arXiv subjects

David Simmons

Publications and source records attributed to David Simmons.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Badly approximable points on self-affine sponges and the lower Assouad dimension

We highlight a connection between Diophantine approximation and the lower Assouad dimension by using information about the latter to show that the Hausdorff dimension of the set of badly approximable points that lie in certain non-conformal fractals, known as self-affine sponges, is bounded below by the dynamical dimension of these fractals. In particular, for self-affine sponges with equal Hausdorff and dynamical dimensions, the set of badly approximable points has full Hausdorff dimension in the sponge. Our results, which are the first to advance beyond the conformal setting, encompass both the case of Sierpiński sponges/carpets (also known as Bedford-McMullen sponges/carpets) and the case of Barański carpets. We use the fact that the lower Assouad dimension of a hyperplane diffuse set constitutes a lower bound for the Hausdorff dimension of the set of badly approximable points in that set.

math.DS↗

arXiv2017

Extremality and dynamically defined measures, part I: Diophantine properties of quasi-decaying measures

We present a new method of proving the Diophantine extremality of various dynamically defined measures, vastly expanding the class of measures known to be extremal. This generalizes and improves the celebrated theorem of Kleinbock and Margulis ('98) resolving Sprindžuk's conjecture, as well as its extension by Kleinbock, Lindenstrauss, and Weiss ('04), hereafter abbreviated KLW. As applications we prove the extremality of all hyperbolic measures of smooth dynamical systems with sufficiently large Hausdorff dimension, and of the Patterson--Sullivan measures of all nonplanar geometrically finite groups. The key technical idea, which has led to a plethora of new applications, is a significant weakening of KLW's sufficient conditions for extremality. In Part I, we introduce and develop a systematic account of two classes of measures, which we call $quasi$-$decaying$ and $weakly$ $quasi$-$decaying$. We prove that weak quasi-decay implies strong extremality in the matrix approximation framework (which has received much attention in recent years), thus proving a conjecture of KLW. We also prove the "inherited exponent of irrationality" version of this theorem, describing the relationship between the Diophantine properties of certain subspaces of the space of matrices and measures supported on these subspaces. In subsequent papers, we exhibit numerous examples of quasi-decaying measures, in support of the thesis that "almost any measure from dynamics and/or fractal geometry is quasi-decaying". In addition to the examples described above, we also prove (for example) that Gibbs measures (including conformal measures) of infinite iterated function systems are quasi-decaying, even if the systems in question do not satisfy the open set condition. We also discuss examples of non-extremal measures coming from dynamics, illustrating where the theory must halt.

math.DS↗

arXiv2017

The Hausdorff and dynamical dimensions of self-affine sponges: a dimension gap result

We construct a self-affine sponge in $\mathbb R^3$ whose dynamical dimension, i.e. the supremum of the Hausdorff dimensions of its invariant measures, is strictly less than its Hausdorff dimension. This resolves a long-standing open problem in the dimension theory of dynamical systems, namely whether every expanding repeller has an ergodic invariant measure of full Hausdorff dimension. More generally we compute the Hausdorff and dynamical dimensions of a large class of self-affine sponges, a problem that previous techniques could only solve in two dimensions. The Hausdorff and dynamical dimensions depend continuously on the iterated function system defining the sponge, implying that sponges with a dimension gap represent a nonempty open subset of the parameter space.

math.DS↗

arXiv2017

A Hausdorff measure version of the Jarník--Schmidt theorem in Diophantine approximation

We solve the problem of giving sharp asymptotic bounds on the Hausdorff dimensions of certain sets of badly approximable matrices, thus improving results of Broderick and Kleinbock (preprint 2013) as well as Weil (preprint 2013), and generalizing to higher dimensions those of Kurzweil ('51) and Hensley ('92). In addition we use our technique to compute the Hausdorff $f$-measure of the set of matrices which are not $ψ$-approximable, given a dimension function $f$ and a function $ψ:(0,\infty)\to (0,\infty)$. This complements earlier work by Dickinson and Velani ('97) who found the Hausdorff $f$-measure of the set of matrices which are $ψ$-approximable.

