A nested function is a function that is created inside another function in MATLAB. The special thing about nested functions is that they can use and change variables that are defined in the parent function.
Syntax
These nested functions in MATLAB can easily access parent function variables. Here’s the syntax for defining nested functions in MATLAB:
Example Code
Below we have given a MATLAB code of a nested function:
x = 10;
nestedFunction1()
% Nested function 1
function nestedFunction1
disp('Inside nestedFunction1');
disp(x); % Accessing the variable x from the parent function
y = 20;
nestedFunction2()
% Nested function 2
function nestedFunction2
disp('Inside nestedFunction2');
disp(x); % Accessing the variable x from the parent and nested function 1
disp(y); % Accessing the variable y from nested function 1
end
end
end
Above, MATLAB defines the main function name as parentFunction, and it defines two nested functions: nestedFunction1 and nestedFunction2.
The nestedFunction1 displays the value of the variable x from the parent function and defines another variable y. After that, it will call the function name nestedFunction2.
The nestedFunction2 displays the value of x from both the parent function and nestedFunction1, as well as the value of y from nestedFunction1. After executing the code, the output will show the messages from both nested functions, along with the values of x and y.
Sharing Variables from Nested Functions to the Main Function
In MATLAB we can also define variables and share them from nested to main function.
This MATLAB code defines a function called parent that contains a nested function called nestedfunc. The code assigns a value of 10 to the variable x in nestedfunc, then increments it by 1 in the parent function and displays the result.
Nesting Multiple Functions Under the Same Parent Function
In MATLAB we can also include multiple functions within a single main parent function.
This MATLAB code defines a function called parent that contains two nested functions: nestedfunc1 and nestedfunc2. When the parent function is called, it executes both nested functions. nestedfunc1 prints the message Linuxhint.com, and nestedfunc2 prints the message “Welcome To Linuxhint”.
Sharing Variables Among Nested Functions
In MATLAB we can also define and share single-parent functions variables with two nested functions.
function parent
x = 5
nested1
nested2
function nested1
x = x*2;
end
function nested2
x = x+5;
end
disp(x)
end
This MATLAB code defines a function called parent that declares a variable x with a value of 5. It then contains two nested functions: nested1 and nested2.
In nested1, the value of x is multiplied by 2, but since x is not explicitly passed as an argument, it creates a new local variable x within nested1 instead of modifying the outer x variable.
In nested2, the value of x is incremented by 5, also creating a new local variable x within nested2.
After executing the nested functions, the code displays the value of the outer x variable, which remains unchanged at 5 because the modifications made in the nested functions only affect the local variables within those functions and not the outer variable.
Conclusion
The nested functions in MATLAB can organize code, enhance reusability, and improve performance. They allow functions to access and modify variables defined in their parent functions, enabling better code encapsulation. Nested functions reduced the need for global variables or passing multiple arguments between functions. This article covers various examples of nested functions in MATLAB.
