Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2003/iii/paper-1/5/v/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2003 iii Paper 1 5 v Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-14
For the usual diagonal Cartan subalgebra, write . The roots are for . The three diagonal entries of the specified have orderingTherefore the positive roots selected by areTheir positive evaluations are respectively , and . For this nonstandard ordering the simple roots are and ; the third positive root is their sum. These simple roots differ from the usual choice used in Question 1.
Identify the real weight plane with triples of sum zero. Pairing with these simple coroots gives the differences and . Consequently the fundamental chamber of a root system isIts closure replaces the inequalities by weak inequalities. The fundamental weights for this ordering are and , represented by and . Their simple-coroot pairings are and , so the two boundary rays areThe sketch uses , and in a Euclidean plane. The shaded sector is the sixty-degree closed chamber; its interior is the open chamber. The ordering vector , identified with its dual direction, lies inside it.
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