Definition:Diagonal of Determinant/Main
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Definition
Let $\mathbf D = \sqbrk d_{m n}$ be a determinant.
The elements $d_{j j}: j \in \closedint 1 {\min \set {m, n} }$ constitute the main diagonal of $\mathbf D$.
That is, the main diagonal is the diagonal of $\mathbf D$ from the top left corner, that is, the element $g_{1 1}$, running towards the lower right corner.
Also known as
The main diagonal of an array (such as a matrix or a determinant) is also known as:
- the principal diagonal
- the leading diagonal.
Also see
- Results about the main diagonal can be found here.
Sources
- 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): determinant
- 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): determinant