arXiv subjects

Gregory Berkolaiko

Publications and source records attributed to Gregory Berkolaiko.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

Computing nodal deficiency with a refined Dirichlet-to-Neumann map

Recent work of the authors and their collaborators has uncovered fundamental connections between the Dirichlet-to-Neumann map, the spectral flow of a certain family of self-adjoint operators, and the nodal deficiency of a Laplacian eigenfunction (or an analogous deficiency associated to a non-bipartite equipartition). Using a refined construction of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann map, we strengthen all of these results, in particular getting improved bounds on the nodal deficiency of degenerate eigenfunctions. Our framework is very general, allowing for non-bipartite partitions, non-simple eigenvalues, and non-smooth nodal sets. Consequently, the results can be used in the general study of spectral minimal partitions, not just nodal partitions of generic Laplacian eigenfunctions.

math.SP↗

arXiv2022

A local test for global extrema in the dispersion relation of a periodic graph

We consider a family of periodic tight-binding models (combinatorial graphs) that have the minimal number of links between copies of the fundamental domain. For this family we establish a local condition of second derivative type under which the critical points of the dispersion relation can be recognized as global maxima or minima. Under the additional assumption of time-reversal symmetry, we show that any local extremum of a dispersion band is in fact its global extremum if the dimension of the periodicity group is three or less, or (in any dimension) if the critical point in question is a symmetry point of the Floquet--Bloch family with respect to complex conjugation. We demonstrate that our results are nearly optimal with a number of examples.

math-ph↗

arXiv2021

Three dimensional elastic beam frames: rigid joint conditions in variational and differential formulation

We consider three-dimensional elastic frames constructed out of Euler--Bernoulli beams and describe a simple process of generating joint conditions out of the geometric description of the frame. The corresponding differential operator is shown to be self-adjoint. In the special case of planar frames, the operator decomposes into a direct sum of two operators, one coupling out-of-plane displacement to angular (torsional) displacement and the other coupling in-plane displacement with axial displacement (compression). Detailed analysis of two examples is presented. We actively exploit the symmetry present in the examples and decompose the operator by restricting it onto reducing subspaces corresponding to irreducible representations of the symmetry group. These ``quotient'' operators are shown to capture particular oscillation modes of the frame.

math.AP↗

arXiv2021

Convergence of moments of twisted COE matrices

We investigate eigenvalue moments of matrices from Circular Orthogonal Ensemble multiplicatively perturbed by a permutation matrix. More precisely we investigate variance of the sum of the eigenvalues raised to power $k$, for arbitrary but fixed $k$ and in the limit of large matrix size. We find that when the permutation defining the perturbed ensemble has only long cycles, the answer is universal and approaches the corresponding moment of the Circular Unitary Ensemble with a particularly fast rate: the error is of order $1/N^3$ and the terms of orders $1/N$ and $1/N^2$ disappear due to cancellations. We prove this rate of convergence using Weingarten calculus and classifying the contributing Weingarten functions first in terms of a graph model and then algebraically.

math-ph↗

arXiv2020

Locating conical degeneracies in the spectra of parametric self-adjoint matrices

A simple iterative scheme is proposed for locating the parameter values for which a 2-parameter family of real symmetric matrices has a double eigenvalue. The convergence is proved to be quadratic. An extension of the scheme to complex Hermitian matrices (with 3 parameters) and to location of triple eigenvalues (5 parameters for real symmetric matrices) is also described. Algorithm convergence is illustrated in several examples: a real symmetric family, a complex Hermitian family, a family of matrices with an "avoided crossing" (no covergence) and a 5-parameter family of real symmetric matrices with a triple eigenvalue.

math.SP↗

arXiv2020

Degenerate band edges in periodic quantum graphs

Edges of bands of continuous spectrum of periodic structures arise as maxima and minima of the dispersion relation of their Floquet--Bloch transform. It is often assumed that the extrema generating the band edges are non-degenerate. This paper constructs a family of examples of $\mathbb{Z}^3$-periodic quantum graphs where the non-degeneracy assumption fails: the maximum of the first band is achieved along an algebraic curve of co-dimension 2. The example is robust with respect to perturbations of edge lengths, vertex conditions and edge potentials. The simple idea behind the construction allows generalizations to more complicated graphs and lattice dimensions. The curves along which extrema are achieved have a natural interpretation as moduli spaces of planar polygons.

