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Lecture Notes On Self-Adjoint Operators

This document summarizes key properties of self-adjoint and normal operators on finite-dimensional inner product spaces. It contains: 1) Definitions of self-adjoint and normal operators and criteria for determining if an operator is self-adjoint or normal based on inner products of the operator applied to vectors. 2) Properties of normal operators, including that polynomials of normal operators are normal, eigenvectors of a normal operator correspond to eigenvectors of its adjoint, and eigenvectors with distinct eigenvalues are orthogonal. 3) The complex spectral theorem stating that an operator is normal if and only if there exists an orthonormal basis of eigenvectors such that the matrix of the operator is diagonal.

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296 views3 pages

Lecture Notes On Self-Adjoint Operators

This document summarizes key properties of self-adjoint and normal operators on finite-dimensional inner product spaces. It contains: 1) Definitions of self-adjoint and normal operators and criteria for determining if an operator is self-adjoint or normal based on inner products of the operator applied to vectors. 2) Properties of normal operators, including that polynomials of normal operators are normal, eigenvectors of a normal operator correspond to eigenvectors of its adjoint, and eigenvectors with distinct eigenvalues are orthogonal. 3) The complex spectral theorem stating that an operator is normal if and only if there exists an orthonormal basis of eigenvectors such that the matrix of the operator is diagonal.

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Alex L Wang
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May 20, 2016, Math 334

Alex Wang

Lecture 24: Properties of Self-Adjoint and Normal Operators

Remark 0.1. Final will be cumulative.

Self-Adjoint Operators

Lemma 1.1. Suppose V is a finite dimensional inner product space over C and T L(V ). Then T = 0
v V : hT v, vi = 0.
Proof. () Immediate.
() Assume that v V : hT v, vi = 0. Consider u, w V .

0 = hT (u + w), u + wi
= hT u, ui + hT u, wi + hT w, ui + hT w, wi
= hT u, wi + hT w, ui
Since V is over C, we can replace w by iw,
0 = hT u, iwi + hT iw, ui
= i hT u, wi + i hT w, ui
= i hT u, wi + i hT w, ui
0 = hT u, wi + hT w, ui
Putting the two identities together, hT w, ui = 0 for all u, w V .
Letting u = T w, then w : hT w, T wi = 0. As the inner product of T w with itself is 0 if and only if T w = 0,
we see that T w = 0 for all w V and T = 0.
Remark 1.2. V is over C in this above lemma. Otherwise it may not be true, as an example consider
V = R2 , T (a, b) = (b, a), then v V : hT v, vi 0.
We have a real version of this lemma.
Lemma 1.3. Suppose V is a finite dimensional inner product space over R, suppose T L(V ) is self-adjoint,
i.e. T = T . Then T = 0 v V : hT v, vi = 0.
Proof. Same as above.
Theorem 1.4 (Criterion for Self-Adjoint Operator). Suppose V is a finite-dimensional inner product space
over C, T L(V ). T is self-adjoint v V : hT v, vi R.
Proof. T is self-adjoint T = T T T = 0 v V : h(T T )v, vi = 0 v V : hT v, vi
hT v, vi = 0 v V : hT v, vi hv, T vi = 0 v V : hT v, vi = hv, T vi = hT v, vi.

Normal Operator

Suppose V finite dimensional inner product space over F.


Definition 2.1. T L(V ) is called a normal operator if it commutes with its adjoint, i.e. T T = T T .
Remark 2.2. T self-adjoint = T is normal.
Theorem 2.3 (Criterion for Normal Operator). Suppose V is a finite-dimensional inner product space over
F, T L(V ). T is normal v V : kT vk = kT vk.
Proof.
2

kT vk = hT v, T vi
= hT T v, vi
2

kT vk = hT v, T vi
= hT T v, vi
This follows as hT v, wi = hv, T wi.
Then v V : kT vk = kT vk hT T v, vi = hT T v, vi h(T T T T )v, vi = 0.
We note that (T T T T ) is self adjoint, and so we have from the lemma above, T T T T = 0
T T = T T T is normal.

Properties of Normal Operators

Theorem 3.1.
If T L(V ) is normal and p P(F) polynomial over F, then p(T ) is also normal.
Proof. This follows as P (T ) = P (T ).
In particular, if T is normal, then T I is normal.
Theorem 3.2. Suppose T L(V ) is normal and v V is an eigenvector of T with , then v V is an

eigenvector of T with .
Proof. v eigenvector with ,
0 = k(T I)vk
= k(T I) vk



= (T I)v

(T I)v
=0

T v = v

Theorem 3.3. Suppose v, w are both eigenvectors of a normal operator T with distinct eigenvalues , ,
i.e. T v = v, T w = w, and 6= . Then v, w are orthogonal.

Proof.
hT v, wi = hv, T wi
hv, wi = hv, wi
then as 6= , hv, wi = 0.
Theorem 3.4 (Complex Spectral Theorem). Suppose V is over C, then the following are equivalent:
1. T is normal
2. V has an orthonormal basis e1 , . . . , en such that M(T ) is diagonal.

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