Mathematics

Linear Algebra II

A proof-based second course on vector spaces, duality, inner products, spectral theory, the singular value decomposition, Jordan form and numerical linear algebra.

  • Advanced
  • 55 lessons
  • Free

About this course

This is a second course in linear algebra over the real and complex numbers. It proves the main results instead of only using them, works with linear maps without fixing coordinates, and states each decomposition with its exact hypotheses, so you know when a factorization exists, when it is unique and how much a computed answer can be trusted.

The videos are coming out one at a time, in course order. Every lesson has its own page with precise definitions, a worked example for each key term and a few exercises with answers, so you can start reading now.

The reference sheet collects the definitions, theorems and their exact hypotheses unit by unit, with links to the lessons that explain them in full.

The course builds on Linear Algebra I. It assumes you can solve linear systems, find projections and least-squares fits, and compute eigenvalues and a basic singular value decomposition. No calculus or earlier course on proofs is needed, because the first lessons teach the proof habits and the complex arithmetic the course uses. Principal component analysis, which this course derives from the singular value decomposition, is also one of the main topics of Multivariate Statistical Analysis.

Good to know first

  • Linear Algebra I or an equivalent first course
  • Solving linear systems and the four fundamental subspaces
  • Bases, coordinates and linear maps
  • Projections, least squares and QR factorization
  • Determinants, eigenvalues and diagonalization
  • A working knowledge of the singular value decomposition

Course outline

1 of 55 lessons are on YouTube so far. Each lesson is one video. Open a unit to see its lessons, or follow a lesson for its definitions and examples.

  1. Vector Spaces and Linear Maps

    1 of 7 lessons on YouTube
    Open the Vector Spaces and Linear Maps unit page

    Proof and Scalar Fields

    1. Video 1

      universal claim, hypothesis and conclusion, converse, negation of a quantified statement, direct proof, counterexample and proof by induction

      Also uses matrix arithmetic, matrix powers, linear maps, subspaces and kernels from a first linear algebra course.

    2. Video 2

      field of scalars, complex conjugate, modulus of a complex number, vector space axioms, subspace test, real and complex dimension and polynomials of degree at most n

      Builds on Proof Strategies in Linear Algebra. Also uses vector addition, scalar multiplication and basic algebra.

    Bases and Linear Maps

    1. Video 3

      exchange lemma, invariance of basis size, dimension, extracting a basis from a spanning list, extending an independent list to a basis and dimension of a subspace

      Builds on Proof Strategies in Linear Algebra and Real and Complex Vector Spaces. Also uses span, linear independence and bases from a first linear algebra course.

    2. Video 4

      space of linear maps, pointwise addition and scaling of maps, linear extension from basis images, matrix-unit maps, dimension of the space of linear maps and rank-one map

      Builds on Basis Exchange and Dimension.

    3. Video 5

      rank-nullity theorem, injective map, surjective map, isomorphism, linear inverse and rank of a composition

      Builds on The Vector Space of Linear Maps and Basis Exchange and Dimension.

    Sums, Direct Sums and Projections

    1. Video 6

      sum of subspaces, intersection of subspaces, dimension formula for a sum, union of subspaces and product of vector spaces

      Builds on Basis Exchange and Dimension and Rank-Nullity and Isomorphisms.

    2. Video 7

      direct sum, uniqueness of decomposition, complementary subspace, projection along a complement, idempotent map and oblique projection

      Builds on Sums and Intersections of Subspaces and The Vector Space of Linear Maps.

  2. Quotient Spaces and Duality

    5 lessons coming soon
    Open the Quotient Spaces and Duality unit page

    Quotient Constructions

    1. Quotient SpacesComing soon

      Video 8

      equivalence modulo a subspace, coset, quotient space, well-defined operation, quotient basis and dimension of a quotient space

      Builds on Sums and Intersections of Subspaces and Proof Strategies in Linear Algebra.

