Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematical-methods-i-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2015-resit/3/solution
Past exam of the mathematical methods I course of the University of Oxford 2015 resit 3 Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-25
Let denote the three matrices in their printed order. A Hermitian matrix satisfies , a unitary matrix satisfies , and an orthogonal matrix is real with .
For the first matrix, and . It is therefore Hermitian and unitary. It is not real, and even allowing complex entries in the transpose test gives , so it is not orthogonal.
The third matrix is real, but direct multiplication givesIt is neither orthogonal nor unitary. Its unequal off-diagonal transpose entries also show , so it is none of the three. The common prefactor applies to the central diagonal entry as well; replacing that entry by one would describe a different matrix.
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