Concept
Division ring
Related concepts (24)
Simple ring
In abstract algebra, a branch of mathematics, a simple ring is a non-zero ring that has no two-sided ideal besides the zero ideal and itself. In particular, a commutative ring is a simple ring if and only if it is a field. The center of a simple ring is necessarily a field. It follows that a simple ring is an associative algebra over this field. It is then called a simple algebra over this field. Several references (e.g., Lang (2002) or Bourbaki (2012)) require in addition that a simple ring be left or right Artinian (or equivalently semi-simple).
Center (ring theory)
In algebra, the center of a ring R is the subring consisting of the elements x such that xy = yx for all elements y in R. It is a commutative ring and is denoted as ; "Z" stands for the German word Zentrum, meaning "center". If R is a ring, then R is an associative algebra over its center. Conversely, if R is an associative algebra over a commutative subring S, then S is a subring of the center of R, and if S happens to be the center of R, then the algebra R is called a central algebra.
Central simple algebra
In ring theory and related areas of mathematics a central simple algebra (CSA) over a field K is a finite-dimensional associative K-algebra A which is simple, and for which the center is exactly K. (Note that not every simple algebra is a central simple algebra over its center: for instance, if K is a field of characteristic 0, then the Weyl algebra is a simple algebra with center K, but is not a central simple algebra over K as it has infinite dimension as a K-module.
Wedderburn's little theorem
In mathematics, Wedderburn's little theorem states that every finite division ring is a field. In other words, for finite rings, there is no distinction between domains, division rings and fields. The Artin–Zorn theorem generalizes the theorem to alternative rings: every finite alternative division ring is a field. The original proof was given by Joseph Wedderburn in 1905, who went on to prove it two other ways. Another proof was given by Leonard Eugene Dickson shortly after Wedderburn's original proof, and Dickson acknowledged Wedderburn's priority.