Past exam of the short options course of the University of Oxford / 2015 / 4 / a

A map $g$ is differentiable at $a$ when a linear map $D{g}_a:{\mathbb{R}}^n\to {\mathbb{R}}^k$ approximates its increment to first order:This Fréchet derivative is unique, and its matrix in the standard bases is the Jacobian matrix. Differentiability on a domain means differentiability at each point there.

A standard sufficient condition for a zero locus to be a submanifold is the regular level set theorem: if $g$ is $C^1$ on an open domain and $D{g}_a$ is surjective at every $a\in g^{-1}(0)$, thenFor smooth $g$, the submanifold is smooth. The full-rank condition is the relevant constraint qualification.

Under this regularity hypothesis, its tangent space isIndeed, if a differentiable curve $\gamma$ lies in $M$ and passes through $a$, the chain rule gives $D{g}_a({\gamma }^{\prime }(0))=0$. Thus all tangent velocities lie in the kernel of a linear map. The rank-nullity theorem makes this kernel $(n-k)$-dimensional, the same dimension as the tangent space, proving equality. In coordinates, solve the homogeneous linear equations given by the Jacobian matrix.

The regularity qualification matters: $g(x)=x^2$ has zero set $\{0\}$, a zero-dimensional submanifold, but $D{g}_0=0$. Its kernel is all of $\mathbb{R}$, whereas its tangent space is zero. This is the phenomenon that singular defining maps can overestimate tangent spaces.