I Generalized Eigenvalues of Pauli Matrices

Click For Summary
The discussion centers on the eigenvalues of a generalized Hermitian matrix formed by the Kronecker product of Pauli matrices with diagonal matrices. The eigenvalues for the original 2x2 matrix are given as d±√(a²+b²+c²). The user proposes a generalization for the matrix ##\tilde{H}##, suggesting that the eigenvalues could take the form of ##c_i ± √(a_i²+b_i²)##. This formulation indicates that the eigenvalue structure can be extended to a larger N x N matrix by treating it as multiple copies of the simpler case. The exploration of this generalization appears to be promising and tractable.
thatboi
Messages
130
Reaction score
20
Consider a generic Hermitian 2x2 matrix ##H = aI+b\sigma_{x}+c\sigma_{y}+d\sigma_{z}## where ##a,b,c,d## are real numbers, ##I## is the identity matrix and ##\sigma_{i}## are the 2x2 Pauli Matrices. We know that the eigenvalues for ##H## is ##d\pm\sqrt{a^2+b^2+c^2}## but now suppose I have the matrix ##\tilde{H} = (\sigma_{x} \otimes A) + (\sigma_{y} \otimes B) + (\sigma_{z} \otimes C)## , where ##\otimes## denotes the Kronecker product and ##A,B,C## are now N x N diagonal matrices with diagonal entries ##a_{i},b_{i},c_{i}## respectively. I'm wondering if there is some nice generalization of the 2x2 eigenvalue formula in my first statement? I feel like there must be.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
I did some half-baked thinking and scratch work and think it is tractable. Seems like the answer is ##c_i \pm \sqrt{a_i^2+b_i^2}##. The matrix can be written as something that looks like:

##\tilde{H}=diag(a_1\sigma_x+b_1\sigma_y+c_1\sigma_z, \ldots,a_N\sigma_x+b_N\sigma_y+c_N\sigma_z)##

So it is just a bunch of copies of the simple case.
 
We often see discussions about what QM and QFT mean, but hardly anything on just how fundamental they are to much of physics. To rectify that, see the following; https://www.cambridge.org/engage/api-gateway/coe/assets/orp/resource/item/66a6a6005101a2ffa86cdd48/original/a-derivation-of-maxwell-s-equations-from-first-principles.pdf 'Somewhat magically, if one then applies local gauge invariance to the Dirac Lagrangian, a field appears, and from this field it is possible to derive Maxwell’s...