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Algebra Difficulty 7.5 National olympiad, round 2 Find the answer

Let A=(aij)M(n+1)×(n+1)(R)A=(a_{ij})\in M_{(n+1)\times (n+1)}(\mathbb{R}) with aij=a+ijda_{ij}=a+|i-j|d, where aa and dd are fixed real numbers.
Calculate det(A)\det(A).

A number or a short expression. Spacing and $ signs are ignored.

Solution

To find the determinant of the matrix A=(aij) A = (a_{ij}) where aij=a+ijd a_{ij} = a + |i-j|d , we need to compute det(A)\det(A) for AM(n+1)×(n+1)(R) A \in M_{(n+1) \times (n+1)}(\mathbb{R}) .

The given matrix A A is a symmetric Toeplitz matrix, meaning each descending diagonal from left to right is constant. Specifically, the entries depend on the expression ij |i-j| , which leads to a particular banded structure in the matrix.

### Step 1: Matrix Structure

The matrix A A can be expressed as:
A=[aa+da+2da+nda+daa+da+(n1)da+2da+daa+(n2)da+nda+(n1)da+(n2)da]. A = \begin{bmatrix} a & a+d & a+2d & \cdots & a+nd \\ a+d & a & a+d & \cdots & a+(n-1)d \\ a+2d & a+d & a & \cdots & a+(n-2)d \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \vdots \\ a+nd & a+(n-1)d & a+(n-2)d & \cdots & a \end{bmatrix}.

### Step 2: Utilize Symmetry and Simplification

Notice that each element aij a_{ij} can be rewritten, emphasizing the symmetric difference:
aij=a+d×ij. a_{ij} = a + d \times |i-j|.
This matrix can be transformed to make the calculation of the determinant easier.

### Step 3: Determinant Calculation

Using the determinant properties of symmetric and Toeplitz matrices, alongside known techniques for specific matrix forms, we simplify the determinant computation to the following expression:
det(A)=(1)n2n1dn(2a+nd). \det(A) = (-1)^n 2^{n-1} d^n (2a + nd).

### Final Answer

Thus, the determinant of the matrix A A is:
(1)n2n1dn(2a+nd). \boxed{(-1)^n 2^{n-1} d^n (2a + nd)}.

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Source: Omni-MATH, licensed Apache-2.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic and difficulty added by this site.