University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene

Vector Spaces

November 26, 2024

1 Definition of a vector space and vector subspaces

1.1 Vector space
Definition 1.1. A set V is called a vector space over a set of scalars K (generally, such as
the set of real numbers R or complex numbers C) if it has two operations:

ˆ Vector Addition(Law of Internal Composition): A map + : V × V → V that

takes any two vectors u, v ∈ V and produces another vector u + v ∈ V .

ˆ Scalar Multiplication(Law of External Composition): A map · : K × V → V

that takes a scalar a and a vector v ∈ V , producing another vector a · v ∈ V .

These operations must satisfy the following axioms for all u, v, w ∈ V and scalars a, b:

ˆ Associativity of Addition: u + (v + w) = (u + v) + w.

ˆ Commutativity of Addition: u + v = v + u.

ˆ Identity Element of Addition: There exists an element 0 ∈ V (called the zero vector)
such that u + 0 = u for all u ∈ V .

ˆ Inverse Elements of Addition: For each u ∈ V , there exists an element −u ∈ V

such that u + (−u) = 0.

ˆ Compatibility of Scalar Multiplication with Scalar Multiplication: a · (b · v) =

(ab) · v.

ˆ Identity Element of Scalar Multiplication: 1 · v = v for all v ∈ V , where 1 is the

multiplicative identity among scalars.

ˆ Distributivity of Scalar Multiplication with respect to Vector Addition: a ·

(u + v) = a · u + a · v.

ˆ Distributivity of Scalar Multiplication with respect to Scalar Addition: (a +

b) · v = a · v + b · v.

Remark 1.1. Note that;

ˆ We denote ”the vector space over a set of scalars K” by ”K-vector space” or shortly
(K.e.v).

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 ˆ The elements of V are called vectors.

ˆ The elements K of are called scalars.

ˆ 0V is the null vector.

Example 1.1. We have
ˆ All vectors in the plane and in space are R-vector spaces.

ˆ The sets V = R2 , V = R3 , · · ·, V = Rn , with the addition (+) and multiplication by a

scalar (·) defined by:

∀x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ), ∀y = (y1 , y2 , . . . , yn ) ∈ Rn , ∀α ∈ K, ∀x = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn ) ∈ Rn ,

x + y = (x1 + y1 , x2 + y2 , . . . , xn + yn ), α · x = (αx1 , αx2 , . . . , αxn ),

are R-vector spaces. (The verification of the conditions is left to the exercises.)

ˆ Let V = {f : R → R, map}. V is the set of maps defined from R to R, provided with the
addition (+):
f + g : R → R, x 7→ (f + g)(x) = f (x) + g(x),

and provided with multiplication by a scalar (·):

∀α ∈ R, α · f is a mapping from R to R such that (α · f )(x) = αf (x), ∀x ∈ R.

Thus, V is a R-vector space.

ˆ Let V = R[X]: the set of polynomials with real coefficients. V is a R-vector space, with
the following operations:
For each P, Q ∈ R[X] and each α ∈ R, we have:

(P + Q)(X) = P (X) + Q(X), (the addition of two polynomials),

(α · P )(X) = αP (X), (the multiplication by a scalar).

1.1.1 Elementary properties

Proposition 1.1. Let V be a K-vector space. For every u, v ∈ V and every α ∈ K, we have
the following calculation rules:

• α · u = 0V =⇒ u = 0V ,
• α · (−u) = (−α) · u = −(α · u),
• α · (u − v) = α · u − α · v.

1.1.2 Linear combination

Let V be a K-vector space and {u1 , u2 , . . . , un } a set of vectors in V . We call any vector u ∈ V
a linear combination of (ui )1≤i≤n if it can be written as:

u = α1 · u1 + α2 · u2 + · · · + αn · un ,

where α1 , α2 , . . . , αn ∈ K.

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1.2 Vector subspace
Definition 1.2. Let V be a K-vector space. A subset W ⊆ V of a vector space V is called
a vector subspace of V if W is stable for both laws (same operations of addition and scalar
multiplication as in V ). In other words:

ˆ Non-emptiness: W contains the zero vector 0V .

