A matrix viewpoint for various algebraic extensions (Q2165291)

Let \(K\) be a field and \(f(x)\in K[x]\) be an irreducible polynomial of degree \(n\). The existence of algebraic extensions of \(K\) is usually introduced via Kronecker's construction \(F:=K[x]/f(x)K[x]\) as a quotient ring. The authors argue that students may find it more appealing to use a concrete matrix approach in which \(F:=K[A_{f}]\subseteq M_{n}(K)\) where \(M_{n}(K)\) is the ring of \(n\times n\) matrices over \(K\) and \(A_{f}\) is the companion matrix of \(f\). This idea is not new but the paper includes details which would be useful for someone wishing to explore this approach. For example, suppose \( B,C\in M_{n}(K)\) and \(f(B)=f(C)=0\) then: \(B\ \)and \(C\) are similar (in particular \(B\) is similar to its transpose); \(K[B]\) is a maximal commutative subring of \(M_{n}(K)\) and hence a maximal subfield; and \(K[B]\) has the double centralizer property. The paper also shows how to construct the algebraic closure of a field as a subring of \(\mathrm{End}_{K}(V)\) where \(V\) is an infinite dimensional vector space over \(K\), and briefly indicates how companion matrices can be used to parametrise algebraic curves.