A characterization of trace zero symmetric nonnegative \(5\times 5\) matrices (Q624363)

The problem of determining necessary and sufficient conditions for a set of real numbers to be the eigenvalues of an \(n \times n\) symmetric non-negative matrix is called the symmetric non-negative inverse eigenvalue problem (SNIEP). The problem is completely solved only for \(n\leq 4\). For \(n=5\), \textit{R. Loewy} and \textit{J. J. McDonald} [Linear Algebra Appl. 393, 275--298 (2004; Zbl 1066.15007)] obtained a partial solution for nonnegative symmetric matrices with non-zero trace. In this paper, the author solves the SNIEP for the trace zero symmetric nonnegative \(5 \times 5\) matrices. The problem in the general case is still unsolved.