Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2019/ii/paper-1/19i/a/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2019 ii Paper 1 19I a Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-29
Schur lemma over states that an intertwining operator between finite-dimensional irreducible complex representations is either zero or an isomorphism. In particular, every intertwining endomorphism of is a scalar multiple of the identity.
Indeed, and are invariant subspaces. If , irreducibility gives and , so is an isomorphism. For an endomorphism , the fundamental theorem of algebra gives an eigenvalue . Then is an intertwiner with nonzero kernel, so the first part forces . Hence , completing the Proof of Schur lemma.
New to topics? Read the docs here!