# Proof that Gauss-Jordan elimination works

Gauss-Jordan elimination is a technique that can be used to calculate the inverse of matrices (if they are invertible). It can also be used to solve simultaneous linear equations.

However, after a few google searches, I have failed to find a proof that this algorithm works for all $n \times n$, invertible matrices. How would you prove that the technique of using Gauss-Jordan elimination to calculate matrices will work for all invertible matrices of finite dimensions (we allow swapping of two rows)?

Induction on $n$ is a possible idea: the base case is very clear, but how would you prove the inductive step?

We are not trying to show that an answer generated using Gauss-Jordan will be correct. We are trying to show that Gauss-Jordan can apply to all invertible matrices.

Note: I realize that there is a similar question here, but this question is distinct in that it asks for a proof for invertible matrices.

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This is one of the typical cases where the most obvious reason something is true is because the associated algorithm cannot possibly fail.

Roughly speaking, the only way Gauss-Jordan can ever get stuck is if (at any intermediate point) there is a column containing too many zeroes, so there is no row that can be swapped in to produce a non-zero entry in the expected location. However, if this does happen, it is easy to see that the matrix is non-invertible, and since the row operations did not cause this, it must have been the original matrix that is to blame.