A note on the perturbation of positive matrices by normal and unitary matrices

In a recent paper, Neumann and Sze considered for an n × n nonnegative matrix A, the minimization and maximization of ρ(A + S), the spectral radius of (A + S), as S ranges over all the doubly stochastic matrices. They showed that both extremal values are always attained at an n × n permutation matrix. As a permutation matrix is a particular case of a normal matrix whose spectral radius is 1, we consider here, for positive matrices A such that (A + N) is a nonnegative matrix, for all normal matrices N whose spectral radius is 1, the minimization and maximization problems of ρ(A + N) as N ranges over all such matrices. We show that the extremal values always occur at an n × n real unitary matrix. We compare our results with a less recent work of Han, Neumann, and Tastsomeros in which the maximum value of ρ(A + X) over all n × n real matrices X of Frobenius norm was sought.     

Quaternionic matrices: Unitary similarity, simultaneous triangularization and some trace identities

We construct six unitary trace invariants for 2×2 quaternionic matrices which separate the unitary similarity classes of such matrices, and show that this set is minimal. We have discovered a curious trace identity for two unit-speed one-parameter subgroups of Sp(1). A modification gives an infinite family of trace identities for quaternions as well as for 2×2 complex matrices. We were not able to locate these identities in the literature. We prove two quaternionic versions of a well known characterization of triangularizable subalgebras of matrix algebras over an algebraically closed field. Finally we consider the problem of describing the semi-algebraic set of pairs (X,Y) of quaternionic n×n matrices which are simultaneously triangularizable. Even the case n=2, which we analyze in more detail, remains unsolved.     

Congruence of Hermitian matrices by Hermitian matrices

Two Hermitian matrices A,B∈M_n(C) are said to be Hermitian-congruent if there exists a nonsingular Hermitian matrix C∈M_n(C) such that B=CAC. In this paper, we give necessary and sufficient conditions for two nonsingular simultaneously unitarily diagonalizable Hermitian matrices A and B to be Hermitian-congruent. Moreover, when A and B are Hermitian-congruent, we describe the possible inertias of the Hermitian matrices C that carry the congruence. We also give necessary and sufficient conditions for any 2-by-2 nonsingular Hermitian matrices to be Hermitian-congruent. In both of the studied cases, we show that if A and B are real and Hermitian-congruent, then they are congruent by a real symmetric matrix. Finally we note that if A and B are 2-by-2 nonsingular real symmetric matrices having the same sign pattern, then there is always a real symmetric matrix C satisfying B=CAC. Moreover, if both matrices are positive, then C can be picked with arbitrary inertia.     

2-Adic valuations of certain ratios of products of factorials and applications

We prove the conjecture of Falikman-Friedland-Loewy on the parity of the degrees of projective varieties of n×n complex symmetric matrices of rank at most k. We also characterize the parity of the degrees of projective varieties of n×n complex skew symmetric matrices of rank at most 2p. We give recursive relations which determine the parity of the degrees of projective varieties of m×n complex matrices of rank at most k. In the case the degrees of these varieties are odd, we characterize the minimal dimensions of subspaces of n×n skew symmetric real matrices and of m×n real matrices containing a nonzero matrix of rank at most k. The parity questions studied here are also of combinatorial interest since they concern the parity of the number of plane partitions contained in a given box, on the one hand, and the parity of the number of symplectic tableaux of rectangular shape, on the other hand.     

Hermitian matrices with a bounded number of eigenvalues

Conjugation covariants of matrices are applied to study the real algebraic variety consisting of complex Hermitian matrices with a bounded number of distinct eigenvalues. A minimal generating system of the vanishing ideal of degenerate three by three Hermitian matrices is given, and the structure of the corresponding coordinate ring as a module over the special unitary group is determined. The method applies also for degenerate real symmetric three by three matrices. For arbitrary n   partial information on the minimal degree component of the vanishing ideal of the variety of n×n$n\times n$ Hermitian matrices with a bounded number of eigenvalues is obtained, and some known results on sum of squares presentations of subdiscriminants of real symmetric matrices are extended to the case of complex Hermitian matrices.     

