There are 16 fundamental classes in MATLAB. Each of these classes is in the form of a matrix or array. With the exception of function handles, this matrix or array is a minimum of 0-by-0 in size and can grow to an n-dimensional array of any size. A function handle is always scalar (1-by-1).
All of the fundamental MATLAB classes are shown in the diagram below:
Numeric classes in the MATLAB software include signed and unsigned integers, and single- and double-precision floating-point numbers. By default, MATLAB stores all numeric values as double-precision floating point. (You cannot change the default type and precision.) You can choose to store any number, or array of numbers, as integers or as single-precision. Integer and single-precision arrays offer more memory-efficient storage than double-precision.
All numeric types support basic array operations, such as subscripting, reshaping, and mathematical operations.
These classes require different amounts of storage, the smallest being a logical value or 8-bit integer which requires only 1 byte. It is important to keep this minimum size in mind if you work on data in files that were written using a precision smaller than 8 bits.
The following table describes the fundamental classes in more detail.
Class Name | Documentation | Intended Use |
---|---|---|
double, single | Floating-Point Numbers | |
int8, uint8, int16, uint16, int32, uint32, int64, uint64 | Integers |
|
char | Characters and Strings |
|
logical | Logical Operations | |
function_handle | Function Handles |
|
table | Tables |
|
struct | Structures |
|
cell | Cell Arrays |
|