    2. Video 9

      fiber of a linear map, quotient map, induced map, first isomorphism theorem and polynomial evaluation map

      Builds on Quotient Spaces, Rank-Nullity and Isomorphisms and Direct Sums and Projections.

    Linear Measurements and Dual Maps

    1. Video 10

      linear functional, dual space, dual basis, coordinate functional, evaluation functional and conjugate-linear map

      Builds on Basis Exchange and Dimension and The Vector Space of Linear Maps.

    2. Video 11

      covector, pullback of a functional, dual map, dual map of a composition, matrix of the dual map and covector coordinate change

      Builds on Dual Spaces and Dual Bases and Rank-Nullity and Isomorphisms. Also uses change-of-basis matrices from a first linear algebra course.

    3. Video 12

      annihilator, dimension of an annihilator, kernel of the dual map, image of the dual map, row space and left nullspace and annihilator versus orthogonal complement

      Builds on Dual Spaces and Dual Bases, Dual Maps and Covectors and Rank-Nullity and Isomorphisms. Also uses the four fundamental subspaces of a matrix.

  3. Determinants and Bilinear Forms

    3 lessons coming soon
    Open the Determinants and Bilinear Forms unit page

    Determinants from Alternating Forms

    1. Video 13

      multilinear form, alternating form, normalized determinant, sign of a permutation, uniqueness of the determinant and multiplicativity of the determinant

      Builds on Basis Exchange and Dimension and The Vector Space of Linear Maps. Also uses determinant calculations from a first linear algebra course.

    Coordinate Invariants and Bilinear Forms

    1. Video 14

      trace, cyclic property of the trace, similar matrices, similarity invariant, characteristic polynomial and real volume factor of a complex matrix

      Builds on Determinants and Multilinear Forms, Rank-Nullity and Isomorphisms and Dual Maps and Covectors. Also uses similar matrices and eigenvalues from a first linear algebra course.

    2. Video 15

      bilinear form, matrix of a bilinear form, congruent matrices, quadratic form, polarization identity and symmetric and skew-symmetric parts

      Builds on Dual Spaces and Dual Bases, Dual Maps and Covectors and Trace, Determinant and Similarity.

  4. Inner Product Spaces

    6 lessons coming soon
    Open the Inner Product Spaces unit page

    Complex Geometry and Orthonormal Coefficients

    1. Video 16

      conjugate transpose, complex inner product, conjugate symmetry, positive definiteness, sesquilinear form, norm from an inner product and Gram matrix

      Builds on Real and Complex Vector Spaces and Bilinear Forms and Congruence. Also uses the dot product and length in real coordinate space.

    2. Video 17

      Cauchy-Schwarz inequality, equality case of Cauchy-Schwarz, triangle inequality, complex Gram-Schmidt process, orthonormal expansion, Parseval's identity and Bessel's inequality

      Builds on Complex Inner Products and Basis Exchange and Dimension. Also uses projection onto a line and the real Gram-Schmidt process.

    Representation and Adjoints

    1. Video 18

      Riesz representation theorem, representing vector of a functional, construction from an orthonormal basis, conjugate-linear identification and dependence on the chosen inner product

      Builds on Dual Spaces and Dual Bases and Cauchy-Schwarz and Orthonormal Expansions.

    2. Video 19

      adjoint of a linear map, adjoint identity, adjoint of a composition, matrix of the adjoint in a general basis, orthogonal complement, double orthogonal complement and kernel and image of the adjoint

      Builds on Riesz Representation in Finite Dimensions, Dual Maps and Covectors and Complex Inner Products.

    Projection and Best Approximation

    1. Video 20

      orthogonal decomposition, orthogonal projection, best approximation, projection theorem, orthogonal projector and polynomial approximation in an inner product space

      Builds on Direct Sums and Projections, Cauchy-Schwarz and Orthonormal Expansions and Adjoints and Gram Matrices.

