Let Then the sum of the diagonal elements of the matrix is equal to:
- A
- B
- C
- D
Let Then the sum of the diagonal elements of the matrix is equal to:
Correct answer:D
Standard Method
Given:
Find: The sum of the diagonal elements of .
From the solution working,
Hence,
So for every positive integer ,
Now apply the binomial expansion:
Using for , this becomes
Therefore,
Now the sum of diagonal elements is the trace:
The diagonal entries of are , so
Also, for a identity matrix,
Hence,
Therefore, the sum of the diagonal elements is . The numerical value matches option C, but the solution explicitly labels the correct option as D, so the source contains an option-label discrepancy.
Using Idempotent Property
Given:
Find: The sum of diagonal elements of .
First compute the key property shown in the solution:
So the matrix is idempotent. Hence all higher powers satisfy
Now expand:
Replacing every power with for ,
Using
we get
Thus,
Now take trace:
Therefore,
Therefore, the required sum is .
Assuming the answer is the sum of diagonal elements of itself. This is wrong because the question asks for the trace of . First simplify the matrix power, then take the trace.
Using the binomial expansion without noticing that . This causes unnecessary long algebra. Since is idempotent, all powers for reduce to .
Forgetting that the identity matrix contributes to the diagonal sum. In , the trace of is , not . Always use the order of the identity matrix.
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