arXiv subjects

Rachel Greenfeld

Publications and source records attributed to Rachel Greenfeld.

18 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Translational tilings: structured or wild?

The study of the structure of translational tilings has captivated mathematicians, scientists, and the general public for centuries and continues to thrive at the crossroads of analysis, combinatorics, dynamics, logic, number theory, and geometry. This vibrant field seeks to uncover the delicate divide between rigid structures and unpredictable, ``wild'' behaviors that arise when sets fill space by translations without gaps or overlaps. We provide an overview of this study and recent developments, highlighting its multidisciplinary nature and offering a glimpse into the process behind the results.

math.CA↗

arXiv2025

Some variants of the periodic tiling conjecture

The periodic tiling conjecture (PTC) asserts, for a finitely generated Abelian group $G$ and a finite subset $F$ of $G$, that if there is a set $A$ that solves the tiling equation $\mathbb{1}_F * \mathbb{1}_A = 1$, there is also a periodic solution $\mathbb{1}_{A_{\mathrm{p}}}$. This conjecture is known to hold for some groups $G$ and fail for others. In this paper we establish three variants of the PTC. The first (due to Tim Austin) replaces the constant function $1$ on the right-hand side of the tiling equation by $0$, and the indicator functions $\mathbb{1}_F$ and $\mathbb{1}_A$ by bounded integer-valued functions. The second, which applies in $G=\mathbb{Z}^2$, replaces the right-hand side of the tiling equation by an integer-valued periodic function, and the functions $\mathbb{1}_F$ and $\mathbb{1}_A$ on the left-hand side by bounded integer-valued functions. The third (which is the most difficult to establish) is similar to the second, but retains the property of both $\mathbb{1}_A$ and $\mathbb{1}_{A_{\mathrm{p}}}$ being indicator functions; in particular, we establish the PTC for multi-tilings in $G=\mathbb{Z}^2$. As a result, we obtain the decidability of constant-level integer tilings in any finitely generated Abelian group $G$ and multi-tilings in $G=\mathbb{Z}^2$.

math.CA↗

arXiv2024

Periodicity and decidability of translational tilings by rational polygonal sets

The periodic tiling conjecture asserts that if a region $\Sigma\subset \mathbb R^d$ tiles $\mathbb R^d$ by translations then it admits at least one fully periodic tiling. This conjecture is known to hold in $\mathbb R$, and recently it was disproved in sufficiently high dimensions. In this paper, we study the periodic tiling conjecture for polygonal sets: bounded open sets in $\mathbb R^2$ whose boundary is a finite union of line segments. We prove the periodic tiling conjecture for any polygonal tile whose vertices are rational. As a corollary of our argument, we also obtain the decidability of tilings by rational polygonal sets. Moreover, we prove that any translational tiling by a rational polygonal tile is weakly-periodic, i.e., can be partitioned into finitely many singly-periodic pieces.

math.CO↗

arXiv2024

On integer distance sets

We develop a new approach to address some classical questions concerning the size and structure of integer distance sets. Our main result is that any integer distance set in the Euclidean plane is either very sparse or has all but an exceedingly small proportion of its points lying on a single line or circle. From this, we deduce a near-optimal lower bound on the diameter of any non-collinear integer distance set of size $n$ and a strong upper bound on the size of any integer distance set in $[-N,N]^2$ with no three points on a line and no four points on a circle.

math.NT↗

arXiv2023

Undecidability of translational monotilings

In the 60's, Berger famously showed that translational tilings of $\mathbb{Z}^2$ with multiple tiles are algorithmically undecidable. Recently, Bhattacharya proved the decidability of translational monotilings (tilings by translations of a single tile) in $\mathbb{Z}^2$. The decidability of translational monotilings in higher dimensions remained unsolved. In this paper, by combining our recently developed techniques with ideas introduced by Aanderaa and Lewis, we finally settle this problem, achieving the undecidability of translational monotilings of (periodic subsets of) virtually $\mathbb{Z}^2$ spaces, namely, spaces of the form $\mathbb{Z}^2\times G_0$, where $G_0$ is a finite Abelian group. This also implies the undecidability of translational monotilings in $\mathbb{Z}^d$, $d\geq 3$.

math.CO↗

arXiv2023

Tiling, spectrality and aperiodicity of connected sets

Let $\Omega\subset \mathbb{R}^d$ be a set of finite measure. The periodic tiling conjecture suggests that if $\Omega$ tiles $\mathbb{R}^d$ by translations then it admits at least one periodic tiling. Fuglede's conjecture suggests that $\Omega$ admits an orthogonal basis of exponential functions if and only if it tiles $\mathbb{R}^d$ by translations. Both conjectures are known to be false in sufficiently high dimensions, with all the so-far-known counterexamples being highly disconnected. On the other hand, both conjectures are known to be true for convex sets. In this work we study these conjectures for connected sets. We show that the periodic tiling conjecture, as well as both directions of Fuglede's conjecture are false for connected sets in sufficiently high dimensions.

