Bilinear Forms

Tim Campion
January 28, 2011

1 Terminology
Let V be a finite-dimensional vector space over a field k of characteristic 6= 2
and Q ∈ V ∗ ⊗ V ∗ a bilinear form. We say that V is a Q-module.

Nondegeneracy Q induces a map Q† : V → V ∗ by v 7→ Q(v, −). V is

called nondegenerate if Q† is an isomorphism. The largest-dimension of a
subspace of V on which V is nondegenerate is called its rank. Note that a
subspace of a nondegenerate space need not be nondegenerate.

Symmetry (Q, V ) is called braided if there is  ∈ k such that Q(v, w) =

Q(w, v) for all v, w ∈ V . The case  = 1 is called symmetric; the case  = −1
is called alternating; the case  = 0 is the trivial module– we will generally
silently exclude this case unless we explicitly mention it.
If char k = 2, then the notions of symmetric and alternating coincide. If
char k 6= 2, then V is alternating if and only if Q(v, v) = 0 for all v ∈ V .
For Q(v, v) = −Q(v, v) implies 2Q(v, v) = 0; since char k 6= 2, this implies
Q(v, v) = 0. Conversely, we have

0 = Q(v+w, v+w) = Q(v, v)+Q(v, w)+Q(w, v)+Q(w, w) = Q(v, w)+Q(w, v)

Any subspace of an -braided space is -braided, in contrast to the fact

that a subspace of a nondegenerate space need not be nondegenerate. A
1-dimensional alternating space in char k 6= 2 is degenerate; we will shortly
see that this is true of all odd-dimensional alternating spaces.

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Orthogonality If Q(v, w) = 0 then we write v ⊥ w and say v is left
orthogonal to w. The left orthogonal complement W ⊥ of a subspace W ⊂
V is the set of all vectors left orthogonal to every element of W . If v is
left orthogonal to w for all w ∈ V , then v is called left isotropic. Q is
nondegenerate iff none of its elements are isotropic. 1
If V is nondegenerate and W ⊂ V , then dim W ⊥ = dim V − dim W
because Q† is an isomorphism; the image of W has the same dimension as
W , and so ker Q† |W = W ⊥ has the complementary dimension in V . 2
All of these notions can, of course be defined on the right, too. If V is
braided, then left orthogonal is the same as right orthogonal; left isotropic is
the same as right isotropic. For if Q(v, w) = ±Q(w, v), then Q(v, w) = 0 if
and only if Q(w, v) = 0. A space where left and right orthogonality coincide
is called ambidextrous.

Bases A basis {e1 , . . . , en } for V is called sparse if for each ei there is at

most one eji with Q(ei , eji ) 6= 0 and moreover Q(ek , ei ) = 0 for k 6= ji .
A basis {e1 , . . . , en } for V is called an orthogonal basis if Q(ei , ej ) = 0 for
i 6= j. A basis {e1 , . . . , en , f1 , . . . , fn } for V is called symplectic if Q(ei , fj ) =
−Q(fj , ei ) = δij . Orthogonal and symplectic bases are sparse.
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It suffices to consider left isotropy alone, because Q is nondegenerate iff its matrix is
invertible; but inverses of square matrices can have only 2-sided inverses.
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Linear algebra fact: Let V be a finite dimensional vector space. Then W ⊂ V ∗ is
uniquely determined by ker W , by which I mean the intersection of the kernels of all
elements of W , and they are complementary under any identification V ∼ = V ∗ sending
ker W to a comlementary subspace of W , of which there exists at least one. This is a
special case of the Nullstellensatz... Here’s an algorithmic way to do it (I would like to
have a more conceptual way, but perhaps that’s not in the cards after all... No, I still think
it might be.): choose a basis for ker W ; we will extend it to one on V . Let 0 = Λ0 ⊂ V ∗ , and
inductively choose vi ∈ ker Λ0 and λi ∈ W such that λi (vi ) 6= 0, setting Λi = Λi−1 ∪ {λi }.
This continues until ker Λ = ker W . Then we can apply Gram-Schmidt: normalize so that
λi (vi ) = 1. Set µ1 = λ1 ; we P have µ1 (vj ) = δ1j . Inductively suppose that λi vj = δij for
i < k. Then let µk = λk − i<k λk (vi )µi . Then µk (vi ) = δik; this holds for i ≥ k because
it was true of λk and all the µi with i < k in the definition (since we chose vj to be in
ker λi for i < j); it holds for i < k because we subtracted off those components. Then
µ1 , . . . , µn is a dual basis to v1 , . . . , vn (where
P we extended with a basis on W too). So if
λ(W ) = 0, then write λ(vi ) = ci . Then λ = ci µi is in W .

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2 Decomposition of Bilinear Forms
Lemma 1. Let (Q, V ) be a nondegenerate bilinear module and e ∈ V . If
v ∈ e⊥ is left-isotropic in e⊥ , then v is a scalar multiple of e.

Proof. Since V is nondegenerate, e⊥ is of codimension 1. Pick f ∈ V \e⊥ , a

complement. Since V is nondegenerate, we can normalize f so that Q(e, f ) =
1. If e0 ∈ e⊥ is left-isotropic, then by the nondegeneracy of V we must have
Q(e0 , f ) = c 6= 0. Then W (e0 −ce, f ) = 0. Since e0 −ce is also left-isotropic on
e⊥ , we see that e0 −ce is in fact left-isotropic on V . Since V is nondegenerate,
in fact e0 = ce.
So if e 6∈ e⊥ , then e⊥ is nondegenerate, while if e ∈ e⊥ in an ambidextrous
space, then any complementary subspace to e in e⊥ is nondegenerate (since if
e0 were isotropic in W , then it would also be isotropic in e⊥ , as Q(e0 , e) = 0).