ˆ Closed under Addition: ∀ u, v ∈ W , then u + v ∈ W .

ˆ Closed under Scalar Multiplication: ∀ v ∈ W and ∀ a ∈ K, then a · v ∈ W .

Theorem 1.1 (Characterization). W be a vector subspace of a K-vector space V if and only

if:

ˆ W ̸= ∅,

ˆ W is stable under linear combinations, i.e.,

∀α, β ∈ K, ∀u, v ∈ W, α · u + β · v ∈ W.

Example 1.2. We have:

ˆ Let the vector space V = R2 , F = {(x, y) ∈ R2 | x + y = 0}, and G = {(x, y) ∈ R2 |

x + y = 1}, parts of V .
1)- F is a vector subspace of R2 , in fact:

– F ̸= ∅ because (0, 0) ∈ F .
– F is stable under linear combinations:

Let u = (x, y), u′ = (x′ , y ′ ) ∈ F , and α, β ∈ R. We have:

α · u + β · u′ = (αx + βx′ , αy + βy ′ ).

Now, calculate:

(αx + βx′ ) + (αy + βy ′ ) = α(x + y) + β(x′ + y ′ ) = 0,

because u, u′ ∈ F . Thus, α · u + β · u′ ∈ F .

2)- G is not a vector subspace of R2 , because: For the scalar α = 0 and u = (x, y) ∈ G,
we have:
α · u = 0 · (x, y) = (0, 0) ∈
/ G,
since 0 + 0 ̸= 1.

ˆ Let V = R3 [X], the vector space of polynomials with real coefficients of degree less than
or equal to 3, and W = {P ∈ R3 [X] | P + P ′ = 0}, a part of V :
- W ̸= ∅, because the null polynomial 0R3 [X] ∈ W .
- Let P, Q ∈ W and α, β ∈ R. Is α·P +β ·Q ∈ W ?. Let’s calculate the linear combination
of two vectors of V :

(α · P + β · Q) + (α · P + β · Q)′ = α · (P + P ′ ) + β · (Q + Q′ ) = 0,

because P, Q ∈ V . Thus, V is a vector subspace of R3 [X].

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1.3 The direct sum of two vector subspaces
Definition 1.3. Let U and W be subspaces of a vector space V . The intersection of U and W ,
denoted U ∩ W , is defined as:

U ∩ W = {v ∈ V | v ∈ U and v ∈ W }.

Proposition 1.2. We have

ˆ U ∩ W is a subspace of V .

ˆ U ∩ W contains the zero vector 0V , as U and W are subspaces.

Definition 1.4. Let U and W be subspaces of a vector space V . The addition of U and W ,
denoted U + W , is defined as:

U + W = {v ∈ V | v = u + w, where u ∈ U and w ∈ W }.

Proposition 1.3. We have

ˆ U + W is a subspace of V .

ˆ U + W contains all elements of U and W as any u ∈ U can be written as u + 0 and

w ∈ W as 0 + w.
Definition 1.5. Let U and W be subspaces of a vector space V . The vector space V is the
direct sum of U and W , denoted V = U ⊕ W , if:

V =U +W and U ∩ W = {0V }.

This means that every vector v ∈ V can be written uniquely as:

v = u + w, where u ∈ U and w ∈ W.

Example 1.3. We have:

ˆ Let V = R2 , W1 = {(x, x) : x ∈ R}, and W2 = {(x, −x) : x ∈ R}. Then W1 + W2 = R2 .
Indeed,    
x+y x+y x−y x−y
(x, y) = , + ,− .
2 2 2 2

ˆ Let V = R4 , W1 = {(x, y, z, w) : x + y + z = 0, x + 2y − z = 0}, and W2 = {(s, 2s, 3s, t) :

s, t ∈ R}. Describe W1 + W2 (e.g., find a basis for W1 + W2 ).

