Main diagonal
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In linear algebra, the main diagonal of a square matrix is the diagonal which runs from the top left corner to the bottom right corner. For example, the following matrix has 1s down its main diagonal:
- <math>\begin{bmatrix}
1 & 0 & 0\\ 0 & 1 & 0\\ 0 & 0 & 1\end{bmatrix}<math>
A matrix like the above in which only the elements of the main diagonal are non-zero is called a diagonal matrix. The sum of the entries on the main diagonal of a matrix is known as the trace of that matrix.de:Diagonale (Lineare Algebra) fr:Diagonale principale he:אלכסון ראשי nl:Hoofddiagonaal pl:Przekątna macierzy