# Binary Search ## Binary Search In computer science, binary search, also known as half-interval search, logarithmic search, or binary chop, is a search algorithm that finds the position of a target value within a sorted array. Binary search compares the target value to the middle element of the array; if they are unequal, the half in which the target cannot lie is eliminated and the search continues on the remaining half until it is successful. If the search ends with the remaining half being empty, the target is not in the array. ![Binary Search](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Binary_Search_Depiction.svg) ### Complexity **Time Complexity**: `O(log(n))` - since we split search area by two for every next iteration. ### References * [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binary_search_algorithm) * [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3YID7liBug\&index=29\&list=PLLXdhg_r2hKA7DPDsunoDZ-Z769jWn4R8) --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://bryan-guner.gitbook.io/my-docs/data-structures-and-algorithms/graph/binary-search.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.