Lin's multivariable matrix Young conjecture

From papers

Let MnM_n denote the set of nn by nn complex matrices. For XMnX\in M_n, write

X=(XX)1/2.|X|=(X^*X)^{1/2}.

For Hermitian matrices XX and YY, write XYX\preceq Y when YXY-X is positive semidefinite. Let A1,,AmMnA_1,\ldots,A_m\in M_n be positive semidefinite, and let p1,,pm>0p_1,\ldots,p_m>0 satisfy

1p1++1pm=1.\frac1{p_1}+\cdots+\frac1{p_m}=1.

The eigenvalues of a Hermitian matrix HH are ordered as λ1(H)λ2(H)λn(H)\lambda_1(H)\geq\lambda_2(H)\geq\cdots\geq\lambda_n(H).

Lin's conjecture. There exists a unitary matrix UMnU\in M_n such that

UA1AmU1p1A1p1++1pmAmpm.U|A_1\cdots A_m|U^*\preceq \frac1{p_1}A_1^{p_1}+\cdots+\frac1{p_m}A_m^{p_m}.

Equivalently, for j=1,,nj=1,\ldots,n,

λj(A1Am)λj(1p1A1p1++1pmAmpm).\lambda_j(|A_1\cdots A_m|) \leq \lambda_j\left( \frac1{p_1}A_1^{p_1}+\cdots+\frac1{p_m}A_m^{p_m} \right).

This is a multivariable extension of matrix Young inequalities in which the order of the factors matters. The conjecture was proposed by Lin, but the paper shows that it fails for every m3m\geq3: for m4m\geq4 there are uniform 2×22\times2 counterexamples, while m=3m=3 is disproved by a 3×33\times3 positive semidefinite example.

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Sources & referencesView supporting material

Primary source

Zhekai Pang, “Counterexamples to a multivariable matrix Young conjecture”, arXiv:2607.11866 (2026).

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