math.NT↗

arXiv2016

Dimension rigidity in conformal structures

Let $Λ$ be the limit set of a conformal dynamical system, i.e. a Kleinian group acting on either finite- or infinite-dimensional real Hilbert space, a conformal iterated function system, or a rational function. We give an easily expressible sufficient condition, requiring that the limit set is not too much bigger than the radial limit set, for the following dichotomy: $Λ$ is either a real-analytic manifold or a fractal in the sense of Mandelbrot (i.e. its Hausdorff dimension is strictly greater than its topological dimension). Our primary focus is on the infinite-dimensional case. An important component of the strategy of our proof comes from the rectifiability techniques of Mayer and Urbański ('03), who obtained a dimension rigidity result for conformal iterated function systems (including those with infinite alphabets). In order to handle the infinite dimensional case, both for Kleinian groups and for iterated function systems, we introduce the notion of pseudorectifiability, a variant of rectifiability, and develop a theory around this notion similar to the theory of rectifiable sets. Our approach also extends existing results in the finite-dimensional case, where it unifies the realms of Kleinian groups, conformal iterated function systems, and rational functions. For Kleinian groups, we improve on the rigidity result of Kapovich ('09) by substantially weakening its hypothesis of geometrical finiteness. Moreover, our proof, based on rectifiability, is entirely different than that of Kapovich, which depends on homological algebra. Another advantage of our approach is that it allows us to use the "demension" of Štan$'$ko ('69) as a substitute for topological dimension. For example, we prove that any dynamically defined version of Antoine's necklace must have Hausdorff dimension strictly greater than 1 (i.e. the demension of Antoine's necklace).

math.DS↗

arXiv2016

Random walks on homogeneous spaces and diophantine approximation on fractals

We extend results of Y. Benoist and J.-F. Quint concerning random walks on homogeneous spaces of simple Lie groups to the case where the measure defining the random walk generates a semigroup which is not necessarily Zariski dense, but satisfies some expansion properties for the adjoint action. Using these dynamical results, we study diophantine properties of typical points on some self-similar fractals in R^d. As examples, we show that for any self-similar fractal K in R^d satisfying the open set condition (for instance any translate or dilate of Cantor's middle thirds set or of a Koch snowflake), almost every point with respect to the natural measure on K is not badly approximable. Furthermore, almost every point on the fractal is of generic type, which implies (in the one dimensional case) that its continued fraction expansion contains all finite words with the frequencies predicted by Gauss measure. We prove analogous results for matrix multiplication, and for the case of fractals defined by Mobius transformation.

math.DS↗

arXiv2016

Badly approximable vectors and fractals defined by conformal dynamical systems

We prove that if $J$ is the limit set of an irreducible conformal iterated function system (with either finite or countably infinite alphabet), then the badly approximable vectors form a set of full Hausdorff dimension in $J$. The same is true if $J$ is the radial Julia set of an irreducible meromorphic function (either rational or transcendental). The method of proof is to find subsets of $J$ that support absolutely friendly and Ahlfors regular measures of large dimension. In the appendix to this paper, we answer a question of Broderick, Kleinbock, Reich, Weiss, and the second-named author ('12) by showing that every hyperplane diffuse set supports an absolutely decaying measure.

math.NT↗

arXiv2016

Uniformly de Bruijn sequences and symbolic Diophantine approximation on fractals

Intrinsic Diophantine approximation on fractals, such as the Cantor ternary set, was undoubtedly motivated by questions asked by K. Mahler (1984). One of the main goals of this paper is to develop and utilize the theory of infinite de Bruijn sequences in order to answer closely related questions. In particular, we prove that the set of infinite de Bruijn sequences in $k\geq 2$ letters, thought of as a set of real numbers via a decimal expansion, has positive Hausdorff dimension. For a given $k$, these sequences bear a strong connection to Diophantine approximation on certain fractals. In particular, the optimality of an intrinsic Dirichlet function on these fractals with respect to the height function defined by symbolic representations of rationals follows from these results.

