Solving Confusion with Summation Convention - Ian

AI Thread Summary
The discussion centers on Ian's confusion regarding the summation convention, particularly with the expression involving the Levi-Civita symbol and Kronecker delta. The key issue is the incorrect use of an index that appears three times, which violates the rules of index notation. It is clarified that an index can only be repeated once or twice, with the latter indicating summation. Ian acknowledges this mistake and expresses gratitude for the clarification. Understanding the proper application of index conventions is crucial for accurate tensor calculations.
iansullivan88
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Hello, I think I am fundamentally confused with summation convention. For example, if I have

<br /> \epsilon_{ijk}x_j\delta_{jk}<br />

Can I sift the levi civita and get

<br /> \epsilon_{ijj}x_j=0<br />

or sift x and get

<br /> \epsilon_{ijk}x_k\not=0<br />

Each gives a different answer. What mistake am I making here?
Thank you,

Ian
 
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The fundamental confusion is that you've got an index repeated three times. This is incorrect: an index can only appear once or twice, the latter meaning it is summed over.
 
Ah I see - thanks very much

Ian
 
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