Meaning The determinant is a scalar value computed from the square matrix. It is denoted by det(A) or |A|, where A is a matrix. It is also used for determining the areas or volumes. For instance, the area of a parallelogram can be computed as the absolute value of the determinant of the matrix formed by the vectors representing the sides of the parallelogram.
Examples The formula for the determinant of a 2 x 2 matrix: Sarrus' scheme for the determinant of a 3 x 3 matrix: Leibnitz formula for the determinant of an n x n matrix:
Etymology Latin dētermināntem, present participle of dētermināre (to determine), French déterminant used in the paper Trevoux 1752
