西方行列式的發展:范德蒙的研究
(The Development of Determinants in West: Vandermonde’s Work)
國立臺南第一高級中學林倉億老師
連結:西方行列式的發展:范德蒙的生平(2)
范德蒙1772年提交法國科學院的論文〈關於消去法的報告〉(Mémoire sur l’Élimination)是數學家首度將行列式運算作為研究主題的論文。范德蒙一開始就對他的符號給出了定義 (見圖一):
\(\left. {\frac{{\,\alpha \,}}{{\,a\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,b\,}} = \begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ a \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \beta \\ b \end{array}\; – \;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ b \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \beta \\ a \end{array}\)
\(\left. {\left. {\frac{{\,\alpha \,}}{{\,a\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,b\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,c\,}} = \begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ a \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\left. {\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,b\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,c\,}}\; + \;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ b \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\;\left. {\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,c\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,a\,}}\; + \;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ c \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\left. {\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,a\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,b\,}}\)
\(\begin{array}{ll} \left. {\left. {\frac{{\,\alpha \,}}{{\,a\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,b\,}}} \right|\left. {\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,c\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\delta \,}}{{\,d\,}} &= \begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ a \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\left. {\left. {\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,b\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,c\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\delta \,}}{{\,d\,}}\; – \;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ b \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\;\left. {\left. {\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,c\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,d\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\delta \,}}{{\,a\,}}\; \\&+\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ c \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\left. {\left. {\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,d\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,a\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\delta \,}}{{\,b\,}}\; – \;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} \alpha \\ d \end{array}\;\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {}\\ . \end{array}\;\left. {\left. {\frac{{\,\beta \,}}{{\,a\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\gamma \,}}{{\,b\,}}} \right|\frac{{\,\delta \,}}{{\,c\,}}\\ \;\;\;\; \vdots \\ \;\;\;\; \vdots \end{array}\)