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The Hermitian matrices form a real vector space where we have a Lebesgue measure. In the set of Hermitian matrices with Lebesgue measure, how does it follow that the set of Hermitian matrices with repeated eigenvalue is of measure zero?

This result feels extremely natural but I do not see an immediate argument for it.

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    $\begingroup$ The existence of a repeated eigenvalue is equivalent to the vanishing of the resultant of the characteristic polynomial. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 21:17
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    $\begingroup$ @StevenLandsburg, that shows that we have a Zariski-closed, proper subset, but is it obvious (as opposed to intuitive!) that that forces the Haar measure to be $0$? $\endgroup$
    – LSpice
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 21:19
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    $\begingroup$ @LSpice I tried to clarify the meaning of Haar measure and called it Lebesgue measure. Does it make sense now? $\endgroup$
    – Guido Li
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 21:57
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    $\begingroup$ Ah, I see. I was looking for a multiplicative structure. The Hermitian matrices of fixed size form a real vector space, not a complex one, but otherwise, yes, it now makes sense. $\endgroup$
    – LSpice
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 21:59
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    $\begingroup$ @LSpice Here's a silly approach. Since it's closed, it's measurable. If it doesn't have measure 0, its intersection with some hypercube, say $[0,1]^n$, has positive measure $p$. Then if we sample for each $i$ from $1$ to $n$ a total of $m$ i.i.d coordinates uniformly from $[0,1]$, forming $m^n$ random points, each uniformly distributed in $[0,1]^n$, so at least $pm^n$ lie in our set. But if the set is defined by an equation of degree $d$, at most $d m^{n-1}$ can, by a standard inductive argument. For $m> d/p$, this gives a contradiction. $\endgroup$
    – Will Sawin
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 22:09

3 Answers 3

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Call $S$ the set of matrices with repeated eigenvalues and fix a hermitian matrix $A\not\in S$. In the vector space of hermitian matrices, any line through $A$ intersects $S$ in at most finitely many points. From this it easily follows that $S$ is negligible (using polar coordinates centered at $A$).

To check the claim, note that a line through $A$ consists of matrices of the form $M(t)=(1-t)A+tB$, for some $B\in S$. Hence, the characteristic polynomial of $M(t)$ has the form $\lambda^n+\sum_{k=0}^{n-1}p_k(t)\lambda^k$ for some polynomials $p_k(t)$.

There is a polynomial expression of the coefficients $a_k$ of a polynomial $\lambda^n+\sum_{k=0}^{n-1}a_k\lambda^k$ which vanishes precisely when it has repeated roots: indeed, calling $\alpha_i$ the roots, you can consider the expression $\prod_{i<j}(\alpha_i-\alpha_j)^2$. Since it's symmetric, it is in fact equal to some $P(a_0,\dots,a_{n-1})$. For our matrices, this means that $M(t)\in S$ precisely when $P(p_0(t),\dots,p_{n-1}(t))=0$. The left-hand side is a polynomial, which is not trivial since it does not vanish at $t=0$. Hence, $M(t)\in S$ only for finitely many $t$.

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  • $\begingroup$ shaky argument, but yes ;) $\endgroup$
    – Guido Li
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 22:24
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    $\begingroup$ I guess your symmetric matrix is real, so as also to be Hermitian; but I am confused by "any complex line through $A$". The space of Hermitian matrices is naturally a real, but not a complex, vector space; how do you define a complex line? $\endgroup$
    – LSpice
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 22:25
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    $\begingroup$ @LSpice good points; I corrected my answer. $\endgroup$
    – Mizar
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 22:26
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    $\begingroup$ (+1) Good and simple argument. To make it unshaky, I expect that (a) you write $𝑆\setminus \{𝐴\}$ as the cartesian product of a sphere centered at $A$ and the open half line and (b) you use Fubini formula to conclude. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 14, 2022 at 0:52
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Here is a (I think) mathematically correct, but clearly morally wrong, answer via extreme overkill.

Upon multiplying by $i$, we may work instead with skew-Hermitian matrices, i.e., with $\mathfrak u(n)$. The usual proof of the Weyl integration formula on $U(n)$ works just as well for $\mathfrak u(n)$, and gives that $$ \tag{W}\label{W} \int_{\mathfrak u(n)} f(X)\mathrm dX = \int_{\mathfrak t} f(Y)\lvert D(Y)\rvert^{1/2}\mathrm dY $$ for all continuous, compactly supported, $U(n)$-fixed functions $f$ on $\mathfrak u(n)$, where $\mathfrak t$ is the subspace of diagonal matrices in $\mathfrak u(n)$ and $D(Y) = \prod_{\alpha \in \Phi(\mathfrak u(n), \mathfrak t)} \alpha(Y)$ equals the product of pairs of differences of eigenvalues of $Y$. In particular, the singular set $S$ is the $0$ set of $D$, hence, as @StevenLandsburg suggested, is closed.

Now I'll use dominated convergence freely. To show that $S$ has measure $0$, it suffices to show that its intersection with every compact subset $K$ of $\mathfrak u(n)$ has measure $0$. Upon replacing such a set $K$ by its $U(n)$-orbit, we may, and do, assume that $K$ is $U(n)$-stable. Now there is a sequence $(f_k)_{k = 1}^\infty$ of continuous, compactly supported functions, all pointwise between $0$ and $1$, such that $f_k$ tends pointwise to the indicator function of $S \cap K$. Since $S$, hence $S \cap K$, is stable under $U(n)$-conjugacy, upon replacing each $f_k$ by the average of its $U(n)$-orbits, we may, and do, assume that the sequence consists of continuous class functions. Then, upon applying \eqref{W} to each such function and taking the limit, we see that $$ \operatorname{meas}(S \cap K) = \int_{S \cap K} \mathrm dX = \int_{\mathfrak t \cap S \cap K} \lvert D(Y)\rvert^{1/2}\mathrm dY = 0. $$

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    $\begingroup$ @GuidoLi, you really shouldn't accept this answer, which is just a lark that occurred to me as my first impulse. I think it is correct, but it is clearly the wrong way to think about it. $\endgroup$
    – LSpice
    Commented Apr 13, 2022 at 22:18
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    $\begingroup$ Hilarious! :) .... $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 14, 2022 at 0:56
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Here is another argument.

The idea is that in any neighbourhood of a matrix with repeated roots, there is one with distinct roots. i.e. we are arguing that matrices with repeated roots are residual, that the matrices with distinct roots are open and dense in the space of matrices.

The idea is to put the matrix into its Jordan form. Then you can take a small perturbation that makes all the diagonal entries distinct (only perturbing the diagonal entries). In this form, you can compute the characteristic polynomial and you see the roots are all distinct (as they are the diagonal entries).

I suppose this is essentially Mizar's argument but in a coordinate system where there is a little less work to do.

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  • $\begingroup$ This does not answer the question, since it proves only that the inetrior of the set of Hermitian matrices with repeated eigenvalues is void. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 14, 2022 at 9:48
  • $\begingroup$ @DenisSerre: Well, the argument gives a little more than what was stated. The Jordan forms gives a stratification of the space of matrices, with matrices having repeated roots being of positive codimension. The stratification can be written in the language of Grassman manifolds and associated flag manifolds. I ?imagine? someone has described this but I don't know this end of the literature very well. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 14, 2022 at 10:29

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