MT-1004

Linear Algebra
National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences

Fall 2022

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Linear Equations in Linear Algebra

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Introduction
• Whenever a linear transformation 𝑇 arises geometrically or is
described in words, we usually want a formula for 𝑇 𝒙 .
• The discussion that follows shows that every linear transformation
from ℝ𝑛 → ℝ𝑚 is actually a matrix transformation 𝒙 ↦ 𝐴𝒙 and that
important properties of 𝑇 are intimately related to familiar properties
of 𝐴.
• The key to finding 𝐴 is to observe that 𝑇 is completely determined by
what it does to the columns of the 𝑛 × 𝑛 identity matrix 𝐼𝑛 .

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Identity matrix
A square matrix with 1’s on the main diagonal and zeros elsewhere is called an identity
matrix. An 𝑛 × 𝑛 identity matrix is denoted by 𝐼𝑛 and is given as:
1 0 0 … 0
0 1 0 … 0
0 0 1 … 0
⋮ ⋮ ⋮ ⋱ ⋮
0 0 0 … 1
or
𝒆1 𝒆2 … 𝒆𝑛

1 0 0
0 1 0
where 𝒆1 = 0 , 𝒆2 = 0 , …. , 𝒆𝑛 = 0 represents the columns of the identity matrix.
⋮ ⋮ ⋮ 4
0 0 1
The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Theorem
Let 𝑇: ℝ𝑛 → ℝ𝑚 be a linear transformation. Then there exists a unique
matrix 𝐴 such that
𝑇 𝒙 = 𝐴𝒙 for all 𝒙 in ℝ𝑛
In fact, 𝐴 is the 𝑚 × 𝑛 matrix whose 𝑗𝑡ℎ column is the vector 𝑇(𝒆𝑗 )
where 𝒆𝑗 is the 𝑗th column of the identity matrix in ℝ𝑛 :
𝐴 = 𝑇 𝒆1 … 𝑇(𝒆𝑛 )

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Proof
We can write 𝒙 = 𝐼𝑛 𝒙 = 𝒆1 𝒆2 … 𝒆𝑛 𝒙
= 𝒙1 𝒆1 + 𝒙2 𝒆2 + ⋯ + 𝒙𝑛 𝒆𝑛 .
Now, 𝑇 𝒙 = 𝑇(𝒙1 𝒆1 + 𝒙2 𝒆2 + ⋯ + 𝒙𝑛 𝒆𝑛 )
Since 𝑇 is linear, therefore,
𝑇 𝒙 = 𝑇(𝒙1 𝒆1 ) + 𝑇(𝒙2 𝒆2 ) + ⋯ + 𝑇(𝒙𝑛 𝒆𝑛 )
= 𝒙1 𝑇(𝒆1 ) + 𝒙2 𝑇(𝒆2 ) + ⋯ + 𝒙𝑛 𝑇(𝒆𝑛 )
𝒙1
= 𝑇(𝒆1 ) 𝑇(𝒆2 ) … 𝑇(𝒆𝑛 ) ⋮ = 𝐴𝒙
𝒙𝑛
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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Example 1
Find the standard matrix 𝐴 for the dilation transformation 𝑇 𝒙 = 3𝒙,
for 𝒙 in ℝ2 .
Solution The standard matrix 𝐴 for 𝒙 in ℝ2 is given as
𝐴 = 𝑇 𝒆1 𝑇(𝒆2 )

1 3 0 0
𝑇 𝒆1 = 3𝒆1 = 3 = 𝑇 𝒆2 = 3𝒆2 = 3 =
0 0 1 3
Hence,
3 0
𝐴=
0 3
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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Example 2
Let 𝑇: ℝ2 → ℝ2 be the transformation that rotates each point in
ℝ2 about the origin through an angle 𝜑, with counterclockwise rotation for a
positive angle. Find the standard matrix 𝐴 of this transformation.
Solution The standard matrix 𝐴 for 𝒙 in ℝ2 is given as
𝐴 = 𝑇 𝒆1 𝑇(𝒆2 )
cos 𝜑 −sin 𝜑
𝑇 𝒆1 = sin 𝜑 𝑇 𝒆2 =
cos 𝜑
Hence,
cos 𝜑 − sin 𝜑
𝐴=
sin 𝜑 cos 𝜑
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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Geometric Linear Transformations of ℝ𝟐

Tables 1–4 illustrate other common geometric linear
transformations of the plane. Instead of showing only the images of
𝒆1 and 𝒆2 , the tables show what a transformation does to the unit
square.

