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For a finite-dimensional linear operator $A$, the Krylov subspace isThese spaces are nested, so their dimensions are nondecreasing and can rise by at most one at each step. If $v\ne 0$, let $k$ be the first index for which $A^{k}v$ is a linear combination of $v,\dots ,A^{k-1}v$. The preceding $k$ vectors are independent. Multiplying that dependence by $A$ and repeatedly substituting shows every higher power also lies in their span. ThusSuch an index exists because the ambient space is finite-dimensional. If $v=0$, the separate answer is $d_m=0$ for every $m$, with $k=0$.

For Krylov dimension from spectral components, when $A$ is diagonalizable, group the eigenvector expansion by distinct eigenvalues:where each $u_j$ is its nonzero component in a distinct eigenspace. Then $A^{r}v={\sum }_j{\lambda }_j^r{u}_j$. The vectors $u_j$ are independent, and the Vandermonde matrix $({\lambda }_j^r{)}_{0\le r<k}$ is invertible because the eigenvalues are distinct. Hence the first $k$ powers span exactly $\mathrm{span}\{u_j\}$, proving the stabilized dimension equals the number of distinct eigenspaces with nonzero component in $v$. These $u_j$ themselves are eigenvectors, so this is also the minimum number of eigenvectors needed to represent $v$ when the eigenvectors may be chosen freely.

If the printed phrase instead means the count of nonzero coefficients in an arbitrary fixed eigenbasis, it is false with repeated eigenvalues. For example $A=I$ and $v=e_1+e_2$ use two vectors of that basis but have $\dim {\mathcal{K}}_m=1$; the vector $v$ itself is an eigenvector. For a simple spectrum there is no distinction. This qualification resolves the claim without assuming an unstated simple spectrum.