On matrix rearrangement inequalities

Abstract: Given two symmetric and positive semidefinite square matrices

A, B

, is it true that any matrix given as the product of

m

copies of

A

and

n

copies of

B

in a particular sequence must be dominated in the spectral norm by the ordered matrix product

A^{m} B^{n}

? For example, is

| AABAABABB | leq | AAAAABBBB | ?

Drury has characterized precisely which disordered words have the property that an inequality of this type holds for all matrices

A, B

. However, the

1

-parameter family of counterexamples Drury constructs for these characterizations is comprised of

3 i m e s 3

matrices, and thus as stated the characterization applies only for

N i m e s N

matrices with

N g e q 3

. In contrast, we prove that for

2 i m e s 2

matrices, the general rearrangement inequality holds for all disordered words. We also show that for larger

N i m e s N

matrices, the general rearrangement inequality holds for all disordered words, for most

A, B

(in a sense of full measure) that are sufficiently small perturbations of the identity.

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