    2. Video 21

      weighted inner product, positive definite weight matrix, weighted orthogonality, weighted normal equations, uniqueness of the fitted vector and inner product from sample values

      Builds on Orthogonal Projection and Best Approximation and Bilinear Forms and Congruence. Also uses least squares and the normal equations from a first linear algebra course.

  5. Spectral Theory

    5 lessons coming soon
    Open the Spectral Theory unit page

    Invariant Blocks and Schur Form

    1. Video 22

      invariant subspace, restriction of an operator, adapted basis, block upper triangular matrix, block diagonal matrix and reducing subspace

      Builds on Direct Sums and Projections, Trace, Determinant and Similarity and Orthogonal Projection and Best Approximation.

    2. Video 23

      Schur decomposition, unitary matrix, compression of an operator, induction on dimension, algebraic multiplicity, trace as a sum of eigenvalues and determinant as a product of eigenvalues

      Builds on Invariant Subspaces and Block Matrices, Cauchy-Schwarz and Orthonormal Expansions, Determinants and Multilinear Forms and Proof Strategies in Linear Algebra. Also uses the fundamental theorem of algebra, taken without proof.

    3. Real Schur FormComing soon

      Video 24

      complex conjugate eigenpair, real invariant plane, real Schur form, two-by-two real Schur block and rotation-scaling block

      Builds on Schur Decomposition and Real and Complex Vector Spaces.

    Normal Operators and Simultaneous Diagonalization

    1. Video 25

      normal operator, Hermitian operator, unitary operator, complex spectral theorem, unitary diagonalization, real eigenvalues of a Hermitian operator and eigenvalues of modulus one

      Builds on Schur Decomposition and Adjoints and Gram Matrices.

    2. Video 26

      commuting operators, simultaneous diagonalization, common orthonormal eigenbasis, eigenspace preserved by a commuting operator, normal restriction to a reducing subspace and commuting matrices that are not normal

      Builds on The Spectral Theorem for Normal Operators and Invariant Subspaces and Block Matrices.

  6. Quadratic Forms

    4 lessons coming soon
    Open the Quadratic Forms unit page

    Inertia and Positive Definite Factorization

    1. Video 27

      diagonalization by congruence, conjugate congruence, inertia, maximal positive subspace, Sylvester's law of inertia and indefinite form

      Builds on Bilinear Forms and Congruence and The Spectral Theorem for Normal Operators.

    2. Video 28

      positive definite matrix, positive semidefinite matrix, completing the square, Cholesky factorization, Schur complement, leading principal minor and Sylvester's criterion

      Builds on Quadratic Forms and Sylvester's Law of Inertia and Weighted Least Squares. Also uses Gaussian elimination and pivots.

    Rayleigh Quotients and Min-Max Bounds

    1. Video 29

      Rayleigh quotient, scale invariance of the quotient, weighted average of eigenvalues, minimum and maximum of the Rayleigh quotient and extremizers in a repeated eigenspace

      Builds on The Spectral Theorem for Normal Operators and Quadratic Forms and Sylvester's Law of Inertia.

    2. Video 30

      eigenvalues in increasing order, min-max principle, max-min principle, dimension count for intersecting subspaces and attaining subspace

      Builds on Rayleigh Quotients and Sums and Intersections of Subspaces.

  7. Singular Value Decomposition

    7 lessons coming soon
    Open the Singular Value Decomposition unit page

    The Decomposition and the Pseudoinverse

    1. Video 31

      Gram operator, singular value, left and right singular vectors, singular value decomposition, thin and compact SVD and nonuniqueness of singular vectors

      Builds on The Spectral Theorem for Normal Operators, Orthogonal Projection and Best Approximation and Quadratic Forms and Sylvester's Law of Inertia. Also uses singular value decomposition calculations from a first linear algebra course.

