Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2014/ib/paper-2/10g/i/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2014 ib Paper 2 10G i Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-06
In the determinant expansion of the block upper triangular matrix, a nonzero product must assign each of the bottom rows to one of the last columns, because the lower-left block is zero. Those rows therefore occupy all the last columns, leaving the first columns for the top rows. The contributing permutations are precisely independent permutations within the two blocks. Their signs multiply, so the sum factors:The off-diagonal block contributes to no surviving term.
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