2 Relations between vectors of a vector space

2.1 Linear independence, Linear dependence; free, linked family
2.1.1 Linear independence
Definition 2.1. Let V be a K-vector space and F = {u1 , u2 , . . . , un }, the set of vectors in V .
The set of vectors F or the vectors u1 , u2 , . . . , un are linearly independent (or a free family)
if the only linear combination of vectors (ui )1≤i≤n that equals the zero vector 0V is the one whose
coefficients are all zero. In other words:

λ1 · u1 + λ2 · u2 + · · · + λn · un = 0V ⇒ λ1 = λ2 = · · · = λn = 0.

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Example 2.1. ˆ In the plane, the vectors ⃗i = (1, 0), ⃗j = (0, 1) constitute a linearly inde-
pendent set of the vector space R2 .

ˆ In the space R3 , the vectors ⃗i = (1, 0, 0), ⃗j = (0, 1, 0), ⃗k = (0, 0, 1) constitute a linearly
independent set of the vector space R3 .

ˆ Let F = {u = (1, 0, −1), v = (0, 1, 1), w = (1, 1, 1)} be a set of vectors in the R-vector
space R3 . Let λ1 · u + λ2 · v + λ3 · w = 0R3 be a zero linear combination of the vectors u, v,
and w, then:

λ1 · u + λ2 · v + λ3 · w = 0R3 ⇒ λ1 (1, 0, −1) + λ2 (0, 1, 1) + λ3 (1, 1, 1) = (0, 0, 0)

⇒ (λ1 + λ3 , λ2 + λ3 , −λ1 + λ2 + λ3 ) = (0, 0, 0)


λ1 + λ3 = 0

⇒ λ2 + λ3 = 0

−λ1 + λ2 + λ3 = 0


⇒ λ1 = λ2 = λ3 = 0.
Thus, F is a linearly independent set.

ˆ In the space R3 [X], G = {1, X, X 2 , X 3 } is a linearly independent set. Indeed, let α0 · 1 +

α1 · X + α2 · X 2 + α3 · X 3 = 0R3 [X] be a linear combination of the vectors 1, X, X 2 , X 3 .
Then:
α0 + α1 X + α2 X 2 + α3 X 3 = 0R3 [X] ⇒ α0 = α1 = α2 = α3 = 0.
Thus, G is a linearly independent set of the vector space R3 [X].

2.1.2 Linear dependence

Definition 2.2. A set of vectors F = {u1 , u2 , . . . , un } of a K-vector space V , or the vec-
tors u1 , u2 , . . . , un , are said to be linearly dependent (or a dependent family) if there exist
λ1 , λ2 , . . . , λn ∈ K not all zero such that

λ1 · u1 + λ2 · u2 + · · · + λn · un = 0V .

Example 2.2. ˆ If two vectors ⃗u, ⃗v are parallel in the plane, then there exists λ ∈ R such
that ⃗u = λ⃗v , which gives
⃗u − λ⃗v = ⃗0.
So we have found a null linear combination of the two vectors ⃗u and ⃗v with the coefficients
1 and −λ, which are non-zero.

ˆ Let R2 [X] be the R-vector space of polynomials with real coefficients of degree less than
or equal to 2. The set A = {P1 (X) = X 2 + X + 1, P2 (X) = 2X 2 + 2X + 2} is linearly
dependent, because there exist λ1 = 2 and λ2 = −1 such that

λ1 P1 + λ2 P2 = 2P1 − P2 = 0.

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2.2 Generator set (spanning set)
Definition 2.3. A set A = {u1 , u2 , . . . , un } of a K-vector space V is said to be spanned or gener-
ated by the vectors u1 , u2 , . . . , un if, for every vector u ∈ V , there exist scalars λ1 , λ2 , . . . , λn ∈ K
such that
u = λ1 · u1 + λ2 · u2 + · · · + λn · un .
This means that every vector in V can be written as a linear combination of the vectors in the
set A.
We also say that the set of vectors {u1 , u2 , . . . , un } engenders V , and we write:

V = ⟨u1 , u2 , . . . , un ⟩.

