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In mathematics (specifically linear algebra, operator theory, and functional analysis) as well as physics, a linear operator acting on an inner product space is called positive-semidefinite (or non-negative) if, for every (), , and , , where is the domain of .
Normal operators are important because the spectral theorem holds for them. The class of normal operators is well understood. Examples of normal operators are unitary operators: N* = N −1; Hermitian operators (i.e., self-adjoint operators): N* = N; skew-Hermitian operators: N* = −N; positive operators: N = MM* for some M (so N is self-adjoint).
If A is Hermitian and Ax, x ≥ 0 for every x, then A is called 'nonnegative', written A ≥ 0; if equality holds only when x = 0, then A is called 'positive'. The set of self adjoint operators admits a partial order, in which A ≥ B if A − B ≥ 0. If A has the form B*B for some B, then A is nonnegative; if B is invertible, then A is positive.
The Hermitian Laplacian matrix is a key tool in this context, as it is used to analyze the spectra of mixed graphs. [4] The Hermitian-adjacency matrix of a mixed graph is another important concept, as it is a Hermitian matrix that plays a role in studying the energies of mixed graphs. [5]
In mathematics, a symmetric matrix with real entries is positive-definite if the real number is positive for every nonzero real column vector, where is the row vector transpose of . [1] More generally, a Hermitian matrix (that is, a complex matrix equal to its conjugate transpose) is positive-definite if the real number is positive for every nonzero complex column vector , where denotes the ...
A further property of a Hermitian operator is that eigenfunctions corresponding to different eigenvalues are orthogonal. [1] In matrix form, operators allow real eigenvalues to be found, corresponding to measurements. Orthogonality allows a suitable basis set of vectors to represent the state of the quantum system.
In practical terms, having an essentially self-adjoint operator is almost as good as having a self-adjoint operator, since we merely need to take the closure to obtain a self-adjoint operator. In physics, the term Hermitian refers to symmetric as well as self-adjoint operators alike.
That is, the resulting spin operators for higher spin systems in three spatial dimensions, for arbitrarily large j, can be calculated using this spin operator and ladder operators. They can be found in Rotation group SO(3) § A note on Lie algebras. The analog formula to the above generalization of Euler's formula for Pauli matrices, the group ...