arXiv subjects

Michel L. Lapidus

Publications and source records attributed to Michel L. Lapidus.

51 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2011

Families of Periodic Orbits of the Koch Snowflake Fractal Billiard

We describe the periodic orbits of the prefractal Koch snowflake billiard (the nth inner rational polygonal approximation of the Koch snowflake billiard). In the case of the finite (prefractal) billiard table, we focus on the direction given by an initial angle of pi/3, and define 1) a compatible sequence of piecewise Fagnano orbits, 2) an eventually constant compatible sequence of orbits and 3) a compatible sequence of generalized piecewise Fagnano orbits. In the case of the infinite (fractal) billiard table, we will describe what we call stabilizing periodic orbits of the Koch snowflake fractal billiard. In a sense, we show that it is possible to define billiard dynamics on a Cantor set. In addition, we will show that the inverse limit of the footprints of orbits of the prefractal approximations exists in a specific situation and provide a plausibility argument as to why such an inverse limit of footprints should constitute the footprint of a well-defined periodic orbit of the fractal billiard. Using known results for the inverse limit of a sequence of finite spaces, we deduce that the footprint (i.e., the intersection of the orbit with the boundary) of a piecewise Fagnano orbit is a topological Cantor set and a self-similar Cantor set. We allude to a possible characterization of orbits with an initial direction of pi/3. Such a characterization would allow one to describe an orbit with an initial direction of pi/3 of the Koch snowflake billiard as either a piecewise Fagnano orbit, a stabilizing orbit or a generalized piecewise Fagnano orbit. We then close the paper by discussing several outstanding open problems and conjectures about the Koch snowflake fractal billiard, the associated 'fractal flat surface', and possible connections with the associated fractal drum. In the long-term, the present work may help lay the foundations for a general theory of fractal billiards.

math.DS↗

arXiv2011

Partition zeta functions, multifractal spectra, and tapestries of complex dimensions

For a Borel measure and a sequence of partitions on the unit interval, we define a multifractal spectrum based on coarse Holder regularity. Specifically, the coarse Holder regularity values attained by a given measure and with respect to a sequence of partitions generate a sequence of lengths (or rather, scales) which in turn define certain Dirichlet series, called the partition zeta functions. The abscissae of convergence of these functions define a multifractal spectrum whose concave envelope is the (geometric) Hausdorff multifractal spectrum which follows from a certain type of Moran construction. We discuss at some length the important special case of self-similar measures associated with weighted iterated function systems and, in particular, certain multinomial measures. Moreover, our multifractal spectrum is shown to extend to a tapestry of complex dimensions for two specific atomic measures.

math-ph↗

arXiv2011

Pointwise tube formulas for fractal sprays and self-similar tilings with arbitrary generators

In a previous paper by the first two authors, a tube formula for fractal sprays was obtained which also applies to a certain class of self-similar fractals. The proof of this formula uses distributional techniques and requires fairly strong conditions on the geometry of the tiling (specifically, the inner tube formula for each generator of the fractal spray is required to be polynomial). Now we extend and strengthen the tube formula by removing the conditions on the geometry of the generators, and also by giving a proof which holds pointwise, rather than distributionally. Hence, our results for fractal sprays extend to higher dimensions the pointwise tube formula for (1-dimensional) fractal strings obtained earlier by Lapidus and van Frankenhuijsen. Our pointwise tube formulas are expressed as a sum of the residues of the "tubular zeta function" of the fractal spray in $\mathbb{R}^d$. This sum ranges over the complex dimensions of the spray, that is, over the poles of the geometric zeta function of the underlying fractal string and the integers $0,1,...,d$. The resulting "fractal tube formulas" are applied to the important special case of self-similar tilings, but are also illustrated in other geometrically natural situations. Our tube formulas may also be seen as fractal analogues of the classical Steiner formula.