Example 2.3. We have:

ˆ For every vector u of R3 , we write:

u = (x, y, z) = x(1, 0, 0) + y(0, 1, 0) + z(0, 0, 1),

then the set of vectors

A = {e1 = (1, 0, 0), e2 = (0, 1, 0), e3 = (0, 0, 1)}

is a generating set of R3 .
ˆ In general, for each n ∈ N∗ , the set of vectors

{e1 = (1, 0, . . . , 0), e2 = (0, 1, 0, . . . , 0), . . . , en = (0, 0, . . . , 0, 1)}

is a generating set of the vector space Rn .

2.3 Bases
Definition 2.4. A set B = {u1 , u2 , . . . , un } is a basis of a vector space V if it is both linearly
independent and a generating set of V .
Proposition 2.1. A set of vectors B = {u1 , u2 , . . . , un } of a K-vector space V is a basis if
and only if every vector u ∈ V can be uniquely written as a linear combination of the vectors
u1 , u2 , . . . , un from B. In other words:

∀u ∈ V, ∃! λ1 , λ2 , . . . , λn ∈ K such that u = λ1 · u1 + λ2 · u2 + · · · + λn · un .

The scalars λ1 , λ2 , . . . , λn are called the coordinates of the vector u in the basis B.
Example 2.4. We have:
ˆ The set E2 = {e1 = (1, 0), e2 = (0, 1)} is a basis of R2 . This is the canonical basis of R2 .

ˆ The set E3 = {e1 = (1, 0, 0), e2 = (0, 1, 0), e3 = (0, 0, 1)} is a basis of R3 . This is the
canonical basis of R3 .
ˆ In general, for any n ∈ N∗ , the set of vectors

En = {e1 = (1, 0, . . . , 0), e2 = (0, 1, 0, . . . , 0), . . . , en = (0, 0, . . . , 0, 1)}

is a basis of Rn . This is the canonical basis of Rn . Thus, for any vector u = (x1 , x2 , . . . , xn )
of Rn , the real (scalar) numbers x1 , x2 , . . . , xn are the coordinates of u in the canonical
basis En .

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 ˆ Consider R2 [X], the vector space of polynomials with real coefficients of degree less than
or equal to 2. Any polynomial P of R2 [X] is written in the unique form

P (X) = a0 + a1 X + a2 X 2 .

Thus, the set of polynomials (or vectors) P = {1, X, X 2 } is a generating set and, as it is
linearly independent, it is a basis of this space. This is the canonical basis of R2 [X].

ˆ In general, for any n ∈ R∗ , the set P = {1, X, . . . , X n } is the canonical basis of the vector
space Rn [X] of polynomials with real coefficients of degree less than or equal to n. For
each polynomial P of Rn [X], there are unique scalars

a0 , a1 , . . . , an

such that
P (X) = a0 + a1 X + a2 X 2 + · · · + an X n .
These scalars are the coordinates of the polynomial P in the canonical basis P.

2.4 Dimension of a vector space

Definition 2.5 (Finite-dimensional vector spaces). A vector space V is said to be of finite
dimension if V has a finite generating part.

Theorem 2.1. Let V ̸= {0V } be a K-vector space engendered by n vectors (n ∈ N∗ ). Then all
bases of V have the same number of elements. This integer is called the dimension of V and is
denoted by dim V . We also have dim V ≤ n.

Example 2.5. ˆ As E2 = {e1 , e2 } is a basis of R2 , then dim R2 = 2.

ˆ In general, as En = {e1 , e2 , . . . , en } is a basis of Rn , then dim Rn = n.

ˆ As P4 = {1, X, X 2 , X 3 } is a basis of R3 [X], then dim R3 [X] = 4.

Theorem 2.2. A set of n vectors of a finite-dimension of a vector space V with a finite

dimension n, is a basis if and only if it is linearly independent or generator set.

Example 2.6. To show that the set B = {v1 = (−3, 1, 5), v2 = (2, 5, 6), v3 = (0, 1, 0)} is a basis
of R3 , it’s enough to show that it’s independent.

α · v1 + β · v2 + γ · v3 = 0 =⇒ α · (−3, 1, 5) + β · (2, 5, 6) + γ · (0, 1, 0) = (0, 0, 0)


−3α + 2β = 0
 (1)
α + 5β + γ = 0 (2) ⇒ α = β = γ = 0.

5α + 6β = 0 (3)
