What is the connection of Gell-Mann matrices with SU(3)?

Question

Are Gell-Mann matrices the generators of SU(3)?
Are Gell-Mann matrices the representation of SU(3)?

What are the generators of SU(3)?
What is the representation of SU(3)?
is there one or several representations of SU(3)?

What is the connection of Gell-Mann matrices with SU(3)?

Answer 1

"Are Gell-Mann matrices the generators of SU(3)"?

Yes they are!

"Are Gell-Mann matrices the representation of SU(3)?"

There's more than one "representation", as explained here. I'll list some of them here:

• Fundamental representation
• Adjoint representation
• Defining representation
• Spin representation
• Trivial representation

"What are the generators of SU(3)?"

A subset of SU(3) such that every element of SU(3) can be expressed as a combination of a finite number of elements of the subset and their inverses. The Gell-Mann matrices are just one example of generators of SU(3).

What is the representation of SU(3)?

They are generators of the SU(3) group in the defining representation.

"is there one or several representations of SU(3)?"

There's several, as mentioned above.

"What is the connection of Gell-Mann matrices with SU(3)"?

They are generators of the SU(3) group in the defining representation.