Matrices

and Determinants
Inverses of Matrices
and Matrix Equations
 Introduction

In the preceding section, we saw that, when

the dimensions are appropriate, matrices
can be added, subtracted, and multiplied.

Here, we investigate division of matrices.

• With this operation, we can solve equations

that involve matrices.
The Inverse of a Matrix
Identity Matrices

First, we define identity matrices.

• These play the same role for matrix

multiplication as the number 1 does for
ordinary multiplication of numbers.

• That is,
1·a=a·1=a
for all numbers a.
 Identity Matrices

In the following definition, the term main

diagonal refers to the entries of a square
matrix whose row and column numbers
are the same.

• These entries stretch diagonally down

the matrix—from top left to bottom right.
Identity Matrix—Definition

The identity matrix In is the n x n

matrix for which:

• Each main diagonal entry is a 1.

• All other entries are 0.

 Identity Matrices

Thus, the
2 x 2, 3 x 3, and 4 x 4
identity matrices are:

1 0 0 0
1 0 0  
 1 0    0 1 0 0
I2    I   0 1 0  I 
 0 1
3 4
0 0 1 0
0 0 1  
0 0 0 1
 Identity Matrices

Identity matrices behave like the number 1

in the sense that

A · In = A and In · B = B

whenever these products are defined.

E.g. 1—Identity Matrices

The following matrix products show

how:

• Multiplying a matrix by an identity matrix

of the appropriate dimension leaves
the matrix unchanged.
E.g. 1—Identity Matrices

1 0  3 5 6  3 5 6
0 1  1 2 7    1 2 7 
    

 1 7 2
1
1 0 0   1 7 2
1

12 1 3  0 1 0   12 1 3 
    
 2 0 7  0 0 1  2 0 7 
 Inverse of a Matrix

If A and B are n x n matrices, and

if AB = BA = In, we say that B is
the inverse of A, and we write B = A–1.

• The concept of the inverse of a matrix

is analogous to that of the reciprocal
of a real number.
 Inverse of a Matrix—Definition

Let A be a square n x n matrix.

If there exists an n x n matrix A–1 with

the property that
AA–1 = A–1A = In

then we say that A–1 is the inverse of A.

E.g. 2—Verifying that a Matrix Is an Inverse

Verify that B is the inverse of A,

where:

 2 1  3 1
A  and B 
5 3   5 2 

• We perform the matrix multiplications

to show that AB = I and BA = I.
E.g. 2—Verifying that a Matrix Is an Inverse

2 1  3 1
5 3   5 2 
  
 2  3  1( 5) 2( 1)  1 2 
 
5  3  3( 5) 5( 1)  3  2 
1 0
 
 0 1
 E.g. 2—Verifying that a Matrix Is an Inverse

 3 1  2 1
 5 2  5 3 
  
 3  2  ( 1)5 3  1  ( 1)3 
 
( 5)2  2  5 ( 5)1  2  3 
1 0
 
 0 1
Finding the Inverse
of a 2 x 2 Matrix
Finding the Inverse of a 2 x 2 Matrix

The following rule provides a simple way

for finding the inverse of a 2 x 2 matrix,
when it exists.

• For larger matrices, there’s a more general

procedure for finding inverses—which we
consider later in this section.
 Inverse of a 2 x 2 Matrix

If
a b 
A 
c d 

then
1 1  d b 
A   
ad  bc  c a

• If ad – bc = 0, then A has no inverse.

