Q.Find the value of the following: 1000cosαsinα0sinα−cosα
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Determinant Evaluation Using Identities
Expanding a 4×4 or 5×5 determinant term by term is painful and error-prone. The smarter route is to transform the determinant into an easy form using properties (the "identities") that change its value in a known, controlled way — then read the answer off a triangular matrix.
The geometric intuition
A determinant measures the signed "volume" of the box spanned by the rows in n-dimensional space. Sliding one row parallel to another doesn't change that volume; swapping two rows flips its sign; scaling a row scales the volume. The algebraic identities are just these facts translated into rules.
The three row (or column) operations
- Swap two rows: det→−det (sign flips).
- Scale a row by k: det→kdet (the factor comes out).
- Add a multiple of one row to a different row (Ri→Ri+λRj, i=j): det unchanged.
The identical rules hold for columns. There is also row-wise linearity: if a row is a sum Ri=Ri′+Ri′′, the determinant splits into the sum of two determinants with all other rows fixed.
Row-wise linearity is not det(A+B)=detA+detB — that is false. The splitting works one row at a time.
The strategy
- Use operation 3 to create zeros in a row or column (value unchanged).
- Factor out common factors with operation 2.
- Swap rows if needed to reach upper-triangular form (track the sign change).
- The determinant is then the product of the diagonal entries.
Worked example
det1472583610.
Apply R2→R2−4R1 and R3→R3−7R1 (no change), then R3→R3−2R2: …
"Find the value" here means evaluate the determinant 1000cosαsinα0sinα−cosα.
Expand along the first row (only the top-left entry is non-zero): …
Expanding the determinant and using cos2α+sin2α=1 gives −1.
The instruction "find the value" means evaluate this determinant. The first row is (1,0,0), so expanding along it collapses to a single 2×2 determinant.
Expand along row 1
1000cosαsinα0sinα−cosα=1⋅cosαsinαsinα−cosα−0+0.
Evaluate the 2x2 block …
Method: Evaluating a Determinant Using Zero Entries and Known Identities
This method evaluates a determinant efficiently by expanding along a row/column that is mostly zero, then simplifying the leftover expression with an algebraic or trigonometric identity — rather than blindly expanding every term.
Steps
Step 1: Scan the determinant for a row or column with the most zeros
Expanding along a row/column of the form (1,0,0) collapses the whole 3×3 expansion into a single 2×2 determinant, since every term multiplied by a 0 entry vanishes automatically.
Step 2: Expand along that row/column using the cofactor formula
detA=∑jaijCij,Cij=(−1)i+jMij
Only the non-zero entries in that row contribute a term — write down just those.
Step 3: Simplify the resulting expression using the relevant identity …
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Expanding along the wrong row/column, ignoring the zeros
Why it's wrong: expanding along a row or column that isn't mostly zero (e.g. column 2 or 3 here, instead of column 1 / row 1) means doing a full three-term cofactor expansion instead of collapsing immediately to one 2×2 determinant — much more room for arithmetic error, for no benefit. Correct approach: always scan for the row/column with the most zeros first, and expand along that one.
Mistake 2: A sign error in the 2×2 block
Why it's wrong: the 2×2 determinant acbd=ad−bc subtracts the cross product — here that gives −cos2α−sin2α; writing it as −cos2α+sin2α (dropping the minus sign on the second term) changes the final answer completely. Correct approach: write out ad−bc explicitly with all signs before simplifying. …
Showing the 12 most recent of 18 on this concept.
- KEAM 2026Set eng-2026-04184 marksMCQQ.Let A and B be two square matrices each of order 3. If ∣AB∣=21 and ∣A−1∣=−7, then the value of ∣B∣ is equal to (A) 3 (B) -3 (C) 147 (D) -63 (E) -147
›Reveal solutionSolution
∣A∣=−1/7, and ∣B∣=∣AB∣/∣A∣=21/(−1/7)=−147.
Since ∣A−1∣=∣A∣1=−7, we have ∣A∣=−71.
Using ∣AB∣=∣A∣∣B∣: …
- KEAM 2026Set eng-2026-04184 marksMCQQ.Let f(x)=−101x1−132x1. Then the value of f(−1) is equal to (A) 6 (B) -4 (C) -2 (D) 2 (E) 0
›Reveal solutionSolution
At x=−1 the determinant evaluates to 0.
At x=−1 the matrix is −101−11−13−21. Expanding along the first column: …
- KEAM 2026Set eng-2026-04194 marksMCQQ.111112111131 is equal to (A) 7100 (B) 6800 (C) 7300 (D) 6900 (E) 6700
›Reveal solutionSolution
Cofactor expansion along the first row gives 7100.
Expansion. For 111112111131:
=11(21⋅31−1⋅1)−1(1⋅31−1⋅1)+1(1⋅1−21⋅1) …
- KEAM 2026Set eng-2026-04204 marksMCQQ.The value of the determinant (105+10−5)2(1006+100−6)2(6100+6−100)2(105−10−5)2(1006−100−6)2(6100−6−100)2111 is equal to (A) 100 (B) 200 (C) 0 (D) 6000 (E) 60600
›Reveal solutionSolution
In every row the two entries are (P+Q)2 and (P−Q)2 with PQ=1, so C1−C2=4PQ=4 for all rows. That makes column C1−C2 a multiple of the all-ones column C3; two proportional columns force the determinant to be 0.
