Geometric Analogy and Products of Vectors in n Dimensions

Abstract

The cross product in Euclidean space IR3 is an operation in which two vectors are associated to generate a third vector, also in space IR3. This product can be studied rewriting its basic equations in a matrix structure, more specifically in terms of determinants. Such a structure allows extending, for analogy, the ideas of the cross product for a type of the product of vectors in higher dimensions, through the systematic increase of the number of rows and columns in determinants that constitute the equations. So, in a n-dimensional space with Euclidean norm, we can associate n – 1 vectors and to obtain an n-th vector, with the same geometric characteristics of the product in three dimensions. This kind of operation is also a geometric interpretation of the product defined by Eckman [1]. The same analogies are also useful in the verification of algebraic properties of such products, based on known properties of determinants.

Share and Cite:

L. Simal Moreira, "Geometric Analogy and Products of Vectors in n Dimensions," Advances in Linear Algebra & Matrix Theory, Vol. 3 No. 1, 2013, pp. 1-6. doi: 10.4236/alamt.2013.31001.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1] B. Eckmann, “Stetige L?sungen Linearer Gleichungssysteme,” Commentarii Mathematici Helvetici, Vol. 15, 1943, pp. 318-339. doi:10.1007/BF02565648
[2] N. Efimov, “Elementos de Geometria Analítica,” Cultura Brasileira, S?o Paulo, 1972.
[3] A. Elduque, “Vector Cross Products,” Talk Presented at the Seminario Rubio de Francia of the Universidad de Zaragoza on April 1 2004.
[4] S. Lipschutz and M. Lipson, “álgebra Linear,” Bookman, Porto Alegre, 2008.
[5] R. Brown and A. Gray, “Vector Cross Products,” Commentarii Mathematici Helvetici, Vol. 42, 1967, pp. 222-236. doi:10.1007/BF02564418
[6] A. Gray, “Vector Cross Products on Manifolds,” University of Maryland, College Park, 1968.
[7] P. Gritzmann and V. Klee, “On the Complexity of Some Basic Problems in Computational Convexity II. Volume and Mixed Volumes,” In: T. Bisztriczky, P. McMuffen, R. Schneider and A. W. Weiss, Eds., Polytopes: Abstract, Convex and Computational, Kluwer, Dordrecht, 1994, p. 29.
[8] D. M. Y. Sommerville, “An Introduction to the Geometry of n Dimensions,” Dover, New York, 1958, p. 124.

Copyright © 2024 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc.

Creative Commons License

This work and the related PDF file are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.