B Can Complex Numbers Extend Beyond Two Dimensions?

AI Thread Summary
Complex numbers, represented as a + bi, extend the real number line into two dimensions. The discussion explores whether there are extensions into three or more dimensions, concluding that quaternions represent a four-dimensional extension of complex numbers. Quaternions can be understood through the structure of C × R, incorporating rules for addition and multiplication. Additionally, real numbers can be viewed as a subset of complex numbers, where they have a zero imaginary component. This highlights the hierarchical nature of number systems beyond traditional dimensions.
thetexan
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Complex numbers ##a+bi## can be thought of as a second dimension extension of the real number line.

Is there a third dimension version of this? Are there even more complex numbers that not only extend into the y-axis but also the z axis?

tex
 
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thetexan said:
Complex numbers ##a+bi## can be thought of as a second dimension extension of the real number line.

Is there a third dimension version of this? Are there even more complex numbers that not only extend into the y-axis but also the z axis?

tex

Not 3, but 4 dimensions:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaternion
 
yes, You can obtain it considering ##\mathbb{C}\times \mathbb{R}## as structure space and giving rules for the addition and multiplication, from the history point of view is not used so much this extension ...
More interesting is the ##4## dimensional extension, this is the set of quaternions ...
 
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Fixed that for you...
Ssnow said:
giving rules for the addiction addition and multiplication
 
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So is it correct to say that the single dimension real numbers can be considered a subset of the two dimensional complex number set where the real numbers are complex numbers with a 0 imaginary component?

tex
 
thetexan said:
So is it correct to say that the single dimension real numbers can be considered a subset of the two dimensional complex number set where the real numbers are complex numbers with a 0 imaginary component?

tex

Yes!
 
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