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Marco Lenci

Publications and source records attributed to Marco Lenci.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
arXiv2026

K-mixing for aperiodic Lorentz gases

We prove a general theorem on the decomposition into K-mixing components for recurrent, piecewise-smooth hyperbolic maps in two dimensions. In contrast with classical results, we do not assume that the map preserves a probability measure. As an application, we show that every recurrent aperiodic Lorentz gas satisfying certain uniformity assumptions is K-mixing. Finally, we discuss some consequences of K-mixing for the decay of correlations relative to zero-mean $L^1$ observables in aperiodic Lorentz gases.

math.DS↗
arXiv2025

Limit theorems and lack thereof for a multilayer random walk mimicking human mobility

We introduce a continuous-time random walk model on an infinite multilayer structure inspired by transportation networks. Each layer is a copy of $\mathbb{R}^d$, indexed by a non-negative integer. A walker moves within a layer by means of an inertial displacement whose speed is a deterministic function of the layer index and whose direction and duration are random, but with a timescale that depends on the layer. After each inertial displacement, the walker may randomly shift level, up or down, independently of its past. The multilayer structure is hierarchical, in the sense that the speed is a nondecreasing function of the layer index. Our primary focus is on the diffusive properties of the system. Under a natural condition on the parameters of the model, we establish a functional central limit theorem for the $\mathbb{R}^d$-coordinate of the process. By contrast, in a class of examples where this condition is violated, we are able to determine the correct scaling of the process while proving that no limit theorem holds.

math.PR↗
arXiv2024

Uniformly global observables for 1D maps with an indifferent fixed point

We study the property of global-local mixing for full-branched expanding maps of either the half-line or the interval, with one indifferent fixed point. Global-local mixing expresses the decorrelation of global vs local observables w.r.t. to an infinite measure $\mu$. Global observables are essentially bounded functions admitting an infinite-volume average, i.e., a limit for the average of the function over bigger and bigger intervals; local observables are integrable functions (both notions are relative to $\mu$). Of course, the definition of global observable depends on the exact definition of infinite-volume average. The first choice for it would be to consider averages over the entire space minus a neighborhood of the indifferent fixed point (a.k.a. the "point at infinity"), in the limit where such neighborhood vanishes. This is the choice that was made in previous papers on the subject. The classes of systems for which global-local mixing was proved, with this natural choice of global observables, are ample but not really general. In this paper we consider uniformly global observables, i.e., $L^\infty$ functions whose averages over any interval $V$ converges to a limit, uniformly as $\mu(V) \to \infty$. Uniformly global observables form quite an extensive subclass of all global observables. We prove global-local mixing in the sense of uniformly global observables, for two truly general classes of expanding maps with one indifferent fixed point, respectively on $\mathbb{R}_0^+$ and on $(0,1]$. The technical core of the proofs is rather different from previous work.

math.DS↗
arXiv2023

Internal-wave billiards in trapezoids and similar tables

We call internal-wave billiard the dynamical system of a point particle that moves freely inside a planar domain (the table) and is reflected by its boundary according to this rule: reflections are standard Fresnel reflections but with the pretense that the boundary at any collision point is either horizontal or vertical (relative to a predetermined direction representing gravity). These systems are point particle approximations for the motion of internal gravity waves in closed containers, hence the name. For a class of tables similar to rectangular trapezoids, but with the slanted leg replaced by a general curve with downward concavity, we prove that the dynamics has only three asymptotic regimes: (1) there exist a global attractor and a global repellor, which are periodic and might coincide; (2) there exists a beam of periodic trajectories, whose boundary (if any) comprises an attractor and a repellor for all the other trajectories; (3) all trajectories are dense (that is, the system is minimal). Furthermore, in the prominent case where the table is an actual trapezoid, we study the sets in parameter space relative to the three regimes. We prove in particular that the set for (1) has positive measure (giving a rigorous proof of the existence of Arnol'd tongues for internal-wave billiards), whereas the sets for (2) and (3) are non-empty but have measure zero.

math.DS↗
arXiv2022

Maximal escape rate for shifts

We consider the shift transformation on the space of infinite sequences over a finite alphabet endowed with the invariant product measure, and examine the presence of a \emph{hole} on the space. The holes we study are specified by the sequences that do not contain a given finite word as initial sub-string. The measure of the set of sequences that do not fall into the hole in the first $n$ iterates of the shift is known to decay exponentially with $n$, and its exponential rate is called \emph{escape rate}. In this paper we provide a complete characterization of the holes with maximal escape rate. In particular we show that, contrary to the case of equiprobable symbols, ordering the holes by their escape rate corresponds to neither the order by their measure nor by the length of the shortest periodic orbit they contain. Finally, we adapt our technique to the case of shifts endowed with Markov measures, where preliminary results show that a more intricate situation is to be expected.

