Orthogonal

Consider 2 column matrices v1v_1 and v2v_2:

v1=(a1⋮an)  ∧  v2=(b1⋮bn)v_1= \begin{pmatrix} a_1 \\ \vdots \\ a_n \end{pmatrix} \; \land \; v_2= \begin{pmatrix} b_1 \\ \vdots \\ b_n \end{pmatrix}

Product

The product of v1v_1 and v2v_2 is defined as:

v1⋅v2=∑k=1nakbk=v2⋅v1=v1Tv2v_1\cdot v_2=\sum_{k=1}^n{a_kb_k}=v_2\cdot v_1 = v_1^{T}v_2

Orthogonal Vectors

v1v_1 and v2v_2 are orthogonal iff v1⋅v2=0v_1\cdot v_2 = 0.

For a set of nn column vectors, they are orthogonal iff they are pairwise orthogonal. That is:

∀i,j∈{ 1,…,n }∧i≠j,(vi⋅vj=0)\forall i,j \in \set{1,\dots,n} \land i \neq j, (v_i\cdot v_j = 0)

Orthogonal Matrix

For a square matrix AA with real entries, it is orthogonal iff A−1=ATA^{-1}=A^{T}.

A matrix is orthogonal iff sum of the squared elements of any row or column is 11.

Properties

  • det⁡A=±1\det{A} = \pm 1
  • AA is invertible, non-singular
  • A−1=ATA^{-1} = A^{T}
  • AT,A−1A^T, A^{-1} are orthogonal
  • It is diagonalizable over C\mathbb{C} (may not be, over R\mathbb{R})
  • rank A=order A\text{rank}\,A=\text{order}\,A
  • Product of 2 orthogonal matrices of the same order is also an orthogonal matrix
  • The columns or rows of an orthogonal matrix form an orthogonal set of vectors
Written by September 29, 2026 1 min read
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