math.CA↗

arXiv2022

A counterexample to the periodic tiling conjecture

The periodic tiling conjecture asserts that any finite subset of a lattice $\mathbb{Z}^d$ which tiles that lattice by translations, in fact tiles periodically. In this work we disprove this conjecture for sufficiently large $d$, which also implies a disproof of the corresponding conjecture for Euclidean spaces $\mathbb{R}^d$. In fact, we also obtain a counterexample in a group of the form $\mathbb{Z}^2 \times G_0$ for some finite abelian $2$-group $G_0$. Our methods rely on encoding a "Sudoku puzzle" whose rows and other non-horizontal lines are constrained to lie in a certain class of "$2$-adically structured functions," in terms of certain functional equations that can be encoded in turn as a single tiling equation, and then demonstrating that solutions to this Sudoku puzzle exist, but are all non-periodic.

math.CO↗

arXiv2022

Generalized Collatz Maps with Almost Bounded Orbits

If dividing by $p$ is a mistake, multiply by $q$ and translate, and so you'll live to iterate. We show that if we define a Collatz-like map in this form then, under suitable conditions on $p$ and $q$, almost all orbits of this map attain almost bounded values. This generalizes a recent breakthrough result of Tao for the original Collatz map (i.e., $p=2$ and $q=3$). In other words, given an arbitrary growth function $N\mapsto f(N)$ we show that almost every orbit of such map with input $N$ eventually attains a value smaller than $f(N)$.

math.DS↗

arXiv2022

A counterexample to the periodic tiling conjecture (announcement)

The periodic tiling conjecture asserts that any finite subset of a lattice $\mathbb{Z^d}$ which tiles that lattice by translations, in fact tiles periodically. We announce here a disproof of this conjecture for sufficiently large $d$, which also implies a disproof of the corresponding conjecture for Euclidean spaces $\mathbb{R^d}$. In fact, we also obtain a counterexample in a group of the form $\mathbb{Z^2} \times G_0$ for some finite abelian $G_0$. Our methods rely on encoding a certain class of "$p$-adically structured functions" in terms of certain functional equations.

math.CO↗

arXiv2022

Measurable tilings by abelian group actions

Let $X$ be a measure space with a measure-preserving action $(g,x) \mapsto g \cdot x$ of an abelian group $G$. We consider the problem of understanding the structure of measurable tilings $F \odot A = X$ of $X$ by a measurable tile $A \subset X$ translated by a finite set $F \subset G$ of shifts, thus the translates $f \cdot A$, $f \in F$ partition $X$ up to null sets. Adapting arguments from previous literature, we establish a "dilation lemma" that asserts, roughly speaking, that $F \odot A = X$ implies $F^r \odot A = X$ for a large family of integer dilations $r$, and use this to establish a structure theorem for such tilings analogous to that established recently by the second and fourth authors. As applications of this theorem, we completely classify those random tilings of finitely generated abelian groups that are "factors of iid", and show that measurable tilings of a torus $\mathbb{T}^d$ can always be continuously (in fact linearly) deformed into a tiling with rational shifts, with particularly strong results in the low-dimensional cases $d=1,2$ (in particular resolving a conjecture of Conley, the first author, and Pikhurko in the $d=1$ case).

math.DS↗

arXiv2021

Additive energies on discrete cubes

We prove that for $d\geq 0$ and $k\geq 2$, for any subset $A$ of a discrete cube $\{0,1\}^d$, the $k-$higher energy of $A$ (the number of $2k-$tuples $(a_1,a_2,\dots,a_{2k})$ in $A^{2k}$ with $a_1-a_2=a_3-a_4=\dots=a_{2k-1}-a_{2k}$) is at most $|A|^{\log_{2}(2^k+2)}$, and $\log_{2}(2^k+2)$ is the best possible exponent. We also show that if $d\geq 0$ and $2\leq k\leq 10$, for any subset $A$ of a discrete cube $\{0,1\}^d$, the $k-$additive energy of $A$ (the number of $2k-$tuples $(a_1,a_2,\dots,a_{2k})$ in $A^{2k}$ with $a_1+a_2+\dots+a_k=a_{k+1}+a_{k+2}+\dots+a_{2k}$) is at most $|A|^{\log_2{ \binom{2k}{k}}}$, and $\log_2{ \binom{2k}{k}}$ is the best possible exponent. We discuss the analogous problems for the sets $\{0,1,\dots,n\}^d$ for $n\geq 2$.

math.CO↗

arXiv2021

Decoupling for fractal subsets of the parabola

We consider decoupling for a fractal subset of the parabola. We reduce studying $l^{2}L^{p}$ decoupling for a fractal subset on the parabola $\{(t, t^2) : 0 \leq t \leq 1\}$ to studying $l^{2}L^{p/3}$ decoupling for the projection of this subset to the interval $[0, 1]$. This generalizes the decoupling theorem of Bourgain-Demeter in the case of the parabola. Due to the sparsity and fractal like structure, this allows us to improve upon Bourgain-Demeter's decoupling theorem for the parabola. In the case when $p/3$ is an even integer we derive theoretical and computational tools to explicitly compute the associated decoupling constant for this projection to $[0, 1]$. Our ideas are inspired by the recent work on ellipsephic sets by Biggs using nested efficient congruencing.