math.SP↗

arXiv2020

Edge-localized states on quantum graphs in the limit of large mass

In this work, we construct and quantify asymptotically in the limit of large mass a variety of edge-localized stationary states of the focusing nonlinear Schrödinger equation on a quantum graph. The method is applicable to general bounded and unbounded graphs. The solutions are constructed by matching a localized large amplitude elliptic function on a single edge with an exponentially smaller remainder on the rest of the graph. This is done by studying the intersections of Dirichlet-to-Neumann manifolds (nonlinear analogues of Dirichlet-to-Neumann maps) corresponding to the two parts of the graph. For the quantum graph with a given set of pendant, looping, and internal edges, we find the edge on which the state of smallest energy at fixed mass is localized. Numerical studies of several examples are used to illustrate the analytical results.

math.AP↗

arXiv2019

Optimizing Consistent Merging and Pruning of Subgraphs in Network Tomography

A communication network can be modeled as a directed connected graph with edge weights that characterize performance metrics such as loss and delay. Network tomography aims to infer these edge weights from their pathwise versions measured on a set of intersecting paths between a subset of boundary vertices, and even the underlying graph when this is not known. Recent work has established conditions under which the underlying directed graph can be recovered exactly the pairwise Path Correlation Data, namely, the set of weights of intersection of each pair of directed paths to and from each endpoint. Algorithmically, this enables us to consistently fused tree-based view of the set of network paths to and from each endpoint to reconstruct the underlying network. However, in practice the PCD is not consistently determined by path measurements. Statistical fluctuations give rise to inconsistent inferred weight of edges from measurement based on different endpoints, as do operational constraints on synchronization, and deviations from the underlying packet transmission model. Furthermore, ad hoc solutions to eliminate noise, such as pruning small weight inferred links, are hard to apply in a consistent manner that preserves known end-to-end metric values. This paper takes a unified approach to the problem of inconsistent weight estimation. We formulate two type of inconsistency: \textsl{intrinsic}, when the weight set is internally inconsistent, and \textsl{extrinsic}, when they are inconsistent with a set of known end-to-end path metrics. In both cases we map inconsistent weight to consistent PCD within a least-squares framework. We evaluate the performance of this mapping in composition with tree-based inference algorithms.

math.OC↗

arXiv2019

Limits of Quantum Graph Operators With Shrinking Edges

We address the question of convergence of Schrödinger operators on metric graphs with general self-adjoint vertex conditions as lengths of some of graph's edges shrink to zero. We determine the limiting operator and study convergence in a suitable norm resolvent sense. It is noteworthy that, as edge lengths tend to zero, standard Sobolev-type estimates break down, making convergence fail for some graphs. We use a combination of functional-analytic bounds on the edges of the graph and Lagrangian geometry considerations for the vertex conditions to establish a sufficient condition for convergence. This condition encodes an intricate balance between the topology of the graph and its vertex data. In particular, it does not depend on the potential, on the differences in the rates of convergence of the shrinking edges, or on the lengths of the unaffected edges.

math.SP↗

arXiv2019

Surgery principles for the spectral analysis of quantum graphs

We present a systematic collection of spectral surgery principles for the Laplacian on a metric graph with any of the usual vertex conditions (natural, Dirichlet or $δ$-type), which show how various types of changes of a local or localised nature to a graph impact the spectrum of the Laplacian. Many of these principles are entirely new, these include "transplantation" of volume within a graph based on the behaviour of its eigenfunctions, as well as "unfolding" of local cycles and pendants. In other cases we establish sharp generalisations, extensions and refinements of known eigenvalue inequalities resulting from graph modification, such as vertex gluing, adjustment of vertex conditions and introducing new pendant subgraphs. To illustrate our techniques we derive a new eigenvalue estimate which uses the size of the doubly connected part of a metric graph to estimate the spectral gap. This quantitative isoperimetric-type inequality interpolates between two known estimates---one assuming the entire graph is doubly connected and the other making no connectivity assumption (and producing a weaker bound)---and includes them as special cases.

math.SP↗

arXiv2018

Graph Reconstruction from Path Correlation Data

A communication network can be modeled as a directed connected graph with edge weights that characterize performance metrics such as loss and delay. Network tomography aims to infer these edge weights from their pathwise versions measured on a set of intersecting paths between a subset of boundary vertices, and even the underlying graph when this is not known. In particular, temporal correlations between path metrics have been used infer composite weights on the subpath formed by the path intersection. We call these subpath weights the Path Correlation Data. In this paper we ask the following question: when can the underlying weighted graph be recovered knowing only the boundary vertices and the Path Correlation Data? We establish necessary and sufficient conditions for a graph to be reconstructible from this information, and describe an algorithm to perform the reconstruction. Subject to our conditions, the result applies to directed graphs with asymmetric edge weights, and accommodates paths arising from asymmetric routing in the underlying communication network. We also describe the relationship between the graph produced by our algorithm and the true graph in the case that our conditions are not satisfied.