math.DS↗
arXiv2022

Discrete- and continuous-time random walks in 1D Lévy random medium

A Lévy random medium, in a given space, is a random point process where the distances between points, a.k.a. targets, are long-tailed. Random walks visiting the targets of a Lévy random medium have been used to model many (physical, ecological, social) phenomena that exhibit superdiffusion as the result of interactions between an agent and a sparse, complex environment. In this note we consider the simplest non-trivial Lévy random medium, a sequence of points in the real line with i.i.d. long-tailed distances between consecutive targets. A popular example of a continuous-time random walk in this medium is the so-called Lévy-Lorentz gas. We give an account of a number of recent theorems on generalizations and variations of such model, in discrete and continuous time.

math.PR↗
arXiv2022

Extensions of exact and K-mixing dynamical systems

We consider extensions of non-singular maps which are exact, respectively K-mixing, or at least have a decomposition into positive-measure exact, respectively K-mixing, components. The fibers of the extension spaces have countable (finite or infinite) cardinality and the action on them is assumed surjective or bijective. We call these systems, respectively, fiber-surjective and fiber-bijective extensions. Technically, they are skew products, though the point of view we take here is not the one generally associated with skew products. Our main results are an Exact and a K-mixing Decomposition Theorem. The latter can be used to show that a large number of periodic Lorentz gases (the term denoting here general group extensions of Sinai billiards, including Lorentz tubes and slabs, in any dimension) are K-mixing.

math.DS↗
arXiv2021

Limit theorems for Lévy flights on a 1D Lévy random medium

We study a random walk on a point process given by an ordered array of points $(ω_k, \, k \in \mathbb{Z})$ on the real line. The distances $ω_{k+1} - ω_k$ are i.i.d. random variables in the domain of attraction of a $β$-stable law, with $β\in (0,1) \cup (1,2)$. The random walk has i.i.d. jumps such that the transition probabilities between $ω_k$ and $ω_\ell$ depend on $\ell-k$ and are given by the distribution of a $\mathbb{Z}$-valued random variable in the domain of attraction of an $α$-stable law, with $α\in (0,1) \cup (1,2)$. Since the defining variables, for both the random walk and the point process, are heavy-tailed, we speak of a Lévy flight on a Lévy random medium. For all combinations of the parameters $α$ and $β$, we prove the annealed functional limit theorem for the suitably rescaled process, relative to the optimal Skorokhod topology in each case. When the limit process is not càdlàg, we prove convergence of the finite-dimensional distributions. When the limit process is deterministic, we also prove a limit theorem for the fluctuations, again relative to the optimal Skorokhod topology.

math.PR↗
arXiv2021

Global observables for random walks: law of large numbers

We consider the sums $T_N=\sum_{n=1}^N F(S_n)$ where $S_n$ is a random walk on $\mathbb Z^d$ and $F:\mathbb Z^d\to \mathbb R$ is a global observable, that is, a bounded function which admits an average value when averaged over large cubes. We show that $T_N$ always satisfies the weak Law of Large Numbers but the strong law fails in general except for one dimensional walks with drift. Under additional regularity assumptions on $F$, we obtain the Strong Law of Large Numbers and estimate the rate of convergence. The growth exponents which we obtain turn out to be optimal in two special cases: for quasiperiodic observables and for random walks in random scenery.

math.PR↗
arXiv2020

Pomeau-Manneville maps are global-local mixing

We prove that a large class of expanding maps of the unit interval with a $C^2$-regular indifferent point in 0 and full increasing branches are global-local mixing. This class includes the standard Pomeau-Manneville maps $T(x) = x + x^{p+1}$ mod 1 ($p \ge 1$), the Liverani-Saussol-Vaienti maps (with index $p \ge 1$) and many generalizations thereof.