math.CA↗

arXiv2021

The structure of translational tilings in $\mathbb{Z}^d$

We obtain structural results on translational tilings of periodic functions in $\mathbb{Z}^d$ by finite tiles. In particular, we show that any level one tiling of a periodic set in $\mathbb{Z}^2$ must be weakly periodic (the disjoint union of sets that are individually periodic in one direction), but present a counterexample of a higher level tiling of $\mathbb{Z}^2$ that fails to be weakly periodic. We also establish a quantitative version of the two-dimensional periodic tiling conjecture which asserts that any finite tile in $\mathbb{Z}^2$ that admits a tiling, must admit a periodic tiling, by providing a polynomial bound on the period; this also gives an exponential-type bound on the computational complexity of the problem of deciding whether a given finite subset of $\mathbb{Z}^2$ tiles or not. As a byproduct of our structural theory, we also obtain an explicit formula for a universal period for all tilings of a one-dimensional tile.

math.CA↗

arXiv2021

Undecidable translational tilings with only two tiles, or one nonabelian tile

We construct an example of a group $G = \mathbb{Z}^2 \times G_0$ for a finite abelian group $G_0$, a subset $E$ of $G_0$, and two finite subsets $F_1,F_2$ of $G$, such that it is undecidable in ZFC whether $\mathbb{Z}^2\times E$ can be tiled by translations of $F_1,F_2$. In particular, this implies that this tiling problem is aperiodic, in the sense that (in the standard universe of ZFC) there exist translational tilings of $E$ by the tiles $F_1,F_2$, but no periodic tilings. Previously, such aperiodic or undecidable translational tilings were only constructed for sets of eleven or more tiles (mostly in $\mathbb{Z}^2$). A similar construction also applies for $G = \mathbb{Z}^d$ for sufficiently large $d$. If one allows the group $G_0$ to be non-abelian, a variant of the construction produces an undecidable translational tiling with only one tile $F$. The argument proceeds by first observing that a single tiling equation is able to encode an arbitrary system of tiling equations, which in turn can encode an arbitrary system of certain functional equations once one has two or more tiles. In particular, one can use two tiles to encode tiling problems for an arbitrary number of tiles.

math.CO↗

arXiv2021

An uncountable ergodic Roth theorem and applications

We establish an uncountable amenable ergodic Roth theorem, in which the acting group is not assumed to be countable and the space need not be separable. This generalizes a previous result of Bergelson, McCutcheon and Zhang, and complements a result of Zorin-Kranich. We establish the following two additional results: First, a combinatorial application about triangular patterns in certain subsets of the Cartesian square of arbitrary amenable groups, extending a result of Bergelson, McCutcheon and Zhang for countable amenable groups. Second, a new uniformity aspect in the double recurrence theorem for $\Gamma$-systems for arbitrary uniformly amenable groups $\Gamma$. Our uncountable Roth theorem is crucial in the proof of both of these results.

math.DS↗

arXiv2018

Spectrality of product domains and Fuglede's conjecture for convex polytopes

A set $Ω\subset \mathbb{R}^d$ is said to be spectral if the space $L^2(Ω)$ has an orthogonal basis of exponential functions. It is well-known that in many respects, spectral sets "behave like" sets which can tile the space by translations. This suggests a conjecture that a product set $Ω= A \times B$ is spectral if and only if the factors $A$ and $B$ are both spectral sets. We recently proved this in the case when $A$ is an interval in dimension one. The main result of the present paper is that the conjecture is true also when $A$ is a convex polygon in two dimensions. We discuss this result in connection with the conjecture that a convex polytope $Ω$ is spectral if and only if it can tile by translations.

math.CA↗

arXiv2017

Fuglede's spectral set conjecture for convex polytopes

Let $Ω$ be a convex polytope in $\mathbb{R}^d$. We say that $Ω$ is spectral if the space $L^2(Ω)$ admits an orthogonal basis consisting of exponential functions. There is a conjecture, which goes back to Fuglede (1974), that $Ω$ is spectral if and only if it can tile the space by translations. It is known that if $Ω$ tiles then it is spectral, but the converse was proved only in dimension $d=2$, by Iosevich, Katz and Tao. By a result due to Kolountzakis, if a convex polytope $Ω\subset \mathbb{R}^d$ is spectral, then it must be centrally symmetric. We prove that also all the facets of $Ω$ are centrally symmetric. These conditions are necessary for $Ω$ to tile by translations. We also develop an approach which allows us to prove that in dimension $d=3$, any spectral convex polytope $Ω$ indeed tiles by translations. Thus we obtain that Fuglede's conjecture is true for convex polytopes in $\mathbb{R}^3$.

math.CA↗

arXiv2016

Spectrality and tiling by cylindric domains

A bounded set $Ω\subset \mathbb{R}^d$ is called a spectral set if the space $L^2(Ω)$ admits a complete orthogonal system of exponential functions. We prove that a cylindric set $Ω$ is spectral if and only if its base is a spectral set. A similar characterization is obtained of the cylindric sets which can tile the space by translations.

math.CA↗