the relation among the same three variables in bicentric quadrilaterals
*
Poncelet's closure theorem, showing that there is an infinity of triangles with the same two circles (and therefore the same ''R'', ''r'', and ''d'')
*
List of triangle inequalities
References
External links
*{{mathworld, id=EulerTriangleFormula, title=Euler Triangle Formula, mode=cs2
Articles containing proofs
Triangle inequalities
Theorems about triangles and circles