Solutions of Polynomial Equations of Matrices

Rao Potluri
Department of Mathematics, Reed College

Abstract: Let M stand for a matrix in M(n,C), the algebra of n x n matrices with complex entries and let F(x) be a polynomial in C[x] the algebra of polynomials with complex coefficients. This talk deals with the question "Are there any matrices S in M(n,C) satisfying the equation F(S) = M?" A complete description and an algorithm to construct all such S satisfying the additional condition that S is in C[M], the algebra of polynomials in M with complex coefficients is provided. As a corollary, all S in C[M] satisfying the equation Sm = M, where m is a positive integer, are determined.