On the left side of Figure 1, we build a table with values of f( x,y) based on x and y values between -1 and 1 in increments of. Surface Chart ExampleĮxample 1: Create a surface chart for the function f( x,y) = x 2 + y 2 – xy We also show how to derive the table of data values for the function f( x,y) where we have the formula for this function.
We will use such charts to plot functions of the form z = f( x,y), as a three-dimensional counterpart to scatter plots for functions of the form y = f( x). See Excel Charts for information about Excel’s charting capabilities. Excel’s support for such charts is quite basic and limited, but it can be useful.
Data is represented as a two-dimensional table, where the row headings represent the x-axis values, the column headings represent the y-axis values and the entries in the table represent the z-axis values. A surface chart is a 3-dimensional representation of data.