8. Data Types

In this lesson you will learn:

1. Data types in MATLAB.
2. Data types Conversion.
3. Determination of Data Types.

MATLAB does not require any type declaration or dimension statements. Whenever MATLAB encounters a new variable name, it creates the variable and allocates appropriate memory space. If the variable already exists, then MATLAB replaces the original content with new content and allocates new storage space, where necessary. For example, Total = 42
The above statement creates a 1-by-1 matrix named ‘Total’ and stores the value 42 in it.

1. Data Types Available in MATLAB:

MATLAB provides 15 fundamental data types. Every data type stores data that is in the form of a matrix or array. The size of this matrix or array is a minimum of 0-by-0 and this can grow up to a matrix or array of any size.

The following table shows the most commonly used data types in MATLAB:

int8	8-bit signed integer
uint8	8-bit unsigned integer
int16	16-bit signed integer
uint16	16-bit unsigned integer
int32	32-bit signed integer
uint32	32-bit unsigned integer
int64	64-bit signed integer
uint64	64-bit unsigned integer
single	single precision numerical data
double	double precision numerical data
logical	logical values of 1 or 0, represent true and false respectively
char	character data (strings are stored as vector of characters)
cell array	array of indexed cells, each capable of storing an array of a different dimension and data type
structure	C-like structures, each structure having named fields capable of storing an array of a different dimension and data type
user classes	objects constructed from a user-defined class
java classes	objects constructed from a Java class
function handle	pointer to a function

Example:

Write the following code in script file

str = 'Hello World!'
n = 2345
d = double(n)
un = uint32(789.50)
rn = 5678.92347
c = int32(rn)

and see what will you will get

2. Data Types Conversions in MATLAB:

MATLAB provides various functions for converting from one data type to another. Some of data types are shown in figure below.

For more visit the link below

http://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/data-type-conversion.html