Not sure what cofactors are? What does the phrase compute the determinant by cofactor expansion actually mean? Struggling with 4×4 cofactor expansion? Stuck with a homework assignment asking you to find the determinant of a 5×5 matrix with cofactor expansion? Keep calm and scroll on down!
The Laplace expansion is a formula that allows us to express thedeterminant of a matrixas a linear combination of determinants of smaller matrices, called minors. The Laplace expansion also allows us to write theinverse of a matrixin terms of its signed minors, called cofactors. The latter are...