**Course Title:** MATLAB Programming: Applications in Engineering, Data Science, and Simulation **Section Title:** Plotting and Data Visualization **Topic:** Introduction to 3D plotting: Mesh, surface, and contour plots. ### Overview In the previous topics, we explored 2D plotting techniques using MATLAB. However, real-world data often requires visualization in three dimensions to understand and analyze the data effectively. In this topic, we will delve into 3D plotting using mesh, surface, and contour plots. By the end of this topic, you will be able to create and customize various 3D plots to visualize complex data. ### Mesh Plots Mesh plots are used to visualize 3D surfaces formed by a grid of x, y, and z coordinates. The `mesh` function in MATLAB is used to create mesh plots. **Example 1: Creating a Mesh Plot** ```matlab [x, y] = meshgrid(-2:0.1:2); % Create a 2D grid of x and y coordinates z = x.^2 + y.^2; % Create a surface z = x^2 + y^2 mesh(x, y, z); % Create a mesh plot xlabel('X'); ylabel('Y'); zlabel('Z'); title('Mesh Plot of z = x^2 + y^2'); ``` This code creates a mesh plot of the surface z = x^2 + y^2. ### Surface Plots Surface plots are similar to mesh plots but use solid shading to fill the space between the mesh lines. The `surf` function in MATLAB is used to create surface plots. **Example 2: Creating a Surface Plot** ```matlab [x, y] = meshgrid(-2:0.1:2); z = x.^2 + y.^2; surf(x, y, z); % Create a surface plot xlabel('X'); ylabel('Y'); zlabel('Z'); title('Surface Plot of z = x^2 + y^2'); ``` This code creates a surface plot of the same surface as the one in the previous example. ### Contour Plots Contour plots are used to visualize the elevation of a surface. The `contour` function in MATLAB is used to create contour plots. **Example 3: Creating a Contour Plot** ```matlab [x, y] = meshgrid(-2:0.1:2); z = x.^2 + y.^2; contour(x, y, z); % Create a contour plot xlabel('X'); ylabel('Y'); title('Contour Plot of z = x^2 + y^2'); ``` This code creates a contour plot of the same surface as the one in the previous examples. ### Customizing 3D Plots You can customize 3D plots by using various options such as `view`, `axis`, and `legend`. For example, you can change the view angle of the plot by using the `view` function: ```matlab view(30, 60); % Change the view angle to 30 degrees azimuth and 60 degrees elevation ``` You can also use the `axis` function to set the limits of the x, y, and z axes: ```matlab axis([-2 2 -2 2 0 10]); % Set the limits of the x, y, and z axes ``` ### Conclusion In this topic, we covered the basics of 3D plotting using mesh, surface, and contour plots in MATLAB. We also learned how to customize these plots using various options. For more information on 3D plotting, you can refer to the [MATLAB documentation](https://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/3d-visualization.html). ### Key Concepts * Mesh plots: visualize 3D surfaces formed by a grid of x, y, and z coordinates * Surface plots: use solid shading to fill the space between the mesh lines * Contour plots: visualize the elevation of a surface * Customizing 3D plots: use options such as `view`, `axis`, and `legend` to customize the plot ### Practical Takeaways * Use mesh plots to visualize 3D surfaces * Use surface plots to visualize surfaces with solid shading * Use contour plots to visualize the elevation of a surface * Customize 3D plots using various options to enhance visualization **Next Topic:** We will cover "Reading and writing data to/from files (text, CSV, Excel)" from the "Working with Data: Importing, Exporting, and Manipulating" section. **Ask for Help:** If you have any questions or need help with understanding this topic, please feel free to ask.