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Simultaneous Linear Equations

How to Represent Simultaneous Linear Equations In Matrix Form

Suppose you have V linear equations with V unknowns. Using ordinary algebra, those equations might
be expressed as:

11x1 + 12x2 + 13x3 +...+ 1nxn = y1

21x1 + 22x2 + 23x3 +...+ 2nxn = y2
31x1 + 32x2 + 33x3 +...+ 3nxn = y3
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n1x1 + n2x2 + n3x3 +...+ nnxn = yn

where

xj is an unknown value
ij is the known coefficient of xj in equation i
yj is a known quantity in equation j

This set of equations can be expressed compactly in matrix form as follows:

J =

where

is an V x
column vector of unknown values x1, x2, . . . , xn

J is an V x V matrix of the known coefficients ij

is an V x
column vector of known values y1, y2, . . . , yn

How to Solve Simultaneous Linear Equations Using Matrix Methods

Here is how to solve a system of V linear equations in V unknowns, using matrix methods.
 ^c Express the set of V linear equations compactly in matrix form.

J =

^c Œremultiply both sides of the equation by J-1, the inverse of J.

J-1J = J-1

^c Since J-1J =  = , we know the following.

= J-1

Thus, as long as the inverse J-1 exists, we can solve for , the vector of unknown values. If the inverse
does not exist, the set of equations does not have a unique solution.

Solving Simultaneous Linear Equations: An Example

To illustrate how to solve simultaneous linear equations using matrix methods, consider the following
set of equations.

x1 + 2x2 + 2x3 = 1
2x1 + 2x2 + 2x3 = 2
2x1 + 2x2 + x3 = 3

We want to solve for the unknown quantities: x1, x2, and x3.

^c Ñur first step is to express these equations in matrix form as J =
.

1 2 2 x1 1

2 2 2 x2 = 2

2 2 1 x3 3

J

^c èext, we premultiply both sides of the equation by J-1, the inverse of matrix J. Œreviously, we
showed how to find the inverse of matrix J.

-1 1 0 1 2 2 x1 = -1 1 0 1
 1 -1.5 1 2 2 2 x2 1 -1.5 1 2

0 1 -1 2 2 1 x3 0 1 -1 3

J-1 J J-1

^c And finally, since J-1J =  = , we know the following.

x1 -1 1 0 1 1

x2 = 1 -1.5 1 2 = 1

x3 0 1 -1 3 -1

J-1

Thus, we have solved for the unknown quantities: x1 = 1, x2 = 1, and x3 = -1.

Test Your Understanding of This Lesson



Consider the following set of simultaneous linear equations.

3x1 + x2 = 3
9x1 + 4x2 = 6

Using matrix methods, solve for the unknown quantities: x1and x2.




Ñur solution involves a three-step process.

^c The first step is to express these equations in matrix form as J =
.

3 1 x1 3
=
9 4 x2 6

J

^c èext, we premultiply both sides of the equation by J-1, the inverse of matrix J. We showed
how to find the inverse of matrix J in a previous lesson.
 4/3 -1/3 3 1 x1 4/3 -1/3 3
=
-3 1 9 4 x2 -3 1 6

J-1 J J-1

^c And finally, since J-1J =  = , we know the following.

x1 4/3 -1/3 3 2
= =
x2 -3 1 6 -3

J-1

Thus, we have solved for the unknown quantities: x1 = 2 and x2 = -3