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Linear Algebra

GATE CSE 2026 Set 1 · Q20

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Let n>1n > 1. Consider an n×nn \times n matrix MM with its elements from R\mathbb{R}. Let the vector (0,1,0,0,…,0)∈Rn(0, 1, 0, 0, \dots, 0) \in \mathbb{R}^n be in the null space of MM. Which of the following options is/are always correct?

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Solution

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Official answer: B) Determinant of M is 0; D) There are at least two non-zero vectors in the null space of M

Linear Algebra

Let v=(0,1,0,…,0)T∈Rnv = (0, 1, 0, \dots, 0)^T \in \mathbb{R}^n.

  1. Determinant of MM: Since vv is a non-zero vector and v∈Null(M)v \in \text{Null}(M), we have Mv=0Mv = 0. This implies that the null space of MM has dimension at least 11 (i.e., Nullity(M)≥1\text{Nullity}(M) \ge 1). Therefore, 00 is an eigenvalue of MM, which means:

    det⁡(M)=0\det(M) = 0

    Hence, (B) is correct and (A) is incorrect.

  2. Rank of MM: By the Rank-Nullity Theorem, Rank(M)=n−Nullity(M)≤n−1\text{Rank}(M) = n - \text{Nullity}(M) \le n - 1. For an arbitrary n>1n > 1, Rank(M)\text{Rank}(M) is not necessarily 11. Hence, (C) is incorrect.

  3. Vectors in the Null Space: Since Null(M)\text{Null}(M) is a subspace over R\mathbb{R}, for any scalar c∈Rc \in \mathbb{R}, cv∈Null(M)c v \in \text{Null}(M). Since R\mathbb{R} contains infinitely many non-zero scalars, there exist infinitely many distinct non-zero vectors in Null(M)\text{Null}(M) (for example, vv and 2v2v). Thus, there are at least two non-zero vectors in the null space of MM. Hence, (D) is correct.

Therefore, the correct options are B and D.

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This Linear Algebra previous year question is Q20 of the GATE CSE 2026 Set 1 paper. Find more GATE CSE PYQs on Linear Algebra in Engineering Mathematics, or browse all GATE CSE PYQs.

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Linear Algebra in GATE CSE

Linear Algebra has 46 GATE CSE PYQs across 26 papers from 2011 to 2026. 2 of them are 1-mark MSQs like this one, and GATE CSE 2026 Set 1 has 2.

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GateAI solution cardGATE CSE 2026 Set 1 · Q20 · MSQ

Let n > 1. Consider an n × n matrix M with its elements from R. Let the vector (0, 1, 0, 0, , 0) ∈ Rn be in the null space of M. Which of the following options is/are always correct?

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