The Gerstenhaber problem for three commuting matrices
The Gerstenhaber problem for three commuting matrices
Problem statement
finrank_adjoin_triple_le
The Gerstenhaber problem: if , , and are pairwise commuting matrices over a field , is the dimension of the unital -algebra they generate always at most ?
Lean 4
Formal statement
Lean 4/-
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-/
import FormalConjecturesUtil
/-!
# The Gerstenhaber problem for three commuting matrices
Gerstenhaber proved in 1961 [Ger61] that the unital algebra generated by two commuting
$n \times n$ matrices over a field has dimension at most $n$. It is an open problem,
known as the **Gerstenhaber problem**, whether the same bound holds for three pairwise
commuting matrices. The bound fails for four or more pairwise commuting matrices.
*References:*
- [Ger61] M. Gerstenhaber, *On dominance and varieties of commuting matrices*.
Annals of Mathematics (2) 73 (1961), no. 2, 324–348.
https://doi.org/10.2307/1970336
- [arXiv:2402.16334](https://arxiv.org/abs/2402.16334), M. Satriano and W. Zhang,
*On the algebra generated by three commuting matrices: combinatorial cases*.
- [arXiv:2006.08588](https://arxiv.org/abs/2006.08588), J. Holbrook and M. Omladič,
*A computing strategy and programs to resolve the Gerstenhaber Problem for
commuting triples of matrices*.
-/
namespace Gerstenhaber
variable {K : Type*} [Field K] {n : ℕ}
/--
**Gerstenhaber's theorem** [Ger61]: if $A$ and $B$ are commuting $n \times n$
matrices over a field $K$, then the unital $K$-algebra $K[A, B]$ they generate
has dimension at most $n$.
-/
@[category research solved, AMS 15 16]
theorem finrank_adjoin_pair_le (A B : Matrix (Fin n) (Fin n) K) (hAB : Commute A B) :
Module.finrank K (Algebra.adjoin K {A, B}) ≤ n := by
sorry
/--
**The Gerstenhaber problem**: if $A$, $B$, and $C$ are pairwise commuting
$n \times n$ matrices over a field $K$, is the dimension of the unital
$K$-algebra $K[A, B, C]$ they generate always at most $n$?
-/
@[category research open, AMS 15 16]
theorem finrank_adjoin_triple_le :
answer(sorry) ↔
∀ (K : Type*) [Field K] (n : ℕ) (A B C : Matrix (Fin n) (Fin n) K),
({A, B, C} : Set (Matrix (Fin n) (Fin n) K)).Pairwise Commute →
Module.finrank K (Algebra.adjoin K {A, B, C}) ≤ n := by
sorry
/--
The analogue of Gerstenhaber's theorem fails for four pairwise commuting matrices:
over any field there are four pairwise commuting $4 \times 4$ matrices generating a unital
algebra of dimension greater than $4$. The standard example is
$e_{13}, e_{14}, e_{23}, e_{24}$, whose pairwise products all vanish, so the algebra
they generate has dimension $5$.
-/
@[category research solved, AMS 15 16]
theorem exists_finrank_adjoin_quadruple_gt (K : Type*) [Field K] :
∃ A B C D : Matrix (Fin 4) (Fin 4) K,
({A, B, C, D} : Set (Matrix (Fin 4) (Fin 4) K)).Pairwise Commute ∧
4 < Module.finrank K (Algebra.adjoin K {A, B, C, D}) := by
sorry
end Gerstenhaber
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Source snapshot inspected on 10 September 2026. Subsequent research status and the accuracy of source formalizations have not been independently certified.
Fixed commit b82b08faa9006484021c12005ab41287fb2ffb69. This file contains 1 source-labeled research-open declarations. Other declarations in the attached file can be definitions, solved results or tests. The file is preserved as source material; it has not been compiled or proved by this import.
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