Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-lie-algebras-course-of-part-c-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2023/2/c/i/solution
Past exam of the lie algebras course of Part C of the mathematics course of the University of Oxford 2023 2 c i Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-25
There is a sign error in the printed assertion under the standard sl2 triple convention. Work first with the operators exactly as printed. Since the form a Hamel basis, their prescribed images extend to linear maps on ; each vector is a finite linear combination of basis vectors.
For , the operator commutators with areAt , the first identity holds because both sides vanish; the second holds because and . On the other hand, for ,At , both and , so this identity also holds. Thus the actual relations areIn particular, in characteristic zero; the requested equality cannot hold as printed. Settingcorrects the sign and gives , , . These are the standard sl2 triple relations, so the standard basis of the sl2 Lie algebra acts on by , giving a Lie algebra representation.
For completeness, these operators are linearly independent: applying to gives ; applying it to then gives ; applying it to gives . Hence the printed operators span a Lie subalgebra isomorphic to the sl2 Lie algebra, even though their printed normalization fails. Replacing the coefficient in the printed definition of by is one equivalent way to repair the statement.
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