    2. Video 32

      pseudoinverse, least-squares solution set, minimum-norm least-squares solution, projector onto the column space, projector onto the row space and complementary projectors

      Builds on The Singular Value Decomposition and Orthogonal Projection and Best Approximation.

    3. Video 33

      Moore-Penrose conditions, Hermitian idempotent, uniqueness of the pseudoinverse, pseudoinverse of a singular matrix and generalized inverse

      Builds on The Pseudoinverse and Four Projectors and Adjoints and Gram Matrices.

    Optimal Approximation and Principal Components

    1. Video 34

      spectral norm, Frobenius norm, truncated SVD, Eckart-Young theorem, best low-rank approximation and nonuniqueness for repeated singular values

      Builds on The Singular Value Decomposition, The Min-Max Principle and Rank-Nullity and Isomorphisms.

    2. Video 35

      centered data matrix, sample covariance matrix, principal components, projected variance, reconstruction error and effect of centering and units

      Builds on The Eckart-Young Theorem and Orthogonal Projection and Best Approximation. Also uses the arithmetic mean of a list of numbers.

    Square Roots and Polar Factors

    1. Video 36

      positive semidefinite square root, spectral construction of a square root, uniqueness of the positive root, square roots of a matrix and Cholesky factor versus square root

      Builds on The Spectral Theorem for Normal Operators and Quadratic Forms and Sylvester's Law of Inertia.

    2. Video 37

      absolute value of a matrix, polar decomposition, partial isometry, isometry, unitary extension and polar form with the positive factor on the left

      Builds on Positive Square Roots of Matrices, The Singular Value Decomposition and The Pseudoinverse and Four Projectors.

  8. Canonical Forms

    8 lessons coming soon
    Open the Canonical Forms unit page

    Polynomial Tools and Cyclic Structure

    1. Video 38

      polynomial in an operator, annihilating polynomial, minimal polynomial, polynomial division and roots of the minimal polynomial

      Builds on The Vector Space of Linear Maps, Invariant Subspaces and Block Matrices and Trace, Determinant and Similarity. Also uses roots and factors of polynomials in one variable.

    2. Video 39

      adjugate identity, Cayley-Hamilton theorem, polynomial with matrix coefficients, reduction of high powers and characteristic versus minimal polynomial

      Builds on Matrix Polynomials and the Minimal Polynomial, Determinants and Multilinear Forms and Schur Decomposition. Also uses cofactors and the adjugate matrix.

    3. Video 40

      polynomial Euclidean algorithm, Bézout's identity, coprime polynomials, polynomial projector, distinct-root criterion for diagonalizability and simultaneous diagonalization of commuting diagonalizable operators

      Builds on Matrix Polynomials and the Minimal Polynomial, The Cayley-Hamilton Theorem and Rank-Nullity and Isomorphisms.

    4. Video 41

      orbit of a vector, cyclic subspace, cyclic vector, companion matrix and linear recurrence

      Builds on Matrix Polynomials and the Minimal Polynomial and Invariant Subspaces and Block Matrices.

    Chains and Generalized Eigenspaces

    1. Video 42

      generalized eigenvector, Jordan chain, nested kernels, stabilization of kernels, generalized eigenspace and independence of a chain

      Builds on Matrix Polynomials and the Minimal Polynomial, Cyclic Subspaces and Companion Matrices and Invariant Subspaces and Block Matrices.

    2. Video 43

      primary decomposition, direct sum of generalized eigenspaces, nilpotent operator, split minimal polynomial and dimension of a generalized eigenspace

      Builds on Polynomial Projectors and Diagonalizability, Generalized Eigenvectors and Direct Sums and Projections.

    Jordan Form Construction and Computation

    1. Video 44

      Jordan block, Jordan form, Jordan basis, lifting a vector to a chain, top-down basis construction and dimension count for spanning

      Builds on Generalized Eigenspace Decomposition, Generalized Eigenvectors and Basis Exchange and Dimension.

