Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2016 iii Paper 103 5 i Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-06
For a standard Young tableau , let when its entry lies in cell . Its content vector of a standard Young tableau is . We use the following sign convention for axial distance in a Young tableau:This is the axial distance from to . In particular, write for the adjacent transposition .
Here is Young orthogonal form, with one orthonormal basis vector for each standard Young tableau of a fixed shape:If is not standard, omit that term. In this case occupy adjacent cells in one row or column, so or , respectively, and the scalar action is or . On a standard pair , and the matrix isThis is a real orthogonal involution.
To prove the formula, explicitly use the permitted Young seminormal form theorem: the Specht module has a tableau basis whose vectors are joint eigenvectors of the Young–Jucys–Murphy elements, and whose actions, on an admissible pair oriented so that tableau length increases from to , areNonadmissible swaps have the scalar actions just described. The theorem supplies these as one globally consistent representation, not as independently chosen two-dimensional blocks.
Average a positive definite Hermitian inner product over . Distinct tableau lines are orthogonal because their commuting self-adjoint Young–Jucys–Murphy elements have distinct joint weights. Also is self-adjoint, so the two seminormal equations implyUpon setting , the coefficient from to becomes ; the reverse coefficient is the same. All phases are consistent because the seminormal basis was global, and the group relations remain true under this change of basis. This proves Young orthogonal form.
For , there is exactly one standard Young tableau, the row . Its content vector of a standard Young tableau isEvery adjacent distance is , so for every . Thus is the trivial representation.