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Given an n-by-n Hermitian matrix A and a real number λ, index i is said to be Parter (resp., neutral, downer) if the multiplicity of λ as an eigenvalue of the principal submatrix A(i) is one more (resp., the same, one less) than that in A. In case the multiplicity of λ in A is at least 2 and the graph of A is a tree, there are always Parter vertices. Our purpose here is to advance the classification of vertices and, in particular, to relate classification to the combinatorial structure of eigenspaces. Some general results are given and then used to deduce some rather specific facts not otherwise easily observed. Examples are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An important theorem about the existence of principal submatrices of a Hermitian matrix whose graph is a tree, in which the multiplicity of an eigenvalue increases, was largely developed in separate papers by Parter and Wiener. Here, the prior work is fully stated, then generalized with a self-contained proof. The more complete result is then used to better understand the eigenvalue possibilities of reducible principal submatrices of Hermitian tridiagonal matrices. Sets of vertices, for which the multiplicity increases, are also studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]