  We study the right eigenvalue equation for quaternionic and complex linear
matrix operators defined in n-dimensional quaternionic vector spaces. For
quaternionic linear operators the eigenvalue spectrum consists of n complex
values. For these operators we give a necessary and sufficient condition for
the diagonalization of their quaternionic matrix representations. Our
discussion is also extended to complex linear operators, whose spectrum is
characterized by 2n complex eigenvalues. We show that a consistent analysis of
the eigenvalue problem for complex linear operators requires the choice of a
complex geometry in defining inner products. Finally, we introduce some
examples of the left eigenvalue equations and highlight the main difficulties
in their solution.