 E.g. 3—Finding the Inverse of a 2 x 2 Matrix

Let A be the matrix

4 5
A 
2 3

Find A–1 and verify that

AA–1 = A–1A = I2
 E.g. 3—Finding the Inverse of a 2 x 2 Matrix

Using the rule for the inverse of a 2 x 2

matrix, we get:
1 1  3 5 
A   
4  3  5  2  2 4 
1  3 5   32  52 
    
2  2 4   1 2 
• To verify that this is indeed the inverse of A,
we calculate AA–1 and A–1A.
 E.g. 3—Finding the Inverse of a 2 x 2 Matrix

1  4 5   3
 2
5
AA    
2

 2 3   1 2 
 4  32  5( 1) 4(  52 )  5  2   1 0 
 3  
 2  2  3( 1) 2(  2 )  3  2  0 1
5

1  3
 2 
5
4 5
A A 2
  
 1 2   2 3 
 32  4  (  52 )2 32  5  (  52 )3   1 0 
    0 1
 ( 1)4  2  2 ( 1)5  2  3   
Determinant of a Matrix

The quantity ad – bc that appears in

the rule for calculating the inverse of
a 2 x 2 matrix is called the determinant
of the matrix.

• If the determinant is 0, the matrix does not

have an inverse (since we cannot divide by 0).
Finding the Inverse
of an n x n Matrix
 Finding the Inverse of an n x n Matrix

For 3 x 3 and larger square matrices,

the following technique provides
the most efficient way to calculate their
inverses.
 Finding the Inverse of an n x n Matrix

If A is an n x n matrix, we first construct the n

x 2n matrix that has the entries of A on the
left and of the identity matrix In on the right:

 a11 a12  a1n 1 0  0

a a  a2n 
 21 22 0 1  0
        
 
an1 an 2  ann 0 0  1
Finding the Inverse of an n x n Matrix

We then use the elementary row operations

on this new large matrix to change the left
side into the identity matrix.
• This means that we are changing the large matrix
to reduced row-echelon form.

 a11 a12  a1n 1 0  0

a a  a2n 
 21 22 0 1  0
        
 
an1 an 2  ann 0 0  1
Finding the Inverse of an n x n Matrix

The right side is transformed

automatically into A–1.

• We omit the proof of this fact.

 a11 a12  a1n 1 0  0

a a  a2n 
 21 22 0 1  0
        
 
an1 an 2  ann 0 0  1
 E.g. 4—Finding the Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix

Let A be the matrix

 1 2 4 

A   2 3 6  
 3 6 15 

(a) Find A–1.

(b) Verify that AA–1 = A–1A = I3.
E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

We begin with the 3 x 6 matrix whose left half

is A and whose right half is the identity matrix.

 1 2 4 1 0 0 
 2 3 6 0 1 0 
 
 3 6 15 0 0 1

• We then transform the left half of this new matrix

into the identity matrix—by performing the following
sequence of elementary row operations on the
entire new matrix.
E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

 1 2 4 1 0 0 
R2  2R1 R2
 
 0 1 
2 2 1 0 
R3  3R1 R3
0 0 3 3 0 1

 1 2 4 1 0 0 
 0 1 2 2 1 0 
1R

3 3

 
0 0 1 1 0 31 
E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

 1 0 0 3 2 0 
R1  2R2 R1
 
 0 1 2 2 1 0 
 
0 0 1 1 0 31 

 1 0 0 3 2 0 
R2  2R3 R2
   0 1 0 4 1  32 
 
0 0 1 1 0 3
1

E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

We have now transformed the left half

of this matrix into an identity matrix.

• This means we’ve put the entire matrix

in reduced row-echelon form.
 E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

Note that, to do this in as systematic a fashion

as possible, we first changed the elements
below the main diagonal to zeros—just as we
would if we were using Gaussian elimination.

 1 2 4 1 0 0   1 2 4 1 0 0 
 2 3 6 0 1 0  0 1 2 2 1 0 
   
 3 6 15 0 0 1 0 0 3 3 0 1
E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

Then, we changed each main diagonal

element to a 1 by multiplying by
the appropriate constant(s).

 1 2 4 1 0 0   1 2 4 1 0 0 
0 1 
2 2 1 0  0 1 2 2 1 0 
  
0 0 3 3 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 31 
E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

Finally, we completed the process

by changing the remaining entries
on the left side to zeros.