In each row the entries have the form (P+Q)2, (P−Q)2, 1, where:
- Row 1: P=105, Q=10−5, PQ=1.
- Row 2: P=1006, Q=100−6, PQ=1.
- Row 3: P=6100, Q=6−100, PQ=1.
Apply the column operation C1→C1−C2. For every row, …
- KEAM 2026Set eng-2026-04224 marksMCQQ.The value of sin30∘sin45∘sin60∘cos30∘cos45∘cos60∘sin(30∘+75∘)sin(45∘+75∘)sin(60∘+75∘) is equal to (A) −2 (B) −1 (C) 0 (D) 1 (E) 2
›Reveal solutionSolution
The third column is a fixed linear combination of the first two, forcing a zero determinant.
Each entry of column 3 is sin(θ+75∘)=sinθcos75∘+cosθsin75∘. …
- KEAM 2025Set eng-2025-04254 marksMCQQ.The numbers a1,a2,a3,a4,a5 and a6 are in G.P. If a1=2 and the common ratio r=21, then the value of a1a3a5a2a4a6111 is equal to (A) 1 (B) 2 (C) 21 (D) 4 (E) 0
›Reveal solutionSolution
Two columns are proportional, forcing the determinant to zero.
With a1=2,r=21: the terms are 2,1,21,41,81,161.
In the determinant
a1a3a5a2a4a6111, …
- KEAM 2025Set eng-2025-04284 marksMCQQ.Let Δ=xx+y1yy+1x1x+1y. If x+y=−1, then the value of Δ is equal to (A) 3 (B) 2 (C) 1 (D) 0 (E) -3
›Reveal solutionSolution
Expanding Δ and substituting x+y=−1, every term reduces to 0 because it carries a factor x+y+1=0.
Expanding along the first row:
Δ=x[(y+1)y−(x+1)x]−y[(x+y)y−(x+1)]+[(x+y)x−(y+1)].
With x+y=−1:
- First term: x[(y2−x2)+(y−x)]=x(y−x)(x+y+1)=x(y−x)(0)=0. …
- KEAM 2025Set eng-2025-04294 marksMCQQ.If α+β+γ=0, then eαeβeγe2αe2βe2γe3α−1e3β−1e3γ−1= (A) e−1 (B) e (C) e2 (D) e3 (E) 0
›Reveal solutionSolution
Let a=eα,b=eβ,c=eγ, so abc=eα+β+γ=1. Split the third column a3−1=a3+(−1); the two resulting Vandermonde determinants are equal and cancel, giving 0.
Write the rows as (a,a2,a3−1) etc. By column-linearity the determinant splits as D1−D2 where
D1=abca2b2c2a3b3c3=abc111abca2b2c2=abc,V, …
- KEAM 2024Set eng-2024-06064 marksMCQQ.Let A=2−11−10−212−1 and let B=∣A∣1A. Then the value of ∣B∣ is equal to (A) 91 (B) 111 (C) 811 (D) 1211 (E) 1
›Reveal solutionSolution
For a 3×3 matrix, scaling by 1/∣A∣ scales the determinant by (1/∣A∣)3. …
- KEAM 2024Set eng-2024-06074 marksMCQQ.Let A=a1a2a3b1b2b3c1c2c3 and B=a12a24a32b14b28b34c18c216c3. If ∣B∣=16, then the value of ∣A∣ is equal to (A) 4 (B) 41 (C) 8 (D) 81 (E) 16
›Reveal solutionSolution
Pull common factors out of each row and each column of B.
Rows of B are (a1,2b1,4c1), 2(a2,2b2,4c2), 4(a3,2b3,4c3), giving a row factor 1⋅2⋅4=8. The remaining matrix has columns with factors 1,2,4, giving a column factor 1⋅2⋅4=8, and what remains i …
- KEAM 2024Set eng-2024-06074 marksMCQQ.If A=(−733−1), then det(A5) is equal to (A) 81 (B) -81 (C) 243 (D) -243 (E) -32
›Reveal solutionSolution
det(A5)=(detA)5.
detA=(−7)(−1)−(3)(3)=7−9=−2. Then det(A5)=(detA)5=(−2)5=−32 …
- KEAM 2024Set eng-2024-06094 marksMCQQ.Let A=(aij) be a square matrix of order 3 and let Mij be the minors of aij. If M11=−40,M12=−10,M13=35 and a11=1,a12=3,a13=−2 then the value of ∣A∣ is equal to (A) -100 (B) -80 (C) 0 (D) 60 (E) 80
›Reveal solutionSolution
Convert minors to cofactors with alternating signs, then expand: ∣A∣=−80.
Cofactors: C11=+M11=−40, C12=−M12=10, C13=+M13=35.
Expanding along the first row: …
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