In mathematics

Mathematics

Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...

, operator theory is the branch of functional analysis

Functional analysis

Functional analysis is a branch of mathematical analysis, the core of which is formed by the study of vector spaces endowed with some kind of limit-related structure and the linear operators acting upon these spaces and respecting these structures in a suitable sense...

 that focuses on bounded linear operators, but which includes closed operator

Closed operator

In mathematics, specifically in functional analysis, closed linear operators are an important class of linear operators on Banach spaces. They are more general than bounded operators, and therefore not necessarily continuous, but they still retain nice enough properties that one can define the...

s and nonlinear operators.

Operator theory also includes the study of algebra

Linear algebra

Linear algebra is a branch of mathematics that studies vector spaces, also called linear spaces, along with linear functions that input one vector and output another. Such functions are called linear maps and can be represented by matrices if a basis is given. Thus matrix theory is often...

s of operators.

Single operator theory

Single operator theory deals with the properties and classification of single operators. For example, the classification of normal operator

Normal operator

In mathematics, especially functional analysis, a normal operator on a complex Hilbert space H is a continuous linear operatorN:H\to Hthat commutes with its hermitian adjoint N*: N\,N^*=N^*N....

s in terms of their spectra falls into this category.

Operator algebras

The theory of operator algebra

Operator algebra

In functional analysis, an operator algebra is an algebra of continuous linear operators on a topological vector space with the multiplication given by the composition of mappings...

s brings algebra

Algebra over a field

In mathematics, an algebra over a field is a vector space equipped with a bilinear vector product. That is to say, it isan algebraic structure consisting of a vector space together with an operation, usually called multiplication, that combines any two vectors to form a third vector; to qualify as...

s of operators such as C*-algebras to the fore.

See also

• Invariant subspace
  Invariant subspace
  In mathematics, an invariant subspace of a linear mappingfrom some vector space V to itself is a subspace W of V such that T is contained in W...
  
  
• Functional calculus
  Functional calculus
  In mathematics, a functional calculus is a theory allowing one to apply mathematical functions to mathematical operators. It is now a branch of the field of functional analysis, connected with spectral theory. In mathematics, a functional calculus is a theory allowing one to apply mathematical...
  
  
• Spectral theory
  Spectral theory
  In mathematics, spectral theory is an inclusive term for theories extending the eigenvector and eigenvalue theory of a single square matrix to a much broader theory of the structure of operators in a variety of mathematical spaces. It is a result of studies of linear algebra and the solutions of...
  
  
  • Resolvent formalism
    Resolvent formalism
    In mathematics, the resolvent formalism is a technique for applying concepts from complex analysis to the study of the spectrum of operators on Hilbert spaces and more general spaces....
    
    
• Compact operator
  Compact operator
  In functional analysis, a branch of mathematics, a compact operator is a linear operator L from a Banach space X to another Banach space Y, such that the image under L of any bounded subset of X is a relatively compact subset of Y...
  
  
  • Fredholm theory
    Fredholm theory
    In mathematics, Fredholm theory is a theory of integral equations. In the narrowest sense, Fredholm theory concerns itself with the solution of the Fredholm integral equation. In a broader sense, the abstract structure of Fredholm's theory is given in terms of the spectral theory of Fredholm...
    
     of integral equation
    Integral equation
    In mathematics, an integral equation is an equation in which an unknown function appears under an integral sign. There is a close connection between differential and integral equations, and some problems may be formulated either way...
    
    s
    • Integral operator
    • Fredholm operator
      Fredholm operator
      In mathematics, a Fredholm operator is an operator that arises in the Fredholm theory of integral equations. It is named in honour of Erik Ivar Fredholm....
      
      
• Self-adjoint operator
  Self-adjoint operator
  In mathematics, on a finite-dimensional inner product space, a self-adjoint operator is an operator that is its own adjoint, or, equivalently, one whose matrix is Hermitian, where a Hermitian matrix is one which is equal to its own conjugate transpose...
  
  
• Unbounded operator
  Unbounded operator
  In mathematics, more specifically functional analysis and operator theory, the notion of unbounded operator provides an abstract framework for dealing with differential operators, unbounded observables in quantum mechanics, and other cases....
  
  
  • Differential operator
    Differential operator
    In mathematics, a differential operator is an operator defined as a function of the differentiation operator. It is helpful, as a matter of notation first, to consider differentiation as an abstract operation, accepting a function and returning another .This article considers only linear operators,...
    
    
• Umbral calculus
  Umbral calculus
  In mathematics before the 1970s, the term umbral calculus referred to the surprising similarity between seemingly unrelated polynomial equations and certain shadowy techniques used to 'prove' them. These techniques were introduced by and are sometimes called Blissard's symbolic method...
  
  
• Contraction mapping
  Contraction mapping
  In mathematics, a contraction mapping, or contraction, on a metric space is a function f from M to itself, with the property that there is some nonnegative real number k...
  
  
• Positive operator on a Hilbert space
  Hilbert space
  The mathematical concept of a Hilbert space, named after David Hilbert, generalizes the notion of Euclidean space. It extends the methods of vector algebra and calculus from the two-dimensional Euclidean plane and three-dimensional space to spaces with any finite or infinite number of dimensions...
  
  
• Nonnegative operator on a partially ordered vector space
  Ordered vector space
  In mathematics an ordered vector space or partially ordered vector space is a vector space equipped with a partial order which is compatible with the vector space operations.- Definition:...
  
  

External links

• History of Operator Theory