Creating a Contour Plot

To create a contour plot, you need to define a function of two variables, a matrix of z-coordinates, or three vectors specifying the x, y, and z coordinates. You can also create a parametric, vector-valued function to specify x, y, and z coordinates. Then

  1. Choose Insert > Graph > Contour Plot, or type [Ctrl] 5, to create a contour plot region.
  2. Place the name of the matrix, function, or set of functions/vectors in the placeholder to the bottom left of the plot region. If you enter a set of function names to define a parametric surface, enclose them in parentheses.
  3. Click outside the plot region, or press [Enter].

The values of the matrix or function are linearly interpolated to form level curves in such a way that no two cross. The coordinate (0,0) is at the lower-left corner. If plotting a matrix, the rows correspond to the values on the x-axis, increasing to the right, and the columns correspond to the values on the y-axis, increasing toward the top. You can double-click the plot to change this and other formatting options. To specify the number of contours on a contour plot, click on the Special tab.

Choose a contour direction from the drop-down menu at the bottom of the Contour Options section. Use Z-Contours unless you have created a contour plot on another backplane. Use the options in the Contour Options section to:

The contour plot of a function is created using default ranges and grids for the independent variables. To change them, double-click the graph and use the options in the QuickPlot Data tab of the 3D Plot Format dialog box.

Notes:

QuickSheet

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