Math 1B03 - Assignment 3

Due: October 24, 11:59 PM (EDT)

Please submit scans / photographs of your full solutions (if handwritten) or pdfs (if typed) to
the Crowdmark dropbox by the above date. You are welcome to discuss these problems with your
classmates, but please include an acknowledgement naming any classmate who helped you.
 
1 4 5
1. Let A = 0 2 6. Determine for which values of x ∈ R the matrix xI3 − A is invertible.
 

0 0 3

2. An invertible n × n matrix A is called orthogonal if AT = A−1 .

(a) If A is orthogonal, what are the only possible values for det A?
(b) For each value given in part a, give an example of an orthogonal 2 × 2 matrix with that
determinant. Show that your examples are orthogonal.

3. Let A be an n × n singular matrix. Describe one way to construct a non-zero matrix B such
that AB = 0n (the n × n zero matrix).

4. Let A be an n × n matrix such that A31 = 0n .

(a) Show that In − A is invertible.

(b) Let B be an invertible n × n matrix. Is B − A invertible? Provide a proof if yes, and a
counterexample otherwise.

5. Let A be the n × n matrix with the following form:

 
1 1 1 1 ··· 1
1 2 2 2 · · · 2
 
 
1 2 3 3 · · · 3
A= .
 
1 2 3 4 · · · 4
. . . . .. 
. . . . ..
. . . . . .


1 2 3 4 ··· n

Find the determinant of A. Hint: do not try to use cofactor expansion. Instead use a clever
sequence of row reductions to simplify the matrix and track the effect these reductions have
on the determinant.