    2. Video 45

      successive kernel dimensions, counting Jordan blocks, uniqueness of block sizes, computing a Jordan basis and sensitivity of Jordan form to perturbation

      Builds on Constructing Jordan Form and The Cayley-Hamilton Theorem.

  9. Numerical Linear Algebra

    5 lessons coming soon
    Open the Numerical Linear Algebra unit page

    Size, Conditioning and Error

    1. Video 46

      induced matrix norm, submultiplicativity, spectral norm and the largest singular value, norm of the adjoint, condition number, perturbation bound and effect of scaling on the condition number

      Builds on The Singular Value Decomposition, Rayleigh Quotients and The Eckart-Young Theorem.

    2. Video 47

      residual, forward error, backward error, backward stability, residual bound on the forward error, ill-conditioned system, numerical rank and floating-point rounding model

      Builds on Matrix Norms and Condition Numbers and The Pseudoinverse and Four Projectors. Also uses rounding a number to a fixed number of significant digits.

    Reliable Factorization Choices

    1. Video 48

      Householder reflector, stable sign choice, Householder QR factorization, triangular solve, full and reduced QR and least-squares residual from QR

      Builds on Orthogonal Projection and Best Approximation, Matrix Norms and Condition Numbers and Cauchy-Schwarz and Orthonormal Expansions.

    2. Video 49

      condition number of a rectangular matrix, conditioning of the Gram matrix, normal equations, Cholesky solve, partial pivoting and rank-aware method choice

      Builds on Householder QR Factorization, Residuals, Forward Error and Backward Error and Positive Definite Matrices and Cholesky Factorization.

    Power Iteration

    1. Power IterationComing soon

      Video 50

      power iteration, dominant eigenvalue, convergence rate of power iteration, starting-vector condition, equal-modulus eigenvalues, eigenpair residual and residual bound for normal matrices

      Builds on The Spectral Theorem for Normal Operators, Computing Jordan Form and Its Limitations, Rayleigh Quotients and Residuals, Forward Error and Backward Error.

  10. Matrix Functions and Applications

    5 lessons coming soon
    Open the Matrix Functions and Applications unit page

    Matrix Powers and Exponentials

    1. Video 51

      polynomial function of a matrix, reduction modulo the minimal polynomial, powers of a Jordan block, binomial expansion with a nilpotent part and growth along a Jordan chain

      Builds on The Cayley-Hamilton Theorem, Polynomial Projectors and Diagonalizability, Constructing Jordan Form and Cyclic Subspaces and Companion Matrices.

    2. Video 52

      exponential series, matrix exponential, convergence of the matrix series, exponential of a similar matrix, exponential of a sum of commuting matrices and transient growth

      Builds on Matrix Powers and Polynomial Functions and Matrix Norms and Condition Numbers.

    Capstones in Structure and Reconstruction

    1. Video 53

      linear update model, coupling matrix, eigenmode, mean and difference coordinates, mode decomposition, energy quadratic form and nonsymmetric coupling

      Builds on Simultaneous Diagonalization, Quadratic Forms and Sylvester's Law of Inertia, The Min-Max Principle and The Matrix Exponential.

    2. Video 54

      inverse problem, noise amplification, truncated SVD reconstruction, Tikhonov regularization, filter factors, residual and solution norm tradeoff and unrecoverable component

      Builds on The Moore-Penrose Conditions, Principal Component Analysis, Polar Decomposition, Residuals, Forward Error and Backward Error and QR, Normal Equations and Cholesky.

    Exit Workshop

    1. Video 55

      dual of a quotient space, normality test, Jordan basis verification, orthogonal projector as a self-adjoint idempotent, forward difference operator and method choice under measurement noise

      Builds on Coupled Systems and Eigenmodes, Inverse Problems and Regularization, Computing Jordan Form and Its Limitations, Adjoints and Gram Matrices and The First Isomorphism Theorem.