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A matrix preconditioner is an auxiliary invertible matrix whose matrix inverse is cheap to apply and whose use improves the eigenvalues of a linear system. In symmetric positive-definite matrix problems, a symmetric positive-definite matrix $M$ preserves that structure under the symmetric transformation $M^{-1/2}A{M}^{-1/2}$.

Applying $M^{-1}$ means solving $Mz=r$ for a supplied vector $r$. This notation does not require forming a general matrix inverse. A diagonal matrix gives componentwise divisions; a factored matrix gives auxiliary solves such as forward substitution and back substitution.^[ref]

Choosing $M=I$ makes the solve trivial but changes nothing; choosing $M=A$ gives the exact correction but asks us to solve the original linear system.^[ref]

Matrix preconditioning transforms a linear system using an inexpensive auxiliary solve to improve its eigenvalues. For symmetric positive-definite matrices, a symmetric positive-definite matrix $M$ produces $M^{-1/2}A{M}^{-1/2}$, preserving the symmetric structure needed by the conjugate gradient method.

A useful matrix preconditioner combines a cheap solve with favorable transformed eigenvalues; neither property alone is enough.^[ref]

The aim is to make each correction more effective without making it expensive. The example under diagonal scaling for a two-dimensional linear system turns thin ellipses into nearly circular ones and makes preconditioned steepest descent effective.

The linear-system residual at an approximate solution $x_m$ is $r_m=b-A{x}_m$. For symmetric positive definite $A$, the conjugate gradient method has $x_m\in x_0+K_m(A,r_0)$ and minimizes the squared $A$-norm of the error over that affine space; its residual is orthogonal to $K_m(A,r_0)$.

If $A$ has $t$ distinct eigenvalues, interpolate $q(\lambda )=1/\lambda$ on them with a polynomial of degree at most $t-1$. The finite-dimensional spectral theorem gives $A^{-1}=q(A)$, so the exact correction $x_{\ast }-x_0=A^{-1}{r}_0$ lies in $K_t(A,r_0)$. The minimum possible error at step $t$ is therefore zero. Thus $\boxed{\text{CG terminates in at most }t\text{ steps}}$ in exact arithmetic, possibly earlier if the initial residual has fewer eigencomponents. If $r_0=0$, it terminates immediately.

A symmetric positive definite matrix preconditioner $M$ changes the system to $M^{-1/2}A{M}^{-1/2}z=M^{-1/2}b$, with $x=M^{-1/2}z$; practical preconditioned CG applies solves with $M$. It can accelerate convergence by reducing the spectral condition number of a positive-definite matrix, which improves the usual bound involving $(\sqrt{\kappa }-1)/(\sqrt{\kappa }+1)$, and by clustering eigenvalues, which allows low-degree residual polynomials small on the spectrum even when the extreme-eigenvalue bound is pessimistic.

Choosing $\boxed{M=A}$ makes the transformed matrix $I$, so one step suffices. But applying $M^{-1}$ already requires solving the original problem, and constructing an exact factorization generally incurs its original computational cost. It is therefore not a useful shortcut for a single unsolved system, though an available factorization can be reused for multiple right-hand sides. Effective matrix preconditioning balances spectral improvement against inexpensive application.