Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2007/ib/paper-2/1g/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2007 ib Paper 2 1G Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
Each endomorphism has three distinct eigenvalues in a three-dimensional complex vector space. Choose a nonzero eigenvector for each eigenvalue; these vectors are linearly independent and hence form an eigenbasis. Both operators are therefore diagonalizable with diagonal matrix .
Their characteristic polynomials areIf a polynomial annihilates either operator, applying it to each eigenvector gives . Thus its minimal polynomial must contain all three factors. Conversely, their product annihilates the diagonal matrix, soFinally, send an ordered eigenbasis of to the correspondingly ordered eigenbasis of . The resulting invertible map satisfies , and hence : the two endomorphisms are conjugate.
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