math.DS↗
arXiv2019

Continuous-time random walk between Lévy-spaced targets in the real line

We consider a continuous-time random walk which is defined as an interpolation of a random walk on a point process on the real line. The distances between neighboring points of the point process are i.i.d. random variables in the normal domain of attraction of an $α$-stable distribution with $0 < α< 1$. This is therefore an example of a random walk in a Lévy random medium. Specifically, it is a generalization of a process known in the physical literature as Lévy-Lorentz gas. We prove that the annealed version of the process is superdiffusive with scaling exponent $1/(α+ 1)$ and identify the limiting process, which is not càdlàg. The proofs are based on the technique of Kesten and Spitzer for random walks in random scenery.

math.PR↗
arXiv2018

Pointwise convergence of Birkhoff averages for global observables

It is well-known that a strict analogue of the Birkhoff Ergodic Theorem in infinite ergodic theory is trivial; it states that for any infinite-measure-preserving ergodic system the Birkhoff average of every integrable function is almost everywhere zero. Nor does a different rescaling of the Birkhoff sum that leads to a non-degenerate pointwise limit exist. In this paper we give a version of Birkhoff's theorem for conservative, ergodic, infinite-measure-preserving dynamical systems where instead of integrable functions we use certain elements of $L^\infty$, which we generically call global observables. Our main theorem applies to general systems but requires an hypothesis of "approximate partial averaging" on the observables. The idea behind the result, however, applies to more general situations, as we show with an example. Finally, by means of counterexamples and numerical simulations, we discuss the question of finding the optimal class of observables for which a Birkhoff theorem holds for infinite-measure-preserving systems.

math.DS↗
arXiv2018

Infinite mixing for one-dimensional maps with an indifferent fixed point

We study the properties of `infinite-volume mixing' for two classes of intermittent maps: expanding maps $[0,1] \longrightarrow [0,1]$ with an indifferent fixed point at 0 preserving an infinite, absolutely continuous measure, and expanding maps $\mathbb{R}^+ \longrightarrow \mathbb{R}^+$ with an indifferent fixed point at $+\infty$ preserving the Lebesgue measure. All maps have full branches. While certain properties are easily adjudicated, the so-called global-local mixing, namely the decorrelation of a global and a local observable, is harder to prove. We do this for two subclasses of systems. The first subclass includes, among others, the Farey map. The second class includes the standard Pomeau-Manneville map $x \mapsto x+x^2$ mod 1. Morevoer, we use global-local mixing to prove certain limit theorems for our intermittent maps.

math.DS↗
arXiv2018

Global-local mixing for the Boole map

In the context of 'infinite-volume mixing' we prove global-local mixing for the Boole map, a.k.a. Boole transformation, which is the prototype of a non-uniformly expanding map with two neutral fixed points. Global-local mixing amounts to the decorrelation of all pairs of global and local observables. In terms of the equilibrium properties of the system it means that the evolution of every absolutely continuous probability measure converges, in a certain precise sense, to an averaging functional over the entire space.

math.DS↗
arXiv2017

Uniformly expanding Markov maps of the real line: exactness and infinite mixing

We give a fairly complete characterization of the exact components of a large class of uniformly expanding Markov maps of $\mathbb{R}$. Using this result, for a class of $\mathbb{Z}$-invariant maps and finite modifications thereof, we prove certain properties of infinite mixing recently introduced by the author.

math.DS↗
arXiv2016

Random walks in a one-dimensional Lévy random environment

We consider a generalization of a one-dimensional stochastic process known in the physical literature as Lévy-Lorentz gas. The process describes the motion of a particle on the real line in the presence of a random array of marked points, whose nearest-neighbor distances are i.i.d. and long-tailed (with finite mean but possibly infinite variance). The motion is a continuous-time, constant-speed interpolation of a symmetric random walk on the marked points. We first study the quenched random walk on the point process, proving the CLT and the convergence of all the accordingly rescaled moments. Then we derive the quenched and annealed CLTs for the continuous-time process.

math.PR↗
arXiv2015

Characterization of DNA methylation as a function of biological complexity via dinucleotide inter-distances

We perform a statistical study of the distances between successive occurrencies of a given dinucleotide in the DNA sequence for a number of organisms of different complexity. Our analysis highlights peculiar features of the dinucleotide CG distribution in mammalian DNA, pointing towards a connection with the role of such dinucleotide in DNA methylation. While the CG distributions of mammals exhibit exponential tails with comparable parameters, the picture for the other organisms studied (e.g., fish, insects, bacteria and viruses) is more heterogeneous, possibly because in these organisms DNA methylation has different functional roles. Our analysis suggests that the distribution of the distances between dinucleotides CG provides useful insights in characterizing and classifying organisms in terms of methylation functionalities.

q-bio.QM↗