Eigenvalues and eigenvectors: Eigenvalues and eigenvectors
Solving an eigenvalue problem
When you determine eigenvalues of a matrix and corresponding eigenspaces, then you solve an eigenvalue problem for a matrix. Below is an example.
Solve the eigenvalue problem for the matrix In other words, determine the eigenvalues and vectors.
The characteristic equation is We first rewrite the characteristic polynomial of :
To solve this quadratic equation, we can factor it in the following way: So, the eigenvalues are and .
Let be an eigenvalue of the matrix Then there must be a vector such that , this is, In other words, we must find the kernel of the matrix . We can do this through row reduction of the matrix This can be done as follows:
So the eigenspace for equals .
Let be an eigenvalue of the matrix Then there must be a vector such that , that is, In other words, we must find the kernel of the matrix . We can do this through row reduction of the matrix This can be done as follows:
So the eigenspace for equals .
If possible, we avoided fractions in the solution.
To solve this quadratic equation, we can factor it in the following way: So, the eigenvalues are and .
Let be an eigenvalue of the matrix Then there must be a vector such that , this is, In other words, we must find the kernel of the matrix . We can do this through row reduction of the matrix This can be done as follows:
So the eigenspace for equals .
Let be an eigenvalue of the matrix Then there must be a vector such that , that is, In other words, we must find the kernel of the matrix . We can do this through row reduction of the matrix This can be done as follows:
So the eigenspace for equals .
If possible, we avoided fractions in the solution.
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