3-8-2013

Bases for Vector Spaces

A set is independent if, roughly speaking, there is no redundancy in the set: You cant build any
vector in the set as a linear combination of the others. A set spans if you can build everything in the
vector space as linear combinations of vectors in the set. Putting these two ideas together, a basis is an
independent spanning set: A set with no redundancy out of which you can build everything.
Definition. Let V be an F -vector space. A subset B of V is a basis if it is linearly independent and spans
V.
The number of elements in a basis for V is called the dimension of V , and is denoted dim V .
Someone could object at this point that I dont know that two bases for V might not have different
numbers of elements in which case the dimension of V wouldnt make sense. Ill show later that this cant
happen.

Example. Consider the standard basis for R3 :

0
0
1
0,1,0

1
0
0

As the name implies, this set is a basis.

I observed earlier that this set is independent. Moreover,




1
a
0
0
b = a 0 + b 1 + c 0.
c
0
0
1

Therefore, every vector in R3 can be written as a linear combination of the vectors, so the set also spans.
Hence

Example. The following set is a basis for R3 over R:

0
1
1
1,1,0

0
1
1
To see this, row reduce:

1 0 1
1 0 0
1 1 0 0 1 0
0 1 1
0 0 1

This shows two things. First, since the matrix row reduces to the identity, the algorithm for testing
independence shows that theyre independent.
Second, since the matrix row reduces to the identity, the following system has a unique solution for
every (a, b, c):

a
x
1 0 1
1 1 0y = b .
c
z
0 1 1
But this matrix equation can be written as



a
1
0
1
x 1 + y 1 + z 0 = b .
c
1
1
0
1

In other words, any vector (a, b, c) R3 can be written as a linear combination of the given vectors:
The given vectors span R3 .
Hence, the given set of vectors is a basis for R3 .

The following result is clear from the last example.

Proposition. Let F be a field. {v1 , v2 , . . . , vn } is a basis for F n if and only if

v1

v2

vn

row reduces to the identity.

A basis for V is a spanning set for V , so every vector in V can be written as a linear combination of
basis elements. The next result says that such a linear combination is unique.
Lemma. Let {v1 , v2 , . . . , vn } be a basis for a vector space V . Every v V can be written in exactly one way
as
v = a1 v1 + a2 v2 + + an vn , ai F.
Proof. Let v V . Since {v1 , v2 , . . . , vn } spans V , I can write
v = a1 v1 + a2 v2 + + an vn
for some scalars a1 , a2 , . . . , an .
Suppose that there is another way to do this:
v = b1 v1 + b2 v2 + + bn vn .
Then
a1 v1 + a2 v2 + + an vn = b1 v1 + b2 v2 + + bn vn ,
so
(a1 b1 )v1 + (a2 b2 )v2 + + (an bn )vn = 0.
Since {v1 , v2 , . . . , vn } is independent,
a1 b1 = 0, a2 b2 = 0, . . . , an bn = 0.
Therefore,
a1 = b1 , a2 = b2 , . . . , an = bn .
That is, the two linear combinations were actually the same. This proves that theres only one way to
write v as a linear combination of the vi s.
I want to show that two bases for a vector space must have the same number of elements. I need some
preliminary results, which are important in their own right.
Lemma. If A is an m n matrix with m < n, the system Ax = 0 has nontrivial solutions.
Proof. Write

a11
a21
A=
...

am1

a12
a22
..
.

am2

amn

a1n
a2n
.
..
.

The condition m < n means that the system

a11
a21
.
..

am1

x1
a1n
0
a2n x2 0
. =.
..
. .. ..
0
xn
amn

a12
a22
..
.
am2

has more unknowns than equations.

If A row reduces to a row reduced echelon matrix R, then R can have at most m leading coefficients.
Therefore, some of the variables x1 , x2 , . . . , xn will be free variables (parameters); if I assign nonzero values
to the free variables (e.g. by setting all of them equal to 1), the resulting solution will be nontrivial.
Theorem. Let {v1 , v2 , . . . , vn } be a basis for a vector space V .
(a) Any subset of V with more than n elements is dependent.
(b) Any subset of V with fewer than n elements cannot span.
Proof. (a) Suppose {w1 , w2 , . . . , wm } is a subset of V , and that m > n. I want to show that {w1 , w2 , . . . , wm }
is dependent.
Write each w as a linear combination of the vs:
w1 = a11 v1 + a12 v2 + + a1n vn
w2 = a21 v1 + a22 v2 + + a2n vn
..
.
wm = am1 v1 + am2 v2 + + amn vn
A little bit of thought shows that this can be represented as the following matrix equation:

w1

w2

wm = v1

v2

a11
a12
vn
...

a1n

a21
a22
..
.

a2n

amn

am1
am2
.
..
.

