Jordan Normal Form - Powers

Powers

If n is a natural number, the nth power of a matrix in Jordan normal form will be a direct sum of upper triangular matrices, as a result of block multiplication. More specifically, after exponentiation each Jordan block will be an upper triangular block.

For example,

\begin{bmatrix} 2 & 1 & 0 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 2 & 1 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & 2 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 5 & 1 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 5 \end{bmatrix}^4 =\begin{bmatrix} 16 & 32 & 24 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 16 & 32 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & 16 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 625 & 500 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 625 \end{bmatrix}.

Further, each triangular block will consist of λn on the main diagonal, times λn-1 on the upper diagonal, and so on. This expression is valid for negative integer powers as well if one extends the notion of the binomial coefficients .

For example,

\begin{bmatrix} \lambda_1 & 1 & 0 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & \lambda_1 & 1 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & \lambda_1 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \lambda_2 & 1 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \lambda_2 \end{bmatrix}^n =\begin{bmatrix} \lambda_1^n & \tbinom{n}{1}\lambda_1^{n-1} & \tbinom{n}{2}\lambda_1^{n-2} & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & \lambda_1^n & \tbinom{n}{1}\lambda_1^{n-1} & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & \lambda_1^n & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \lambda_2^n & \tbinom{n}{1}\lambda_2^{n-1} \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \lambda_2^n \end{bmatrix}.

Read more about this topic:  Jordan Normal Form

Famous quotes containing the word powers:

    “He who is conversant with the supernal powers will not worship these inferior deities of the wind, waves, tide, and sunshine. But we would not disparage the importance of such calculations as we have described. They are truths in physics because they are true in ethics.”
    —Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)