1 Answers
In mathematics, the concept of an inverse element generalises the concepts of opposite and reciprocal of numbers.
Given an operation denoted here ∗, and an identity element denoted e, if x ∗ y = e, one says that x is a left inverse of y, and that y is a right inverse of x.
When the operation ∗ is associative, if an element x has both a left inverse and a right inverse, then these two inverses are equal and unique; they are called the inverse element or simply the inverse. Often an adjective is added for specifying the operation, such as in additive inverse, multiplicative inverse, and functional inverse. In this case , an invertible element is an element that has an inverse.
Inverses are commonly used in groups—where every element is invertible, and rings—where invertible elements are also called units. They are also commonly used for operations that are not defined for all possible operands, such as inverse matrices and inverse functions. This has been generalized to category theory, where, by definition, an isomorphism is an invertible morphism.