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What Is Echelon Form

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24 views3 pages

What Is Echelon Form

Uploaded by

nishatsalsabil321
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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What is Echelon Form?

Echelon form means that the matrix is in one of two states:

• Row echelon form.


• Reduced row echelon form.
This means that the matrix meets the following three requirements:

1. The first number in the row (called a leading coefficient) is 1. Note: some authors
don’t require that the leading coefficient is a 1; it could be any number. You may
want to check with your instructor to see which version of this rule they are adhering
to).
2. Every leading 1 is to the right of the one above it.
3. Any non-zero rows are always above rows with all zeros.
The following examples are of matrices in echelon form:

The following examples are not in echelon form:

Matrix A does not have all-zero rows below non-zero rows.


Matrix B has a 1 in the 2nd position on the third row. For row echelon form, it needs to be to the
right of the leading coefficient above it. In other words, it should be in the fourth position in
place of the 3.
Matrix C has a 2 as a leading coefficient instead of a 1.
Matrix D has a -1 as a leading coefficient instead of a 1.
Another way to think of a matrix in echelon form is that the matrix has undergone Gaussian
elimination, which is a series of row operations.

Uniqueness and Echelon Forms


The echelon form of a matrix isn’t unique, which means there are infinite answers possible when
you perform row reduction. Reduced row echelon form is at the other end of the spectrum;
it is unique, which means row-reduction on a matrix will produce the same answer no matter
how you perform the same row operations.
What is Row Echelon Form?
A matrix is in row echelon form if it meets the following requirements:

• The first non-zero number from the left (the “leading coefficient”) is always to the
right of the first non-zero number in the row above.
• Rows consisting of all zeros are at the bottom of the matrix.

Row echelon form. “a” can represent any number.

Technically, the leading coefficient can be any number. However, the majority of Linear
Algebra textbooks do state that the leading coefficient must be the number 1. To add to the
confusion, some definitions of row echelon form state that there must be zeros both
above and below the leading coefficient. It’s therefore best to follow the definition given in the
textbook you’re following (or the one given to you by your professor). If you’re unsure (i.e. it’s
Sunday, your homework is due and you can’t get hold of your professor), it safest to use 1 as the
leading coefficient in each row.
If the leading coefficient in each row is the only non-zero number in that column, the matrix is
said to be in reduced row echelon form.

A 3×5 matrix in reduced row echelon form.

Row echelon forms are commonly encountered in linear algebra, when you’ll sometimes be
asked to convert a matrix into this form. The row echelon form can help you to see what a matrix
represents and is also an important step to solving systems of linear equations.

What is Reduced Row Echelon Form?


Reduced row echelon form is a type of matrix used to solve systems of linear equations. Reduced
row echelon form has four requirements:

• The first non-zero number in the first row (the leading entry) is the number 1.
• The second row also starts with the number 1, which is further to the right than the
leading entry in the first row. For every subsequent row, the number 1 must be
further to the right.
• The leading entry in each row must be the only non-zero number in its column.
• Any non-zero rows are placed at the bottom of the matrix.

A 3×5 matrix in reduced row echelon form.

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