How to find the values of #Lambda# for which the homogeneous linear system has nontrivial solutions?

#(Lambda-2)x+y=0#
#x+(Lambda-2)y=0#
please help me

1 Answer
Mar 10, 2018

To get nontrivial solutions you need #\Lambda=1# or #\Lambda=3#. See below for how you find that.

Explanation:

Use what we can linear cominations to eliminate one variable.

Start with your equations, but you multiply in a factor #c# for one of them.

#c(\Lambda-2)x+cy=0#

#x+(\Lambda-2)y=0#

And add them up:

#(c(\Lambda-2)+1)x+(c+\Lambda-2)y=0#

Now we see that if we put in

#c=2-\Lambda#

Then the combined equation has only #x# not #y#. We eliminate #y# with that choice:

#((2-\Lambda)(\Lambda-2)+1)x=0#

Then we have

#(-\Lambda^2+4\Lambda-3)x=0#

We can factor that:

#-(\Lambda-1)(\Lambda-3)x=0#

So we have one of the following:

#x=0#, #\Lambda=1#, #\Lambda=3#

Suppose #x=0#. Then your original equations become:

#y=0#

#(\Lambda-2)y=0#

They both have the same solution #y=0#, but #x=y=0# is just the trivial solution. That did not work. In most cases setting a variable to zero does not work; you need to get the right value for your parameter, in this case #\Lambda#, instead. That's what the other two possibilities we got from the linear combination are designed to do.

So try #\Lambda=1# next.

#(-1)x+y=0#

#x+(-1)y=0#

We see now that instead of just #x=y=0#, we have solutions with #x=y# for any value of #x# or #y#. Thus #\Lambda=1# does give nontrivial solutions.

Finally try #\Lambda=3#. You can work out that with this value of #\Lambda# both of your original equations become #x+y=0#. Again we get nontrivial solutions, this time with #y=-x#.