Compute determinant of a skew-symmetric matrix

Hello everybody,

To compute an observable in a physical problem I need to compute the determinant of a skew matrix (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skew-symmetric_matrix#Determinant").
The straightforward way to numerically calculate this determinant is to use a lapack routine that compute the determinant for a general matrix (without symmetries). But this is not the optimal choice for big matrices.

Is there some code (preferably in Fortran, but not necessarily) to compute this determinant in a efficient way? Do I have to write it by myself?

Thank you very much!

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AlephZero
Homework Helper
There should be a Lapack routine to calculate the determinant of a symmetric matrix. There was a routine for that in Linpack. It may be an option in the routine to factorize a symmetric matrix for solving linear equations, not a separately named routine.

For a fully populated matrix, the Lapack method is is the most efficient way to do it (it takes O(n^3) operations for an nxn matrix). Of course if your matrix is sparse or has a special structure, you may be able to find a better way that uses all the information you know about the matrix.

Yes, of course, lapack is the best and optimal choice for symmetric or "generic" matrices. But I have not been able to find routines for anti-symmetric matrices in lapack.

Therefore, in your opinion, for an anti-symmetric matrix I have two choices: use lapack routines for "generic" matrices or write by myself a "fast" routine that exploits the anti-symmetry of the matrix. I think that if I write by myself this routine I will not get a better result than O(n^3) operations...so, for the time being, I will use the lapack routine although there should be a faster algorithm. :(

AlephZero