Why Sparse Matrix Is Used?

Using sparse matrices to store data that contains a large number of zero-valued elements can both save a significant amount of memory and speed up the processing of that data. sparse is an attribute that you can assign to any two-dimensional MATLAB^® matrix that is composed of double or logical elements.

What is the use of sparse matrix in data structure?

Why to use Sparse Matrix instead of simple matrix ? Storage: There are lesser non-zero elements than zeros and thus lesser memory can be used to store only those elements. Computing time: Computing time can be saved by logically designing a data structure traversing only non-zero elements..

What are the advantages of sparse matrices over normal matrices?

Sparse matrix is easily compressible by not storing the zero/null elements, they require less memory space, also only the non zero elements have to be computed, hence computational speed increases.