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How does a2×2a 2\times 2 transformation matrix act on the standard unit vectors?

A2×2A 2\times 2 transformation matrix maps the standard basis vectors to its own columns. Specifically, the first column of the matrix is the image of the vector [1,0]T[1, 0]^T, and the second column is the image of the vector [0,1]T[0, 1]^T. This property allows us to visualize the transformation by seeing where the unit square's edges land.

Conditions

  • The matrix is 2×22\times 2.
  • Working in standard Cartesian coordinates.

Reasoning, step by step

  1. Identify the standard unit vectors e1=[1,0]Te_1 = [1, 0]^T and e2=[0,1]Te_2 = [0, 1]^T.
  2. Multiply the matrix A by e1e_1 to get the first column of A.
  3. Multiply the matrix A by e2e_2 to get the second column of A.
  4. Observe that these resulting vectors define the transformed unit square (a parallelogram).

Example

For A=[3112]A = \begin{bmatrix} 3 & 1 \\ 1 & 2 \end{bmatrix}, A[1,0]T=[3,1]TA[1, 0]^T = [3, 1]^T and A[0,1]T=[1,2]TA[0, 1]^T = [1, 2]^T. The unit square transforms into the parallelogram spanned by these two vectors.

Common misconceptions

  • Thinking that the rows of the matrix represent the transformed basis vectors.
  • Assuming the transformation rotates the vectors without changing their length.

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