Binärsuche

Binärsuche, also known as binary search, is an efficient algorithm for finding an item from a sorted list of items. It works by repeatedly dividing in half the portion of the list that could contain the item, until you have narrowed down the possible locations to just one.

The process begins by comparing the target value to the middle element of the list. If the target value matches the middle element, its position in the list is returned. If the target value is less than the middle element, the search continues in the lower half of the list. Conversely, if the target value is greater than the middle element, the search continues in the upper half of the list. This process is repeated until the target value is found or the search space is exhausted.

The key requirement for binary search to function correctly is that the list must be sorted. If the list is not sorted, the algorithm may return an incorrect result or fail to find the item even if it is present. The time complexity of binary search is logarithmic, specifically O(log n), where n is the number of elements in the list. This makes it significantly faster than linear search (O(n)) for large datasets.

Binary search is widely used in computer science for tasks such as searching databases, implementing lookup tables, and finding elements in sorted arrays. Its efficiency and simplicity make it a fundamental algorithm for many applications.