MATLAB is a high-level technical computing language and interactive environment for algorithm development, data visualization, data analysis, and numeric computation. Using MATLAB, you can solve technical computing problems faster than with traditional programming languages, such as C, C++, and Fortran.

MATLAB can be used in a wide range of applications, including signal and image processing, communications, control design, test and measurement, financial modeling and analysis, and computational biology. Add-on toolboxes (collections of special-purpose MATLAB functions, available separately) extend the MATLAB environment to solve particular classes of problems in these application areas.

MATLAB provides a number of features for documenting and sharing your work. You can integrate your MATLAB code with other languages and applications, and distribute your MATLAB algorithms and applications. functionality can be added by installing/coding a plugin.

The MATLAB development environment lets you develop algorithms, interactively analyze data, view data files, and manage projects.

Features include:

• High-level language for technical computing
• Development environment for managing code, files, and data
• Interactive tools for iterative exploration, design, and problem solving
• Mathematical functions for linear algebra, statistics, Fourier analysis, filtering, optimization, and numerical integration
• 2-D and 3-D graphics functions for visualizing data
• Tools for building custom graphical user interfaces
• Functions for integrating MATLAB based algorithms with external applications and languages, such as C, C++, Fortran, Java, COM, and Microsoft Excel

Development

The MATLAB language supports the vector and matrix operations that are fundamental to engineering and scientific problems. It enables fast development and execution.

Development tools include:

• MATLAB Editor - Provides standard editing and debugging features, such as setting breakpoints and single stepping
• M-Lint Code Checker - Analyzes your code and recommends changes to improve its performance and maintainability
• MATLAB Profiler - Records the time spent executing each line of code
• Directory Reports - Scan all the files in a directory and report on code efficiency, file differences, file dependencies, and code coverage

Visualizing Data

• 2-D and 3-D plotting functions, 
• 3-D volume visualization functions, 
• Tools for interactively creating plots, and the 
• Ability to export results to all popular graphics formats
• Customize plots by adding multiple axes; changing line colors and markers; adding annotation, LaTEX equations, and legends; and drawing shapes

2-D Plotting:

• Line, area, bar, and pie charts
• Direction and velocity plots
• Histograms
• Polygons and surfaces
• Scatter/bubble plots
• Animations

3-D Plotting and Volume Visualization:

• Visualizing 2-D matrices, 3-D scalar, and 3-D vector data. 
• Use these functions to visualize and understand large, often complex, multidimensional data 
• Specify plot characteristics, such as camera viewing angle, perspective, lighting effect, light source locations, and transparency
• 3-D plotting functions include: Surface, contour, and mesh / Image plots / Cone, slice, stream, and isosurface

Numeric Computation

MATLAB contains mathematical, statistical, and engineering functions to support all common engineering and science operations.

Types of functions:

• Matrix manipulation and linear algebra
• Polynomials and interpolation
• Fourier analysis and filtering
• Data analysis and statistics
• Optimization and numerical integration
• Ordinary differential equations (ODEs)
• Partial differential equations (PDEs)
• Sparse matrix operations

Publishing Results

• Export plots to all popular graphics file formats
• Publish MATLAB code in HTML, Word, LaTeX, and other formats
• Functions for integrating C and C++ code, Fortran code, COM objects, and Java code with applications. Call DLLs, Java classes, and ActiveX controls. Using the MATLAB engine library, you can also call MATLAB from C, C++, or Fortran code
• Create your algorithm in MATLAB and distribute it to other MATLAB users as M-code

Last Updated Thursday, March 31 2011 @ 01:55 PM EST