Final answer:
In linear algebra, a 2x2 matrix can be transformed into canonical forms such as [λ 0 / 0 μ] or [α β / -β α] by applying a similarity transformation. To find the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a matrix A, we need to solve the equation Ax = λx, where x is the eigenvector and λ is the eigenvalue.
Step-by-step explanation:
In linear algebra, a 2x2 matrix can be transformed into canonical forms such as [λ 0 / 0 μ] or [α β / -β α] by applying a similarity transformation. To find the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a matrix A, we need to solve the equation Ax = λx, where x is the eigenvector and λ is the eigenvalue. Let's work through an example:
Given matrix A = [[a, b], [c, d]], we can find the eigenvalues by solving the characteristic equation det(A - λI) = 0. For a 2x2 matrix, this equation simplifies to λ² - (a + d)λ + (ad - bc) = 0. Solving this quadratic equation gives us the eigenvalues λ₁ and λ₂.
To find the eigenvectors, we substitute each eigenvalue back into the equation Ax = λx and solve for x. For each eigenvalue, we get a system of linear equations which can be solved to find the eigenvectors.