Parametrize the matrices by
Direct matrix multiplication gives
This proves closure. The identity matrix is , and the formula
gives both a left and a right inverse, as substitution in the product formula verifies. Thus each element is an invertible matrix, and the subgroup test shows that is a subgroup of . It is the unitriangular group and has elements.
Unitriangular group 2026-10-25
The unitriangular group consists of upper triangular matrices over a field with every diagonal entry equal to one. Every such matrix is for a strictly upper triangular matrix . Products have the same form, and gives the inverse
Thus these matrices form a subgroup of the general linear group. The case is noncommutative but every element has cube equal to the identity matrix: because and in the finite field .