Paired Cauchy matrices (Q5961698)

A paired Cauchy matrix \(S=S(\alpha,\beta; \omega;\gamma)\) has the partitioned form \({{S_1}\brack{S_2}}\), where \[ S_1= \biggl[\frac{1} {\alpha_i-\omega_k} \biggr]_{i=1,\dots,m;k=1,\dots,l},\qquad S_2=\biggl[\frac {\gamma_k} {\beta_j-\omega_k} \biggr]_{j=1,\dots,n;k=1,\dots,l}, \] the \(\alpha_i, \beta_j, \omega_k\) being all different and the \(\gamma_k\) all different and nonzero. Solving matrix equations like \(Sx=y\) or \(S^Tu=v\) comes down to solving certain rational interpolation problems. The authors give a carefully detailed account of such connections and of related matters such as determining \(\ker S\) and, when \(S\) is square, \(S^{-1}\). A typical result (Corollary 11) asserts that a square \(S\) is singular if, and only if, there exists a rational function \(r(\lambda)= P_1(\lambda)/ P_2(\lambda)\) with \(\deg P_1<m\), \(\deg P_2<n\) satisfying \(r(\omega_k)= \delta_k\) \((k=1,\dots,l=m+n)\), where \(\delta_k= \gamma_k \prod_{i=1}^m (\alpha_i- \omega_k)/ \prod_{j=1}^n (\beta_j-\omega_k)\). Relations with Loewner matrices and paired Vandermonde matrices are also pointed out. In the final section, the authors explain the relevance of their theory in the \(4\times 4\) case to the construction of certain exact solutions of the Korteweg-de Vries and sinh-Gordon equations.