VECTOR SPACE

4.1 Vectors

Definition and Representation

  • Vector: A quantity having both magnitude and direction. Represented in 2-space as:

    • u or AB, starting from point A(a1, a2) to point B(b1, b2).

  • Notation:

    • Vectors are usually denoted by lowercase letters (e.g., u, v).

    • Components of a vector in 2-space: AB = B - A = (b1 - a1, b2 - a2).

Vectors in R³

  • In 3-space, a vector AB represents:

    • AB = (b1 - a1, b2 - a2, b3 - a3).

  • Common vectors in engineering and physics are often represented in either 2-space or 3-space.

Vector Operations

  1. Vector Addition:

    • To add two vectors u and v in R^2, simply add their corresponding components:

      • u + v = (u1 + v1, u2 + v2).

  2. Scalar Multiplication:

    • To multiply a vector u by a scalar c, multiply each component of the vector by c:

      • cu = (cu1, cu2).

Zero Vector

  • A vector with all components equal to zero is called the zero vector (denoted 0) and acts as the additive identity.

Properties of Vectors

  • Equivalence: Two vectors are equivalent if their corresponding components are equal.

  • Unit Vector: A vector with a magnitude of 1, often found by dividing a vector by its magnitude.

4.1.1 Vectors in a Plane and Space

  • 2D Vectors:

    • A standard vector can be represented geometrically by originating from the origin O(0, 0).

    • Components of the vector can also be understood as coordinates of the endpoint.

Basic Operations on Vectors

Vector Addition Example

  • For vectors u = (1, -2) and v = (3, 5):

    • u + v = (1 + 3, -2 + 5) = (4, 3).

Scalar Multiplication Example

  • For vector u = (1, -3) and scalar c = 3:

    • cu = (31, 3(-3)) = (3, -9).

4.1.2 Dot Product and Applications

  • Dot Product Definition: If u and v are vectors:

    • The dot product is defined as: u.v = u1v1 + u2v2.

  • Angle Correlation: The angle between two vectors can be calculated using:

    • cos(θ) = (u.v) / (|u| |v|).

Types of Angles

  1. Acute Angle: u.v > 0

  2. Obtuse Angle: u.v < 0

  3. Right Angle: u.v = 0

4.2 Real Vector Spaces

Definition

  • A vector space is a set of vectors along with two operations: vector addition and scalar multiplication.

  • Closure properties must be satisfied, meaning that the result of both operations must also be in the same set.

Axioms for Vector Spaces

  • Axiom 1-10: Various properties dictate how addition, scalar multiplication, the existence of additive identity and inverses function.

Examples of Vector Spaces

  • R^n, sets of polynomials, and sets of matrices can all form vector spaces if they satisfy the aforementioned properties.

4.3 Subspaces

Definition of Subspace

  • A subset W of a vector space V is a subspace if it meets:

    1. It is closed under vector addition.

    2. It is closed under scalar multiplication.

Properties to Verify Subspace

  • Check if the zero vector is present in W.

Examples of Subspaces

  • Sets such as all columns or rows of a certain matrix can be examples of subspaces.

4.4 Linear Combination, Spanning Set and Linear Independence

Linear Combination

  • A vector x is a linear combination of vectors if it can be expressed as a weighted sum of those vectors.

Spanning Set

  • A set of vectors spans vector space V if every vector in V can be expressed as a linear combination of the vectors in the set.

Linear Independence

  • A set of vectors is linearly independent if the only solution to the equation c₁v₁ + c₂v₂ + ... + cₙvₙ = 0 is c₁ = c₂ = ... = cₙ = 0.

4.5 Basis and Dimension

Basis

  • A basis for a vector space is a set of vectors that spans the space and is linearly independent.

Dimension

  • The dimension of a vector space is the number of vectors in any basis of that space, indicating its size.

4.6 Row Space, Column Space, Nullspace, Rank and Nullity

Row Space

  • The row space of a matrix A is the subspace spanned by its rows.

Column Space

  • The column space of A is spanned by its columns.

Nullspace

  • The nullspace consists of all vectors x such that Ax = 0, based on the solutions to the homogeneous equation.

Rank and Nullity

  • Rank: The dimension of the row space or column space.

  • Nullity: The dimension of the nullspace.