Since m > n, the matrix of as has more columns than rows. Therefore, the system
a11
a12
.
..

a1n

a21
a22
..
.

a2n

amn

am1
am2

..
.

x1
0
x2 0
=.
..
. ..
0
xm

has a nontrivial solution x1 = b1 , x2 = b2 , . . . xm = bm . That is, not all the bs are 0, but
a11
a12
.
..

a1n

a21
a22
..
.

a2n

amn

am1
am2

..
.

b1
0
b2 0
= . .
..
. ..
0
bm

But then

w1

w2

b1

b2
= v1
wm
.
..

bm

v2

a11
a12
vn
...

a1n

a21
a22
..
.

a2n

amn

am1
am2

..
.

b1
b2
,
..
.

bm

so

w1

w2

wm

b1
0
b2 0
= . .
..
. ..
0
bm

In equation form,
b1 w1 + b2 w2 + + bm wm = 0.
This is a nontrivial linear combination of the ws which adds up to 0, so the ws are dependent.
(b) Suppose that {w1 , w2 , . . . , wm } is a set of vectors in V and m < n. I want to show that {w1 , w2 , . . . , wm }
does not span V .
Suppose on the contrary that the ws span V . Then each v can be written as a linear combination of
the ws:
v1 = a11 w1 + a12 w2 + + a1m wm
v2 = a21 w1 + a22 w2 + + a2m wm
..
.
vn = an1 w1 + an2 w2 + + anm wm
In matrix form, this is

v1

v2

vn = w1

w2

wm

a11
a12
..
.

a21
a22
..
.

a1m

a2m

anm

an1
an2
.
..
.

Since n > m, the coefficient matrix has more columns than rows. Hence, the system
a11
a12
.
..

a1m

a21
a22
..
.
a2m

x1
an1
0
an2 x2 0
. =.
..
. .. ..
0
xn
anm

has a nontrivial solution x1 = b1 , x2 = b2 , . . . xn = bn :

a11
a12
.
..

a1m

a21
a22
..
.
a2m

an1
b1
0
an2 b2 0
. = . .
..
. .. ..
0
anm
bn

Multiplying the v and w equation on the right by the b-vector gives

v1

v2

b1

b2
= w1
vn
.
..

bn

so

v1

v2

w2

wm

a11
a12
..
.

a21
a22
..
.

a1m

a2m

b1
0
b2 0

vn
... = ... .

0
bn

b1
an1
an2 b2
. ,
..
. ..
bn
anm

In equation form, this is

b1 v1 + b2 v2 + + bn vn = 0.
Since not all the bs are 0, this is a nontrivial linear combination of the vs which adds up to 0
contradicting the independence of the vs.
This contradiction means that the ws cant span after all.

Example. The standard basis for R3 contains 3 vectors.

Hence, the set of four vectors

0
1
2
1
0 , 3 , 1 , 11

7
1
10
1
cannot be independent and I know this without doing any computation.
Likewise, the set of two vectors

3
2
1 ,1

5
2
cannot span R3 .

Corollary. If {v1 , . . . , vn } is a basis for a vector space V , then every basis for V has n elements.
Proof. If {w1 , . . . , wm } is another basis for V , then m cant be less than n or {w1 , . . . , wm } couldnt span.
Likewise, m cant be greater than n or {w1 , . . . , wm } couldnt be independent. Therefore, m = n.
The Corollary shows that the dimension of a finite-dimensional vector space is well-defined that is, in
a finite-dimensional vector space, any two bases have the same number of elements. This is true in general;
Ill state the relevant results without proof.
(a) Every vector space has a basis. The proof requires a set-theoretic result called Zorns Lemma.
(b) Two bases for any vector space have the same number of elements. Specifically, if B and C are bases
for a vector space V , there is a bijective function f : B C.
Ive already given one example of an infinite basis:
{1, x, x2 , x3 , . . .}.
This set is a basis for the vector space R[x] of polynomials with real coefficients over the field of real
numbers.
The next result shows that, in principle, you can construct a basis by:
(a) Starting with an independent set and adding vectors.
(b) Starting with a spanning set and removing vectors.
Theorem. Let V be a vector space.
(a) Any set of independent vectors is a subset of a basis for V .
(b) Any spanning set for V contains a subset which is a basis.
5