Subtotally positive and Monge matrices

A real matrix is called k-subtotally positive if the determinants of all its submatrices of order at most k are positive. We show that for an m × n matrix, only mn inequalities determine such class for every k, 1 ? k ? min(m,n). Spectral properties of square k-subtotally positive matrices are studied. Finally, completion problems for 2-subtotally positive matrices and their additive counterpart, the anti-Monge matrices, are investigated. Since totally positive matrices are 2-subtotally positive as well, the presented necessary conditions for this completion problem are also necessary conditions for totally positive matrices.     

Required nonzero patterns for nonsingular sign regular matrices

An n×n real matrix is called sign regular if, for each k(1?k?n), all its minors of order k have the same nonstrict sign. The zero entries which can appear in a nonsingular sign regular matrix depend on its signature because the signature can imply that certain entries are necessarily nonzero. The patterns for the required nonzero entries of nonsingular sign regular matrices are analyzed.     

Enhancements to the von Neumann trace inequality

Upper trace bounds for the product of two n × n complex matrices are presented. The real component of the trace inequality is tighter than von Neumann’s inequality, and the imaginary component is new.     

Absolutely indecomposable symmetric matrices

Let A be a symmetric matrix of size n×n with entries in some (commutative) field K. We study the possibility of decomposing A into two blocks by conjugation by an orthogonal matrix T∈Mat_n(K). We say that A is absolutely indecomposable if it is indecomposable over every extension of the base field. If K is formally real then every symmetric matrix A diagonalizes orthogonally over the real closure of K. Assume that K is a not formally real and of level s. We prove that in Mat_n(K) there exist symmetric, absolutely indecomposable matrices iff n is congruent to 0, 1 or −1 modulo 2s.     

Characterizations of rectangular totally and strictly totally positive matrices

An n×m real matrix A is said to be totally positive (strictly totally positive) if every minor is nonnegative (positive). In this paper, we study characterizations of these classes of matrices by minors, by their full rank factorization and by their thin QR factorization.     

Conditional ordering of order statistics

For any positive integers m and n, let X₁,X₂,…,X_m∨n be independent random variables with possibly nonidentical distributions. Let X_1:n≤X_2:n≤?≤X_n:n be order statistics of random variables X₁,X₂,…,X_n, and let X_1:m≤X_2:m≤?≤X_m:m be order statistics of random variables X₁,X₂,…,X_m. It is shown that (X_j:n,X_j+1:n,…,X_n:n) given X_i:m>y for j−i≥max{n−m,0}, and (X_1:n,X_2:n,…,X_j:n) given X_i:m≤y for j−i≤min{n−m,0} are all increasing in y with respect to the usual multivariate stochastic order. We thus extend the main results in Dubhashi and Häggström (2008) [1] and Hu and Chen (2008) [2].     

Maximum generic nullity of a graph

For a graph G of order n, the maximum nullity of G is defined to be the largest possible nullity over all real symmetric n×n matrices A whose (i,j)th entry (for i≠j) is nonzero whenever {i,j} is an edge in G and is zero otherwise. Maximum nullity and the related parameter minimum rank of the same set of matrices have been studied extensively. A new parameter, maximum generic nullity, is introduced. Maximum generic nullity provides insight into the structure of the null-space of a matrix realizing maximum nullity of a graph. It is shown that maximum generic nullity is bounded above by edge connectivity and below by vertex connectivity. Results on random graphs are used to show that as n goes to infinity almost all graphs have equal maximum generic nullity, vertex connectivity, edge connectivity, and minimum degree.     

