Search
We may use Cookies OK
Link
Here
Advanced
Inverse of a Matrix
using Minors, Cofactors and
Adjugate
Note: also check out Matrix Inverse by Row Operations
and the Matrix Calculator
We can calculate the Inverse of a Matrix by:
Step 1: calculating the Matrix of Minors,
Step 2: then turn that into the Matrix of Cofactors,
Step 3: then the Adjugate, and
Step 4: multiply that by 1/Determinant.
But it is best explained by working through an
example!
Example: find the Inverse of A:
Inverse of a Matrix
3 0 2
A = 2 0 -2
using Minors, 0Cofactors
1 1 and
Adjugate
It needs 4 steps. It is all simple arithmetic but there is a lot
of it, so try not to make a mistake!
Step 1: Matrix of Minors
The first step is to create a "Matrix of Minors". This step has
the most calculations.
For each element of the matrix:
ignore the values on the current row and column
calculate the determinant of the remaining values
Put those determinants into a matrix (the "Matrix of
Minors")
Determinant
For a 2×2 matrix (2 rows and 2 columns) the
determinant is easy: ad-bc
Think of a cross:
Blue means positive (+ad),
Red means negative (-bc)
(It gets harder for a 3×3 matrix, etc)
The Calculations
Here are the first two, and last two, calculations of the
"Matrix of Minors" (notice how I ignore the values in the
current row and columns, and calculate the determinant
using the remaining values):
And here is the calculation for the whole matrix:
0×1 - (-2)×1 2×1 - (-2)×0 2×1 - 0×0 2 2 2
0×1 - 2×1 3×1 - 2×0 3×1 - 0×0 = -2 3 3
0×(-2) - 2×0 3×(-2) - 2×2 3×0 - 0×2 0 -10 0
Matrix of Minors
Step 2: Matrix of Cofactors
This is easy! Just apply a "checkerboard"
of minuses to the "Matrix of Minors". In
other words, we need to change the sign
of alternate cells, like this:
2 2 2 + - + 2 -2 2
-2 3 3 - + - +2 3 -3
0 -10 0 + - + 0 +10 0
Matrix of Minors Matrix of CoFactors
Step 3: Adjugate (also called
Adjoint)
Now "Transpose" all elements of the previous matrix... in
other words swap their positions over the diagonal (the
diagonal stays the same):
Step 4: Multiply by 1/Determinant
Now find the determinant of the original matrix. This isn't
too hard, because we already calculated the determinants
of the smaller parts when we did "Matrix of Minors".
ax b xc
x
e f − d f + d e
h i g i g h
Using:
Elements of top row: 3, 0, 2
Minors for top row: 2, 2, 2
We end up with this calculation:
Determinant = 3×2 − 0×2 + 2×2 = 10
Note: a small simplification is to multiply
by the cofactors (which already have the
"+−+−" pattern), and then we just add
each time:
Determinant = 3×2 + 0×( − 2) +
2×2 = 10
Your Turn: try this for any other row or column, you
should also get 10.
Now we multiply the Adjugate by 1/Determinant to get:
2 2 0 0.2 0.2 0
A- 1 =
1
10 -2 3 10 = -0.2 0.3 1
2 -3 0 0.2 -0.3 0
Adjugate Inverse
And we are done!
Compare this answer with the one we got on
Inverse of a Matrix using Elementary Row Operations . Is it
the same? Which method do you prefer?
Larger Matrices
It is exactly the same steps for larger matrices (such as a
4×4, 5×5, etc), but wow! there is a lot of calculation
involved.
For a 4×4 Matrix we have to calculate 16 3×3
determinants. So it is often easier to use computers (such
as the Matrix Calculator .)
Conclusion
For each element, calculate the determinant of
the values not on the row or column, to make
the Matrix of Minors
Apply a checkerboard of minuses to make the
Matrix of Cofactors
Transpose to make the Adjugate
Multiply by 1/Determinant to make the Inverse
Mathopolis: Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5
Q6 Q7 Q8 Q9 Q10
Multiplying Matrices
Determinant of a Matrix
Matrix Calculator
Algebra Index
Search ○ Index ○ About ○ Contact ○ Cite This Page ○
Privacy
Copyright © 2022 Rod Pierce
