Graduate Characterizing the adjoint representation

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on characterizing the adjoint representation of the special unitary group SU(N) and its associated matrix Λ(U). The adjoint action is defined as Ad(U)ta = Λ(U)abtb, where Λ(U) belongs to a subspace of SO(N² - 1). The challenge lies in identifying the independent components of Λ(U), which has O(n²) free parameters despite having O(n⁴) entries. The adjoint representation preserves the Lie bracket, and the discussion references a MathOverflow post for further details on the preservation of a 3-form.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of SU(N) and its generators {ta}
  • Familiarity with the adjoint representation and its mathematical properties
  • Knowledge of Lie groups and Lie algebras
  • Basic concepts of matrix representation theory
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the properties of the adjoint representation in compact Lie groups
  • Study the preservation of 3-forms in the context of Lie group representations
  • Explore the implications of the Lie bracket in adjoint actions
  • Examine the relationship between SU(N) and its representation in GL(𝔰𝔲(N))
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for mathematicians, theoretical physicists, and researchers working in the fields of representation theory, quantum field theory, and algebraic structures involving Lie groups.

Luck0
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Let U ∈ SU(N) and {ta} be the set of generators of su(N), a = 1, ..., N2 - 1. The action of the adjoint representation of U on some generator ta can be written as

Ad(U)ta = Λ(U)abtb

I want to characterize the matrix Λ(U), i. e., I want to see which of its elements are independent. It's known that it belongs to a subspace of SO(N2 - 1), and we can derive some constraints by saying that the adjoint action respects the Lie bracket. Here https://mathoverflow.net/questions/179032/characterising-the-adjoint-representation-of-sun it says that the most general characteristic of the adjoint representation is that it preserves some 3-form, but I can't find the details (I don't really know what am I looking for). Does you guys know some place where I can find details about this kind of characterization of the adjoint representation for compact groups? Thanks!
 
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Luck0 said:
Let U ∈ SU(N) and {ta} be the set of generators of su(N), a = 1, ..., N2 - 1. The action of the adjoint representation of U on some generator ta can be written as

Ad(U)ta = Λ(U)abtb

I want to characterize the matrix Λ(U), i. e., I want to see which of its elements are independent. It's known that it belongs to a subspace of SO(N2 - 1), and we can derive some constraints by saying that the adjoint action respects the Lie bracket. Here https://mathoverflow.net/questions/179032/characterising-the-adjoint-representation-of-sun it says that the most general characteristic of the adjoint representation is that it preserves some 3-form, but I can't find the details (I don't really know what am I looking for). Does you guys know some place where I can find details about this kind of characterization of the adjoint representation for compact groups? Thanks!
Why do you want to know a matrix with ##O(n^4)## entries and ##O(n^2)## free parameters? The more as you get basically ##SU(n)## again?
 
fresh_42 said:
Why do you want to know a matrix with ##O(n^4)## entries and ##O(n^2)## free parameters? The more as you get basically ##SU(n)## again?
It turns out that doing my calculations with Λ(U) is way more easy than doing it with U. The only problem is that the difficulty now is identifying the independent components
 
Luck0 said:
It turns out that doing my calculations with Λ(U) is way more easy than doing it with U. The only problem is that the difficulty now is identifying the independent components
##\operatorname{Ad}\; : \; SU(n) \longrightarrow GL(\mathfrak{su}(n))## is a group homomorphism and ##\operatorname{Ad}(u)## is a regular matrix for any ##u \in SU(n)##, which means all ##n^2-1## columns (or rows) of ##\operatorname{Ad}(u)## are linear independent. ##\operatorname{Ad}## itself isn't linear, so no matrix here.
 

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