definition-

In linear algebra, the determinant is a scalar value that can be computed from the elements of a square matrix and encodes certain properties of the linear transformation described by the matrix

The Determinant of a Matrix

To every square matrix A = [aij] of order n, we can associate a number (real or complex) called determinant of the square matrix A, where a = (i, j)^th element of A. This may be thought of as a function which associates each square matrix with a unique number (real or complex).

If M is the set of square matrices, K is the set of numbers (real or complex) and f : M → K is defined by f (A) = k, where A ∈ M and k ∈ K, then f (A) is called the determinant of A. It is also denoted by | A | or det A or Δ.a