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Example 3
Let 𝑇: ℝ2 → ℝ2 be the transformation that first performs a horizontal shear
that transforms 𝒆2 into 𝒆2 + 2𝒆1 (leaving 𝒆1 unchanged) and then reflects
points through the line 𝑥2 = −𝑥1 . Find the standard matrix of 𝑇.
Solution The standard matrix 𝐴 for 𝒙 in ℝ2 is given as
𝐴 = 𝑇 𝒆1 𝑇(𝒆2 )
First performing horizontal shear that transforms
𝑇 𝒆1 = 𝒆1 𝑇 𝒆2 = 𝒆2 + 2𝒆1
The matrix becomes
𝐴 = 𝒆1 𝒆2 + 2𝒆1

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Solution
Finally, the reflection through the line 𝑥2 = −𝑥1 transforms
𝑇 𝒆1 = −𝒆2 𝑇 𝒆2 + 2𝒆1 = 𝑇(𝒆2 ) + 2𝑇(𝒆1 ) = −𝒆1 − 2𝒆2

Hence,
0 −1
𝐴=
−1 −2

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Existence of Solution
A mapping 𝑇: ℝ𝑛 → ℝ𝑚 is said to be onto ℝ𝑚 if each 𝒃 in ℝ𝑚 is the
image of at least one 𝒙 in ℝ𝑛 .

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Uniqueness of Solution
A mapping 𝑇: ℝ𝑛 → ℝ𝑚 is said to be one-to-one if each 𝒃 in ℝ𝑚 is
the image of at most one 𝒙 in ℝ𝑛 .

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Example 4
Let 𝑇 be the linear transformation whose standard matrix is
1 −4 8 1
𝐴 = 0 2 −1 3
0 0 0 5
Does 𝑇 map ℝ4 onto ℝ3 ? Is 𝑇 a one-to-one mapping?

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Solution
Since 𝐴 happens to be in echelon form, we can see at once that 𝐴
has a pivot position in each row. This implies that for each 𝒃 in ℝ3 ,
the equation 𝐴𝒙 = 𝒃 is consistent. In other words, the linear
transformation 𝑇 maps ℝ4 (its domain) onto ℝ3 .
However, since the equation 𝐴𝒙 = 𝒃 has a free variable (because
there are four variables and only three basic variables), each 𝒃 is
the image of more than one 𝒙. That is, 𝑇 is not one-to-one.

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Theorem

Let 𝑇: ℝ𝑛 → ℝ𝑚 be a linear transformation. Then 𝑇 is one-to-one if

the equation 𝑇 𝒙 = 𝟎 has only the trivial solution.

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Proof
Since 𝑇 is linear, 𝑇 𝟎 = 𝟎 . If 𝑇 is one-to-one, then the equation 𝑇 𝒙 =
𝟎 has at most one solution and hence only the trivial solution. If 𝑇 is not
one-to-one, then there is a 𝒃 that is the image of at least two different
vectors in ℝ𝑛 —say, 𝒖 and 𝒗. That is, 𝑇 𝒖 = 𝒃 and 𝑇 𝒗 = 𝒃 . But then,
since 𝑇 is linear,
𝑇 𝒖−𝒗 =𝑇 𝒖 −𝑇 𝒗 =𝒃−𝒃=𝟎
The vector 𝒖 − 𝒗 is not zero, since 𝒖 ≠ 𝒗. Hence the equation 𝑇 𝒙 =
𝟎 has more than one solution. So, either the two conditions in the
theorem are both true or they are both false.

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Theorem
Let 𝑇: ℝ𝑛 → ℝ𝑚 be a linear transformation and let 𝐴 be the
standard matrix for 𝑇. Then:
a. 𝑇 maps ℝ𝑛 onto ℝ𝑚 if and only if the columns of 𝐴 span ℝ𝑚 ;
b. 𝑇 is one-to-one if and only if the columns of 𝐴 are linearly
independent.

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Proof
a. The columns of 𝐴 span ℝ𝑚 if and only if for each 𝒃 in ℝ𝑚 the equation
𝐴𝒙 = 𝒃 is consistent—in other words, if and only if for every 𝒃, the equation
𝑇 𝒙 = 𝒃 has at least one solution. This is true if and only if 𝑇 maps ℝ𝑛 onto
ℝ𝑚 .

b. The equations 𝑇 𝒙 = 𝟎 and 𝐴𝒙 = 𝟎 are the same except for notation. So,
𝑇 is one-to-one if and only if 𝐴𝒙 = 𝟎 has only the trivial solution. This
happens if and only if the columns of 𝐴 are linearly independent.

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

Example 5
Let 𝑇 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 = (3𝑥1 + 𝑥2 , 5𝑥1 + 7𝑥2 , 𝑥1 + 3𝑥2 ). Show that 𝑇 is a
one-to-one linear transformation. Does 𝑇 map ℝ2 onto ℝ3 ?
Solution Writing as column vector,

3𝑥1 + 𝑥2 3 1 𝑥
1
𝑇 𝒙 = 5𝑥1 + 7𝑥2 = 5 7 𝑥
2
𝑥1 + 3𝑥2 1 3
So 𝑇 is a linear transformation, since it is a matrix transformation.
The columns of 𝐴 are linearly independent because they are not
scalar multiples. So, 𝑇 is one-to-one. 25
The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

To decide if 𝑇 is onto ℝ3 , examine the span of the columns of

𝐴. Since 𝐴 is 3 × 2, the columns of 𝐴 span ℝ3 if and only if 𝐴 has 3
pivot positions. This is impossible, since 𝐴 has only 2 columns. So
the columns of 𝐴 do not span ℝ3 , and the associated linear
transformation is not onto ℝ3 .

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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The Matrix of a Linear Transformation

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