math.CO↗

arXiv2016

New examples of complete sets, with connections to a Diophantine theorem of Furstenberg

A set $A\subseteq\mathbb N$ is called $complete$ if every sufficiently large integer can be written as the sum of distinct elements of $A$. In this paper we present a new method for proving the completeness of a set, improving results of Cassels ('60), Zannier ('92), Burr, Erdős, Graham, and Li ('96), and Hegyvári ('00). We also introduce the somewhat philosophically related notion of a $dispersing$ set and refine a theorem of Furstenberg ('67).

math.CO↗

arXiv2016

The Hurwitz continued fraction expansion as applied to real numbers

Hurwitz (1887) defined a continued fraction algorithm for complex numbers which is better behaved in many respects than a more "natural" extension of the classical continued fraction algorithm to the complex plane would be. Although the Hurwitz complex continued fraction algorithm is not "reducible" to another complex continued fraction algorithm, over the reals the story is different. In this note we make clear the relation between the restriction of Hurwitz's algorithm to the real numbers and the classical continued fraction algorithm. As an application we reprove the main result of Choudhuri and Dani (2015).

math.NT↗

arXiv2016

Geometry and dynamics in Gromov hyperbolic metric spaces: With an emphasis on non-proper settings

Our monograph presents the foundations of the theory of groups and semigroups acting isometrically on Gromov hyperbolic metric spaces. Our work unifies and extends a long list of results by many authors. We make it a point to avoid any assumption of properness/compactness, keeping in mind the motivating example of $\mathbb H^\infty$, the infinite-dimensional rank-one symmetric space of noncompact type over the reals. The monograph provides a number of examples of groups acting on $\mathbb H^\infty$ which exhibit a wide range of phenomena not to be found in the finite-dimensional theory. Such examples often demonstrate the optimality of our theorems. We introduce a modification of the Poincaré exponent, an invariant of a group which gives more information than the usual Poincaré exponent, which we then use to vastly generalize the Bishop--Jones theorem relating the Hausdorff dimension of the radial limit set to the Poincaré exponent of the underlying semigroup. We give some examples based on our results which illustrate the connection between Hausdorff dimension and various notions of discreteness which show up in non-proper settings. We construct Patterson--Sullivan measures for groups of divergence type without any compactness assumption. This is carried out by first constructing such measures on the Samuel--Smirnov compactification of the bordification of the underlying hyperbolic space, and then showing that the measures are supported on the bordification. We study quasiconformal measures of geometrically finite groups in terms of (a) doubling and (b) exact dimensionality. Our analysis characterizes exact dimensionality in terms of Diophantine approximation on the boundary. We demonstrate that some Patterson--Sullivan measures are neither doubling nor exact dimensional, and some are exact dimensional but not doubling, but all doubling measures are exact dimensional.

math.DS↗

arXiv2016

Decaying and non-decaying badly approximable numbers

We call a badly approximable number $decaying$ if, roughly, the Lagrange constants of integer multiples of that number decay as fast as possible. In this terminology, a question of Y. Bugeaud ('15) asks to find the Hausdorff dimension of the set of decaying badly approximable numbers, and also of the set of badly approximable numbers which are not decaying. We answer both questions, showing that the Hausdorff dimensions of both sets are equal to one. Part of our proof utilizes a game which combines the Banach--Mazur game and Schmidt's game, first introduced in Fishman, Reams, and Simmons (preprint '15).

math.NT↗

arXiv2016

Unconventional height functions in simultaneous Diophantine approximation

Simultaneous Diophantine approximation is concerned with the approximation of a point $\mathbf x\in\mathbb R^d$ by points $\mathbf r\in\mathbb Q^d$, with a view towards jointly minimizing the quantities $\|\mathbf x - \mathbf r\|$ and $H(\mathbf r)$. Here $H(\mathbf r)$ is the so-called "standard height" of the rational point $\mathbf r$. In this paper the authors ask: What changes if we replace the standard height function by a different one? As it turns out, this change leads to dramatic differences from the classical theory and requires the development of new methods. We discuss three examples of nonstandard height functions, computing their exponents of irrationality as well as giving more precise results. A list of open questions is also given.