 1 0 0 3 2 0   1 0 0 3 2 0 
0 1 2 2 1 0  0 1 0 4 1  2 
   3

0 0 1 1 0 31  0 0 1 1 0 3
1

E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (a)

The right half is now A–1.

 3 2 0 
1  2
A   4 1  3 
 1 0 1
3
E.g. 4—Inverse of a 3 x 3 Matrix Example (b)

We calculate AA–1 and A–1A, and verify that

both products give the identity matrix I3.

 1 2 4   3 2 0  1 0 0
 
AA1   2 3 6   4 1  32   0 1 0 
 3 6 15   1 0 1
3
0 0 1

 3 2 0   1 2 4   1 0 0 
 
A1A   4 1  32   2 3 6   0 1 0 
 1 0 1
3
3 6 15  0 0 1
E.g. 5—Matrix that Does Not Have an Inverse

Find the inverse of the matrix.

2 3 7 
1 2 7 
 
 1 1 4 
E.g. 5—Matrix that Does Not Have an Inverse

2 3 7 1 0 0  1 2 7 0 1 0 
 1 2 7 0 1 0  R  R 2 3 7 1 0 0 
   
1 2

 1 1 4 0 0 1  1 1 4 0 0 1
E.g. 5—Matrix that Does Not Have an Inverse

1 2 7 0 0
1
R2  2R1 R2
 
 0 7 21 1 2 0  
R3 R1 R3
0 1  3 0 1 1 

1 2 7 0 1 0
 71 R2
 0 1 3  71 2
0
 7
0 1 3 0 1 1
E.g. 5—Matrix that Does Not Have an Inverse

 1 0 1 2
7
3
7
0
R3 R2 R3
   0 1 3  1
1 0 
R1  2R2 R1  7 
0 0 0  7
1
 7 1
5

• At this point, we would like to change the 0

in the (3, 3) position of this matrix to a 1,
without changing the zeros in the (3, 1) and (3, 2)
positions.
E.g. 5—Matrix that Does Not Have an Inverse

 1 0 1 2
7
3
7
0
R3 R2 R3
   0 1 3  1
1 0 
R1  2R2 R1  7 
0 0 0  7
1
 7 1
5

• However, there is no way to accomplish this.

• No matter what multiple of rows 1 and/or 2 we add

to row 3, we can’t change the third zero in row 3
without changing the first or second zero as well.
E.g. 5—Matrix that Does Not Have an Inverse

 1 0 1 2
7
3
7 0
R3 R2 R3
   0 1 3  1 2
0 
R1  2R2 R1  7 7

0 0 0  71  5
7 1

• Thus, we cannot change the left half

to the identity matrix.

• So, the original matrix doesn’t have an inverse.

 Matrix that Does Not Have an Inverse

If we encounter a row of zeros on

the left when trying to find an inverse—as
in Example 5—then the original matrix
does not have an inverse.
Singular Matrix

• A matrix that has

no inverse is called
singular.
Matrix Equations
 Matrix Equations

For example, the system

 x  2y  4z  7

 2 x  3 y  6z  5
3 x  6 y  15z  0

is equivalent to the
matrix equation
 1 2 4   x  7 
 2 3 6   y   5 
    
 3 6 15   z  0 
 Coefficient Matrix

If we let
 1 2 4  x 7 

A   2 3 6   
X  y   
B  5  
 3 6 15   z  0 

this matrix equation can be written as:

AX = B

• The matrix A is called the coefficient matrix.

Matrix Equations

We solve this matrix equation by multiplying

each side by the inverse of A—provided
the inverse exists.
AX = B
A–1(AX) = A–1B
(A–1A)X = A–1B Associative Property
I3X = A–1B Property of Inverses
X = A–1B
Matrix Equations

In Example 4, we showed that:

 3 2 0
1  2
A   4 1  3 
 1 0 1
3
Matrix Equations

So, from X = A–1B, we have:

 x   3 2 0  7   11
 y    4 1  2  5    23 
   3   
 z   1 0 1 
3 
0  7 

• Thus, x = –11, y = –23, z = 7

is the solution of the original system.
Matrix Equations

We have proved that the matrix

equation
AX = B

can be solved by the following method.