math.MG↗

arXiv2010

Tube formulas and complex dimensions of self-similar tilings

We use the self-similar tilings constructed by the second author in "Canonical self-affine tilings by iterated function systems" to define a generating function for the geometry of a self-similar set in Euclidean space. This tubular zeta function encodes scaling and curvature properties related to the complement of the fractal set, and the associated system of mappings. This allows one to obtain the complex dimensions of the self-similar tiling as the poles of the tubular zeta function and hence develop a tube formula for self-similar tilings in \$\mathbb{R}^d$. The resulting power series in $ε$ is a fractal extension of Steiner's classical tube formula for convex bodies $K \ci \bRd$. Our sum has coefficients related to the curvatures of the tiling, and contains terms for each integer $i=0,1,...,d-1$, just as Steiner's does. However, our formula also contains terms for each complex dimension. This provides further justification for the term "complex dimension". It also extends several aspects of the theory of fractal strings to higher dimensions and sheds new light on the tube formula for fractals strings obtained in "Fractal Geometry and Complex Dimensions" by the first author and Machiel van Frankenhuijsen.

math.DS↗

arXiv2009

Towards the Koch Snowflake Fractal Billiard: Computer Experiments and Mathematical Conjectures

In this paper, we attempt to define and understand the orbits of the Koch snowflake fractal billiard $KS$. This is a priori a very difficult problem because $\partial(KS)$, the snowflake curve boundary of $KS$, is nowhere differentiable, making it impossible to apply the usual law of reflection at any point of the boundary of the billiard table. Consequently, we view the prefractal billiards $KS_n$ (naturally approximating $KS$ from the inside) as rational polygonal billiards and examine the corresponding flat surfaces of $KS_n$, denoted by $\mathcal{S}_{KS_n}$. In order to develop a clearer picture of what may possibly be happening on the billiard $KS$, we simulate billiard trajectories on $KS_n$ (at first, for a fixed $n\geq 0$). Such computer experiments provide us with a wealth of questions and lead us to formulate conjectures about the existence and the geometric properties of periodic orbits of $KS$ and detail a possible plan on how to prove such conjectures.

math.DS↗

arXiv2009

Fractal Strings and Multifractal Zeta Functions

For a Borel measure on the unit interval and a sequence of scales that tend to zero, we define a one-parameter family of zeta functions called multifractal zeta functions. These functions are a first attempt to associate a zeta function to certain multifractal measures. However, we primarily show that they associate a new zeta function, the topological zeta function, to a fractal string in order to take into account the topology of its fractal boundary. This expands upon the geometric information garnered by the traditional geometric zeta function of a fractal string in the theory of complex dimensions. In particular, one can distinguish between a fractal string whose boundary is the classical Cantor set, and one whose boundary has a single limit point but has the same sequence of lengths as the complement of the Cantor set. Later work will address related, but somewhat different, approaches to multifractals themselves, via zeta functions, partly motivated by the present paper.

math-ph↗

arXiv2008

A trace on fractal graphs and the Ihara zeta function

Starting with Ihara's work in 1968, there has been a growing interest in the study of zeta functions of finite graphs, by Sunada, Hashimoto, Bass, Stark and Terras, Mizuno and Sato, to name just a few authors. Then, Clair and Mokhtari-Sharghi have studied zeta functions for infinite graphs acted upon by a discrete group of automorphisms. The main formula in all these treatments establishes a connection between the zeta function, originally defined as an infinite product, and the Laplacian of the graph. In this article, we consider a different class of infinite graphs. They are fractal graphs, i.e. they enjoy a self-similarity property. We define a zeta function for these graphs and, using the machinery of operator algebras, we prove a determinant formula, which relates the zeta function with the Laplacian of the graph. We also prove functional equations, and a formula which allows approximation of the zeta function by the zeta functions of finite subgraphs.

