Use Of Imaginary Numbers In Real Life. Imaginary or complex numbers are not used per se in real life. In general an imaginary number is used in combination with a real number to form something called a complex number a bi where a is the real part real number and bi is the imaginary part real.
As others have mentioned signal processing and quantum mechanics require complex numbers and so the machine you re currently reading this on could not be designed without the use of complex numbers. However their applications are ubiquitous. According to drexel university imaginary numbers are further used when measuring phenomena that occur in nature such as the disruption created when water flows around an object.
On the contrary purely real numbers only describe a perfect simplified world in physics while imaginary numbers must be used to include the myriad complicating factors found in the real world.
However their applications are ubiquitous. As others have mentioned signal processing and quantum mechanics require complex numbers and so the machine you re currently reading this on could not be designed without the use of complex numbers. In general an imaginary number is used in combination with a real number to form something called a complex number a bi where a is the real part real number and bi is the imaginary part real. Imaginary numbers are quite useful in many situations where more than one force is acting simultaneously and the combined output of these forces needs to be measured.