Lesson plan

Complex representation

In mathematics, a complex representation is a representation of a group (or that of Lie algebra) on a complex vector space. Sometimes (for example in physics), the term complex representation is reserved for a representation on a complex vector space that is neither real nor pseudoreal (quaternionic). In other words, the group elements are expressed as complex matrices, and the complex conjugate of a complex representation is a different, non-equivalent representation. For compact groups, the Frobenius-Schur indicator can be used to tell whether a representation is real, complex, or pseudo-real. For example, the N-dimensional fundamental representation of SU(N) for N greater than two is a complex representation whose complex conjugate is often called the antifundamental representation.

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Article summary

In mathematics, a complex representation is a representation of a group (or that of Lie algebra) on a complex vector space. Sometimes (for example in physics), the term complex representation is reserved for a representation on a complex vector space that is neither real nor pseudoreal (quaternionic). In other words, the group elements are expressed as complex matrices, and the complex conjugate of a complex representation is a different, non-equivalent representation. For compact groups, the Frobenius-Schur indicator can be used to tell whether a representation is real, complex, or pseudo-real. For example, the N-dimensional fundamental representation of SU(N) for N greater than two is a complex representation whose complex conjugate is often called the antifundamental representation.

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  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  3. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

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