math.OA↗

arXiv2008

Toward zeta functions and complex dimensions of multifractals

Multifractals are inhomogeneous measures (or functions) which are typically described by a full spectrum of real dimensions, as opposed to a single real dimension. Results from the study of fractal strings in the analysis of their geometry, spectra and dynamics via certain zeta functions and their poles (the complex dimensions) are used in this text as a springboard to define similar tools fit for the study of multifractals such as the binomial measure. The goal of this work is to shine light on new ideas and perspectives rather than to summarize a coherent theory. Progress has been made which connects these new perspectives to and expands upon classical results, leading to a healthy variety of natural and interesting questions for further investigation and elaboration.

math-ph↗

arXiv2007

Tube formulas for self-similar fractals

Tube formulas (by which we mean an explicit formula for the volume of an $ε$-neighbourhood of a subset of a suitable metric space) have been used in many situations to study properties of the subset. For smooth submanifolds of Euclidean space, this includes Weyl's celebrated results on spectral asymptotics, and the subsequent relation between curvature and spectrum. Additionally, a tube formula contains information about the dimension and measurability of rough sets. In convex geometry, the tube formula of a convex subset of Euclidean space allows for the definition of certain curvature measures. These measures describe the curvature of sets which are not too irregular to support derivatives. In this survey paper, we describe some recent advances in the development of tube formulas for self-similar fractals, and their applications and connections to the other topics mentioned here.

math.DS↗

arXiv2007

Dirac operators and spectral triples for some fractal sets built on curves

We construct spectral triples and, in particular, Dirac operators, for the algebra of continuous functions on certain compact metric spaces. The triples are countable sums of triples where each summand is based on a curve in the space. Several fractals, like a finitely summable infinite tree and the Sierpinski gasket, fit naturally within our framework. In these cases, we show that our spectral triples do describe the geodesic distance and the Minkowski dimension as well as, more generally, the complex fractal dimensions of the space. Furthermore, in the case of the Sierpinski gasket, the associated Dixmier-type trace coincides with the normalized Hausdorff measure of dimension $\log 3/ \log 2$.

math.MG↗

arXiv2007

Ihara zeta functions for periodic simple graphs

The definition and main properties of the Ihara zeta function for graphs are reviewed, focusing mainly on the case of periodic simple graphs. Moreover, we give a new proof of the associated determinant formula, based on the treatment developed by Stark and Terras for finite graphs.

math.OA↗

arXiv2006

Localization on Snowflake Domains

The geometric features of the square and triadic Koch snowflake drums are compared using a position entropy defined on the grid points of the discretizations (pre-fractals) of the two domains. Weighted graphs using the geometric quantities are created and random walks on the two pre-fractals are performed. The aim is to understand if the existence of narrow channels in the domain may cause the `localization' of eigenfunctions.

math.NA↗

arXiv2006

Ihara's zeta function for periodic graphs and its approximation in the amenable case

In this paper, we give a more direct proof of the results by Clair and Mokhtari-Sharghi on the zeta functions of periodic graphs. In particular, using appropriate operator-algebraic techniques, we establish a determinant formula in this context and examine its consequences for the Ihara zeta function. Moreover, we answer in the affirmative one of the questions raised by Grigorchuk and Zuk. Accordingly, we show that the zeta function of a periodic graph with an amenable group action is the limit of the zeta functions of a suitable sequence of finite subgraphs.

math.OA↗

arXiv2005

A tube formula for the Koch snowflake curve, with applications to complex dimensions

A formula for the interior epsilon-neighborhood of the classical von Koch snowflake curve is computed in detail. This function of epsilon is shown to match quite closely with earlier predictions of what it should be, but is also much more precise. The resulting `tube formula' is expressed in terms of the Fourier coefficients of a suitable nonlinear and periodic analogue of the standard Cantor staircase function and reflects the self-similarity of the Koch curve. As a consequence, the possible complex dimensions of the Koch snowflake are computed explicitly.

math-ph↗

arXiv2004

Fractality, Self-Similarity and Complex Dimensions

We present an overview of a theory of complex dimensions of self-similar fractal strings, and compare this theory to the theory of varieties over a finite field from the geometric and the dynamical point of view. Then we combine the several strands to discuss a possible approach to establishing a cohomological interpretation of the complex dimensions.

math.NT↗