Convexity and SOS-Convexity of Sum of Separable and Biquadratic Quartic Polynomials and Optimization

Abstract

Determining whether multivariate polynomials of degree four or higher are nonnegative and convex is a strongly NP-hard problem. To mitigate these computational difficulties, sum-of- squares (SOS) convexity has been proposed as a tractable algebraic relaxation that yields a checkable sufficient condition for convexity and can be expressed as a semidefinite program (SDP). In this work, we introduce a structured subclass of quartic polynomials, called the Sum of Separable and Biquadratic (SPBQ) forms, and conduct a systematic analysis of the connection between convexity and SOS-convexity within this class. Specifically, we show that every convex SPBQ polynomial is necessarily SOS-convex when the associated biquadratic form has size n x 2. We then construct an explicit SPBQ example with a 3 x 3 biquadratic form that is convex but fails to be SOS-convex. Finally, we examine both unconstrained and constrained optimization problems involving SPBQ polynomials, demonstrate notable computational benefits compared to general SOS-based methods, and illustrate their use in convex polynomial regression and fluid dynamics.