Lemma 2. Let (Q, V ) be a nondegenerate module. Let e, f ∈ V and W ⊂ e⊥ .

If W is nondegenerate and there is a sparse basis for W , then there exists
f 0 ∈ W ⊥ with f − f 0 ∈ e⊥ .

Proof. Let w1 , . . . , wn be a sparse basis for W , and let wi0 be the partner
of wi .PSince W is nondegenerate, we have Q(wi , wi0 ) 6= 0 for all i. Let
f0 = i ωi wi for scalars ωi we are about to set. Certainly f − f 0 ∈ e⊥ .
Q(wi ,f )
Then Q(wi , f 0 ) = Q(wi , f ) + i ωi0 Q(wi , wi0 ). So let ωi = − Q(w
P
i ,wi0 )
; then
0 ⊥
f ∈W .

Theorem 3. An ambidextrous module (Q, V ) has a sparse basis.

Proof. Let (Q, V ) be an -braided module, and let e ∈ V . First consider

the case that e 6∈ e⊥ . By Lemma 1, e⊥ is nondegenerate. By induction (the
theorem holds if dim V = 0, 1) there is a sparse basis B for e⊥ . Adjoining e
to this basis provides a sparse basis for V , with e being its own partner.
Now consider the case that e ∈ e⊥ . By Lemma 1, if W ⊂ e⊥ is com-
plementary to e, then W is nondegenerate. By induction, there is a sparse
basis B for W . Since V is nondegenerate, there is f ∈ V with Q(e, f ) = 1;
since f 6∈ e⊥ , we have V = e⊥ ⊕ f (abstractly, not orthogonally). By Lemma
2, there is f 0 ∈ W ⊥ with f 0 − f ∈ e⊥ . Then Q(e, f 0 ) = Q(e, f ) = 1 while
Q(b, f ) = 0 for any b ∈ B. Since V is ambidextrous, we also have Q(f, b) = 0,
so adjoining e, f 0 to B provides a sparse basis for V .

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Corollary 4. A symmetric module has an orthogonal basis. An alternating
module has a symplectic basis.
Proof. The alternating case is clear: take a sparse basis, the partner of a
basis vector is itself only if that vector is isotropic. Otherwise, we have a
partition of the basis into {e1 , . . . , en , f1 , . . . , fn } where ei , fi are partners; any
partners with Q(ei , fi ) = 0 are isotropic and can be reassigned to themselves.
Normalize fi so that Q(ei , fi ) = 1; since V is alternating then Q(fi , ei ) = −1.
So this is a symplectic basis.
In the symmetric case, we can again separate out the isotropic vectors. Of
the remaining vectors, some are self-partnered, and hence already orthogonal.
The others can be normalized as in the alternating case, except now we have
Q(ei , fi ) = Q(fi , ei ) = 1. Then the vectors vi = ei + fi , wi = ei − fi have
Q(vi , wi ) = 0 and Q(vi , vi ) = 2, Q(wi , wi ) = −2, and span the same space
as ei , fi (recall char k 6= 2). So these along with the self-partners provide an
orthogonal basis.
Theorem 5. Any bilinear module can be decomposed as orthogonal the di-
rect sum of a nondegenerate symmetric module, a nondegenerate alternating
module, and uniformly isotropic module.
Proof. If V is alternating, we are done. Otherwise, there is an element e ∈ V
which is not self-orthogonal. Then e⊥ is nondegenerate by Lemma 1, and
there is a sparse basis for e⊥ by Corollary 4. By Lemma 2, there is e0
orthogonal to e⊥ with e − e0 ∈ e⊥ . Then adjoining e0 to the sparse basis
on e⊥ continues to provide a sparse basis, whether Q(e0 , e0 ) = 0 (and we
expand the uniformly zero part) or whether Q(e0 , e0 ) 6= 0 (and we expand the
symmetric part).

3 Invariants of Bilinear Forms

The alternating and symmetric and trivial parts of a bilinear form are in-
variant, because Q|W is -braided iff Q(v, w) = 12 (Q|W (v, w) + Q|W (w, v))
for all v, w ∈ W (including the  = ±1, 0).
Trivial modules have only one invariant: dimension.
It is immediate from the above discussion that, up to isomorphism, there
is a unique nondegenerate alternating form of rank 2n for each n ∈ N, and it
is the direct sum of n copies of the 2-dimensional alternating form; degenerate
alternating forms simply tack on direct sums of the trivial form.

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 Symmetric modules are more complicated. We’ve seen that they can
be diagonalized; dimensions can be stretched so that the diagonal entries
2 2
are defined up to isomorphism only mod k × ; in particular if k × = k ×
(for instance, if k is algebraically closed), then all nondegenerate symmetric
modules of the same rank are isomorphic. But change of basis multiplies the
2
determinant by the square of the basis matrix, so the determinant in k × /k ×
is an invariant. Over the reals, the signature is another invariant. In other
fields, other invariants are used.

4 Automorphisms of Bilinear Modules

This is the great can of worms! This is essentially equivalent to the study of
semisimple Lie groups (or algebraic groups)!