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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).
In functional analysis and quantum information science, a positive operator-valued measure (POVM) is a measure whose values are positive semi-definite operators on a Hilbert space. POVMs are a generalization of projection-valued measures (PVM) and, correspondingly, quantum measurements described by POVMs are a generalization of quantum ...
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 Gram matrix is symmetric in the case the inner product is real-valued; it is Hermitian in the general, complex case by definition of an inner product. The Gram matrix is positive semidefinite, and every positive semidefinite matrix is the Gramian matrix for some set of vectors. The fact that the Gramian matrix is positive-semidefinite can ...
The off-diagonal elements are complex conjugates of each other (also called coherences); they are restricted in magnitude by the requirement that () be a positive semi-definite operator, see below. A density operator is a positive semi-definite, self-adjoint operator of trace one acting on the Hilbert space of the system.
Let denote the space of Hermitian matrices, + denote the set consisting of positive semi-definite Hermitian matrices and + + denote the set of positive definite Hermitian matrices. For operators on an infinite dimensional Hilbert space we require that they be trace class and self-adjoint, in which case similar definitions apply, but we discuss ...
The operators must yield real eigenvalues, since they are values which may come up as the result of the experiment. Mathematically this means the operators must be Hermitian . [ 1 ] The probability of each eigenvalue is related to the projection of the physical state on the subspace related to that eigenvalue.