math.CO↗

arXiv2018

Maximal scarring for eigenfunctions of quantum graphs

We prove the existence of scarred eigenstates for star graphs with scattering matrices at the central vertex which are either a Fourier transform matrix, or a matrix that prohibits back-scattering. We prove the existence of scars that are half-delocalised on a single bond. Moreover we show that the scarred states we construct are maximal in the sense that it is impossible to have quantum eigenfunctions with a significantly lower entropy than our examples. These scarred eigenstates are on graphs that exhibit generic spectral statistics of random matrix type in the large graph limit, and, in contrast to other constructions, correspond to non-degenerate eigenvalues; they exist for almost all choices of lengths.

math-ph↗

arXiv2018

Nodal Statistics On Quantum Graphs

It has been suggested that the distribution of the suitably normalized number of zeros of Laplacian eigenfunctions contains information about the geometry of the underlying domain. We study this distribution (more precisely, the distribution of the "nodal surplus") for Laplacian eigenfunctions of a metric graph. The existence of the distribution is established, along with its symmetry. One consequence of the symmetry is that the graph's first Betti number can be recovered as twice the average nodal surplus of its eigenfunctions. Furthermore, for graphs with disjoint cycles it is proven that the distribution has a universal form --- it is binomial over the allowed range of values of the surplus. To prove the latter result, we introduce the notion of a local nodal surplus and study its symmetry and dependence properties, establishing that the local nodal surpluses of disjoint cycles behave like independent Bernoulli variables.

math-ph↗

arXiv2018

Eigenspaces of symmetric graphs are not typically irreducible

We construct rich families of Schrödinger operators on symmetric graphs, both quantum and combinatorial, whose spectral degeneracies are persistently larger than the maximal dimension of an irreducible representations of the symmetry group.

math.SP↗

arXiv2017

Edge connectivity and the spectral gap of combinatorial and quantum graphs

We derive a number of upper and lower bounds for the first nontrivial eigenvalue of a finite quantum graph in terms of the edge connectivity of the graph, i.e., the minimal number of edges which need to be removed to make the graph disconnected. On combinatorial graphs, one of the bounds is the well-known inequality of Fiedler, of which we give a new variational proof. On quantum graphs, the corresponding bound generalizes a recent result of Band and Lévy. All proofs are general enough to yield corresponding estimates for the $p$-Laplacian and allow us to identify the minimizers. Based on the Betti number of the graph, we also derive upper and lower bounds on all eigenvalues which are "asymptotically correct", i.e. agree with the Weyl asymptotics for the eigenvalues of the quantum graph. In particular, the lower bounds improve the bounds of Friedlander on any given graph for all but finitely many eigenvalues, while the upper bounds improve recent results of Ariturk. Our estimates are also used to derive bounds on the eigenvalues of the normalized Laplacian matrix that improve known bounds of spectral graph theory.

math.SP↗

arXiv2016

An elementary introduction to quantum graphs

We describe some basic tools in the spectral theory of Schrödinger operator on metric graphs (also known as "quantum graph") by studying in detail some basic examples. The exposition is kept as elementary and accessible as possible. In the later sections we apply these tools to prove some results on the count of zeros of the eigenfunctions of quantum graphs.

math-ph↗

arXiv2016

Symmetry and Dirac points in graphene spectrum

Existence and stability of Dirac points in the dispersion relation of operators periodic with respect to the hexagonal lattice is investigated for different sets of additional symmetries. The following symmetries are considered: rotation by $2π/3$ and inversion, rotation by $2π/3$ and horizontal reflection, inversion or reflection with weakly broken rotation symmetry, and the case where no Dirac points arise: rotation by $2π/3$ and vertical reflection. All proofs are based on symmetry considerations. In particular, existence of degeneracies in the spectrum is deduced from the (co)representation of the relevant symmetry group. The conical shape of the dispersion relation is obtained from its invariance under rotation by $2π/3$. Persistence of conical points when the rotation symmetry is weakly broken is proved using a geometric phase in one case and parity of the eigenfunctions in the other.

math-ph↗

arXiv2016

Simplicity of eigenvalues and non-vanishing of eigenfunctions of a quantum graph

We prove that after an arbitrarily small adjustment of edge lengths, the spectrum of a compact quantum graph with $δ$-type vertex conditions can be simple. We also show that the eigenfunctions, with the exception of those living entirely on a looping edge, can be made to be non-vanishing on all vertices of the graph. As an application of the above result, we establish that the secular manifold (also called "determinant manifold") of a large family of graphs has exactly two smooth connected components.

math-ph↗