 Solving a Matrix Equation

Let:
• A be a square n x n matrix that has an inverse A–1.
• X be a variable matrix, with n rows.
• B be a known matrix, with n rows.

Then, the solution of the matrix equation

AX = B
is given by:
X = A–1B
E.g. 6—Solving a System Using a Matrix Inverse

2 x  5 y  15

3 x  6 y  36
(a) Write the system of equations
as a matrix equation.

(b) Solve the system by solving

the matrix equation.
E.g. 6—Using a Matrix Inverse Example (a)

We write the system as a matrix

equation of the form AX = B:

2 5   x  15 
3 6   y   36 
    
 E.g. 6—Using a Matrix Inverse Example (b)

Using the rule for finding the inverse of

a 2 x 2 matrix, we get:
1
2 5 
1 1  6 ( 5)
A     
3 6  2( 6)  ( 5)3  3 2 
1  6 5 
  
3  3 2
 2 5

 3

 1
2
3 
 E.g. 6—Using a Matrix Inverse Example (b)

Multiplying each side of the matrix equation

by the inverse matrix, we get:

 x   2 5
 15  30 
 y    1     
3

 36   9 
2
   3

• Thus, x = 30 and y = 9.
Modeling with Matrix Equations
Applications

Suppose we need to solve several

systems of equations with the same
coefficient matrix.

• Then, converting the systems to matrix equations

provides an efficient way to obtain the solutions.

• We only need to find the inverse of the coefficient

matrix once.
Applications

This procedure is particularly convenient

if we use a graphing calculator to
perform the matrix operations—as in
the next example.
 E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

A pet-store owner feeds his hamsters

and gerbils different mixtures of three types
of rodent food:
KayDee Food, Pet Pellets, Rodent Chow

• He wishes to feed his animals the correct amount

of each brand to satisfy their daily requirements
for protein, fat, and carbohydrates exactly.
E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

Suppose that each day:

• Hamsters require
340 mg of protein
280 mg of fat
440 mg of carbohydrates
• Gerbils need
480 mg of protein
360 mg of fat
680 mg of carbohydrates
E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

The amount of each nutrient (in mg)

in one gram of each brand is given here.

• How many grams of each food should

the storekeeper feed his hamsters and gerbils
daily to satisfy their nutrient requirements?
 E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

We let x1, x2, and x3 be the respective

amounts (in grams) of KayDee Food, Pet
Pellets, and Rodent Chow that the hamsters
should eat.

We let y1, y2, and y3 be the corresponding

amounts for the gerbils.
E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

Then, we want to solve the matrix equations

10 0 20   x1  340 
10 20 10   x    280  Hamster eqn.
  2  
 5 10 30   x3   440 

10 0 20   y1   480 
10 20 10   y   360  Gerbil eqn.
  2  
 5 10 30   y 3   680 
 E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

Let:
10 0 20  340   480 
    
A  10 20 10  B   280  C  360  
 5 10 30   440   680 

 x1   y1 

X   x2   
Y  y2  
 x3   y 3 
E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

Then, we can write these matrix equations

as:
AX = B Hamster eqn.
AY = C Gerbil eqn.

• We want to solve for X and Y.

• So, we multiply both sides of each equation
by A–1, the inverse of the coefficient matrix.
E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

We could find A–1 by hand.

However, it is more convenient to use

a graphing calculator.
 E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

From the calculator displays,

we see: 10  8
1
X A B3   1 
Y A C4 
12  20 
 E.g. 7—Modeling Nutritional Requirements

Daily, each hamster should be fed:

• 10 g of KayDee Food.
• 3 g of Pet Pellets.
• 12 g of Rodent Chow.

Daily, each gerbil should be fed:

• 8 g of KayDee Food.
• 4 g of Pet Pellets.
• 20 g of Rodent Chow.