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Symmetric and skew-symmetric block-Kronecker linearizations

Many applications give rise to structured matrix polynomials. The problem of constructing structure-preserving strong linearizations of structured matrix polynomials is revisited in this work and in the forthcoming ones \cite{PartII,PartIII}. With the purpose of providing a much simpler framework for structure-preserving linearizations for symmetric and skew-symmetric matrix polynomial than the one based on Fiedler pencils with repetition, we introduce in this work the families of (modified) symmetric and skew-symmetric block Kronecker pencils. These families provide a large arena of structure-preserving strong linearizations of symmetric and skew-symmetric matrix polynomials. When the matrix polynomial has degree odd, these linearizations are strong regardless of whether the matrix polynomial is regular or singular, and many of them give rise to structure-preserving companion forms. When some generic nonsingularity conditions are satisfied, they are also strong linearizations for even-degree regular matrix polynomials. Many examples of structure-preserving linearizations obtained from Fiedler pencils with repetitions found in the literature are shown to belong (modulo permutations) to these families of linearizations. In particular, this is shown to be true for the well-known block-tridiagonal symmetric and skew-symmetric companion forms. Since the families of symmetric and skew-symmetric block Kronecker pencils belong to the recently introduced set of minimal bases pencils \cite{Fiedler-like}, they inherit all its desirable properties for numerical applications. In particular, it is shown that eigenvectors, minimal indices, and minimal bases of matrix polynomials are easily recovered from those of any of the linearizations constructed in this work.