Part (a) means that if S is an independent set, then there is a basis T such that S T . (If S was a
basis to begin with, then S = T .) Part (b) means that if S is a spanning set, then there is a basis T such
that T S.
Proof. Ill only give the proof in the case where V has finite dimension n, though it is true for any vector
space.
(a) Let {v1 , . . . , vm } be independent. If this set spans V , its a basis, and Im done. Otherwise, there is a
vector v V which is not in the span of {v1 , . . . , vm }.
I claim that {v, v1 , . . . , vm } is independent. Suppose
av + a1 v1 + + am vm = 0.
Suppose a 6= 0. Then I can write
1
v = (a1 v1 + + am vm ) .
a
Since v has been expressed as a linear combination of the vk s, its in the span of the vk s, contrary to
assumption. Therefore, this case is ruled out.
The only other possibility is a = 0. Then a1 v1 + + am vm = 0, so independence of the vk s implies
a1 = = am = 0. Therefore, {v, v1 , . . . , vm } is independent.
I can continue adding vectors in this way until I get a set which is independent and spans a basis.
The process must terminate, since no independent set in V can have more than n elements.
(b) Suppose {v1 , . . . , vm } spans V . I want to show that some subset of {v1 , . . . , vm } is a basis.
If {v1 , . . . , vm } is independent, its a basis, and Im done. Otherwise, there is a linear combination
a1 v1 + + am vm = 0,
where at least one a is nonzero.
Assume without loss of generality that a1 6= 0. Then
v1 =

1
(a2 v2 + + am vm ) .
a1

Since v1 is a linear combination of the other vs, I can remove it and still have a set which spans V :
V = (v2 , . . . , vm ).
I continue throwing out vectors in this way until I reach a set which spans and is independent a basis.
The process must terminate, because no set containing fewer than n vectors can span V .
Its possible to carry out the adding vectors and removing vectors procedures in some specific cases.
The algorithms are related to those for finding bases for the row space and column space of a matrix,
which Ill discuss later.
Suppose you know a basis should have n elements, and you have a set S with n elements (the right
number). To show S is a basis, you only need to check either that it is independent or that it spans not
both. Ill justify this statement, then show by example how you can use it. I need a preliminary result.
Proposition. Let V be a finite dimensional vector space over a field F , and let W be a subspace of V . If
dim W = dim V , then V = W .
Proof. Suppose dim W = dim V = n, but V 6= W . Ill show that this leads to a contradiction.
Let {x1 , x2 , . . . , xn } be a basis for W . Suppose this is not a basis for V . Since its an independent set,
the previous result shows that I can add vectors y1 , y2 , . . . ym to make a basis for V :
{x1 , x2 , . . . , xn , y1 , y2 , . . . ym }.
6

But this is a basis for V with more than n elements, which is impossible.
Therefore, {x1 , x2 , . . . , xn } is also a basis for V . Let x V . Since {x1 , x2 , . . . , xn } spans V , I can write
x as a linear combination of the elements of {x1 , x2 , . . . , xn }:
x = a 1 x1 + a 2 x2 + + a n xn ,

ai F.

But since x1 , x2 , . . . xn are in W and W is a subspace, any linear combination of x1 , x2 , . . . xn must be

in W . Thus, x W .
Since x was an arbitrary element of V , I get V W , so W = V .
You might be thinking that this result is obvious: W and V have the same dimension, and you cant
have one thing inside another, with both things having the same size, unless the things are equal. This
is intuitively what is going on here, but this kind of intuitive reasoning doesnt always work. For example,
the even integers are a subset of the integers and, as infinite sets, both are of the same order of infinity
(cardinality). But the even integers arent all of the integers: There are odd integers as well.
Corollary. Let S be a set of n vectors in an n-dimensional vector space V .
(a) If S is independent, then S is a basis for V .
(b) If S spans V , then S is a basis for V .
Proof. (a) Suppose S is independent. Consider W , the span of S. Then S is independent and spans W , so
S is a basis for W . Since S has n elements, dim W = n. But W V and dim V = n. By the preceding
result, V = W .
Hence, S spans V , and S is a basis for V .
(b) Suppose S spans V . Suppose S is not independent. By an earlier result, I can remove some elements of
S to get a set T which is a basis for V . But now I have a basis T for V with fewer than n elements (since I
removed elements from S, which had n elements).
This is a contradiction, and hence S must be independent.

Example. Show that the following set is a basis for R3 :

2
1
1
1, 0 ,1 .

1
1
0
Since I have 3 vectors in R3 (which has dimension 3), I only need to show that the set is independent.
So suppose

0
2
1
1
x 1 + y 0 + z 1 = 0.
0
1
1
0
This gives the matrix equation

0
x
1 1 2
1 0 1y = 0.
z
0 1 1
0

Solve the system by row-reduction:

1 1 2 0
1 0 1 0
0 1 1 0

1 0 0 0
0 1 0 0
0 0 1 0

The solution is x = 0, y = 0, and z = 0. Hence, the set is independent, and the preceding result shows
that its a basis.
Note: You could alternatively show that the set spans. To do this, youd show that for an arbitrary
(a, b, c) R3 , you can solve the following system for x, y, and z in terms of a, b, and c:

a
2
1
1
x 1 + y 0 + z 1 = b .
c
1
1
0
You can see its almost the same thing, but this will be a little messier than checking independence.

c 2013 by Bruce Ikenaga