On questions related to saturated chains of primes in polynomial rings

We propose to give positive answers to the open questions: is R(X,Y) strong S when R(X) is strong S? is R stably strong S (resp., universally catenary) when R[X] is strong S (resp., catenary)? in case R is obtained by a (T,I,D) construction. The importance of these results is due to the fact that this type of ring is the principal source of counterexamples. Moreover, we give an answer to the open questions: is R〈X₁,…,X_n〉 residually Jaffard (resp., totally Jaffard) when R(X₁,…,X_n) is ? We construct a three-dimensional local ring R such that R(X₁,…,X_n) is totally Jaffard (and hence, residually Jaffard) whereas R〈X₁,…,X_n〉 is not residually Jaffard (and hence, not totally Jaffard).     

Commutators with maximal Frobenius norm

It is known that for any nonzero complex n×n matrices X and Y the quotient of Frobenius norms

     

An upper bound for the minimum rank of a graph

For a graph G of order n, the minimum rank of G is defined to be the smallest possible rank over all real symmetric n×n matrices A whose (i,j)th entry (for i≠j) is nonzero whenever {i,j} is an edge in G and is zero otherwise. We prove an upper bound for minimum rank in terms of minimum degree of a vertex is valid for many graphs, including all bipartite graphs, and conjecture this bound is true over for all graphs, and prove a related bound for all zero-nonzero patterns of (not necessarily symmetric) matrices. Most of the results are valid for matrices over any infinite field, but need not be true for matrices over finite fields.     

On block partial linearizations of the pfaffian

Amitsur’s formula, which expresses det(A + B) as a polynomial in coefficients of the characteristic polynomial of a matrix, is generalized for partial linearizations of the pfaffian of block matrices. As applications, in upcoming papers we determine generators for the SO(n)-invariants of several matrices and relations for the O(n)-invariants of several matrices over a field of arbitrary characteristic.     

When the positivity of the leading principal minors implies the positivity of all principal minors of a matrix

An n-by-n real matrix A enjoys the “leading implies all” (LIA) property, if, whenever D   is a diagonal matrix such that A+D$A+D$ has positive leading principal minors (PMs), all PMs of A are positive. Symmetric and Z-matrices are known to have this property. We give a new class of matrices (“mixed matrices”) that both unifies and generalizes these two classes and their special diagonal equivalences by also having the LIA property. “Nested implies all” (NIA) is also enjoyed by this new class.     

The structure of the distribution of a couple of observable random variables in credibility theory

We consider Bühlmann's classical model in credibility theory and we assume that the set of possible values of the observable random variables X₁, X₂,… is finite, say with n elements. Then the distribution of a couple (X_r, X_s) (r ≠ s) amounts to a square real matrix of order n, that we call a credibility matrix. In order to estimate credibility matrices or to adjust roughly estimated credibility matrices, we study the set of all credibility matrices and some particular subsets of it.     

Invertible and nilpotent matrices over antirings

In this paper, we characterize invertible matrices over an arbitrary commutative antiring S with 1 and find the structure of GL_n(S). We find the number of nilpotent matrices over an entire commutative finite antiring. We prove that every nilpotent n×n matrix over an entire antiring can be written as a sum of ⌈log₂n⌉ square-zero matrices and also find the necessary number of square-zero summands for an arbitrary trace-zero matrix to be expressible as their sum.     

The eigenvalue distribution on Schur complements of H-matrices

The paper studies the eigenvalue distribution of some special matrices. Tong in Theorem 1.2 of [Wen-ting Tong, On the distribution of eigenvalues of some matrices, Acta Math. Sinica (China), 20 (4) (1977) 273-275] gives conditions for an n × n matrix A ∈ SD_n ∪ ID_n to have |J_R+(A)| eigenvalues with positive real part, and |J_R-(A)| eigenvalues with negative real part. A counter-example is given in this paper to show that the conditions of the theorem are not true. A corrected condition is then proposed under which the conclusion of the theorem holds. Then the corrected condition is applied to establish some results about the eigenvalue distribution of the Schur complements of H-matrices with complex diagonal entries. Several conditions on the n × n matrix A and the subset α ⊆ N = {1, 2, … , n} are presented such that the Schur complement matrix A/α of the matrix A has eigenvalues with positive real part and eigenvalues with negative real part.