math.NT↗

arXiv2016

Intrinsic Diophantine approximation on manifolds: General theory

We investigate the question of how well points on a nondegenerate $k$-dimensional submanifold $M \subseteq \mathbb R^d$ can be approximated by rationals also lying on $M$, establishing an upper bound on the "intrinsic Dirichlet exponent" for $M$. We show that relative to this exponent, the set of badly intrinsically approximable points is of full dimension and the set of very well intrinsically approximable points is of zero measure. Our bound on the intrinsic Dirichlet exponent is phrased in terms of an explicit function of $k$ and $d$ which does not seem to have appeared in the literature previously. It is shown to be optimal for several particular cases. The requirement that the rationals lie on $M$ distinguishes this question from the more common context of (ambient) Diophantine approximation on manifolds, and necessitates the development of new techniques. Our main tool is an analogue of the Simplex Lemma for rationals lying on $M$ which provides new insights on the local distribution of rational points on nondegenerate manifolds.

math.NT↗

arXiv2016

Strictly Positive and Continuous Random Fibonacci Sequences and Network Theory Applications

We motivate the study of a certain class of random Fibonacci sequences - which we call continuous random Fibonacci sequences - by demonstrating that their exponential growth rate can be used to establish capacity and power scaling laws for multihop cooperative amplify-and-forward (AF) relay networks. With these laws, we show that it is possible to construct multihop cooperative AF networks that simultaneously avoid 1) exponential capacity decay and 2) exponential transmit power growth across the network. This is achieved by ensuring the network's Lyapunov exponent is zero.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2016

Capacity and Power Scaling Laws for Finite Antenna MIMO Amplify-and-Forward Relay Networks

In this paper, we present a novel framework that can be used to study the capacity and power scaling properties of linear multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) $d\times d$ antenna amplify-and-forward (AF) relay networks. In particular, we model these networks as random dynamical systems (RDS) and calculate their $d$ Lyapunov exponents. Our analysis can be applied to systems with any per-hop channel fading distribution, although in this contribution we focus on Rayleigh fading. Our main results are twofold: 1) the total transmit power at the $n$th node will follow a deterministic trajectory through the network governed by the network's maximum Lyapunov exponent, 2) the capacity of the $i$th eigenchannel at the $n$th node will follow a deterministic trajectory through the network governed by the network's $i$th Lyapunov exponent. Before concluding, we concentrate on some applications of our results. In particular, we show how the Lyapunov exponents are intimately related to the rate at which the eigenchannel capacities diverge from each other, and how this relates to the amplification strategy and number of antennas at each relay. We also use them to determine the extra cost in power associated with each extra multiplexed data stream.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2016

Some manifolds of Khinchin type for convergence

Recently, Beresnevich, Vaughan, Velani, and Zorin (arXiv: 1506.09049) gave some sufficient conditions for a manifold to be of Khinchin type for convergence. We show that their techniques can be used in a more optimal way to yield stronger results. In the process we also improve a theorem of Dodson, Rynne, and Vickers ('89).

math.NT↗

arXiv2015

Tukia's isomorphism theorem in CAT(-1) spaces

We prove a generalization of Tukia's ('85) isomorphism theorem which states that isomorphisms between geometrically finite groups extend equivariantly to the boundary. Tukia worked in the setting of real hyperbolic spaces of finite dimension, and his theorem cannot be generalized as stated to the setting of CAT($-1$) spaces. We exhibit examples of type-preserving isomorphisms of geometrically finite subgroups of finite-dimensional rank one symmetric spaces of noncompact type (ROSSONCTs) whose boundary extensions are not quasisymmetric. A sufficient condition for a type-preserving isomorphism to extend to a quasisymmetric equivariant homeomorphism between limit sets is that one of the groups in question is a lattice, and that the underlying base fields are the same, or if they are not the same then the base field of the space on which the lattice acts has the larger dimension. This in turn leads to a generalization of a rigidity theorem of Xie ('08) to the setting of finite-dimensional ROSSONCTs.

math.DS↗