arXiv subjects

Tuvi Etzion

Publications and source records attributed to Tuvi Etzion.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Efficient Algorithm for the Linear Complexity of Sequences and Some Related Consequences

The linear complexity of a sequence $s$ is one of the measures of its predictability. It represents the smallest degree of a linear recursion which the sequence satisfies. There are several algorithms to find the linear complexity of a periodic sequence $s$ of length $N$ (where $N$ is of some given form) over a finite field $F_q$ in $O(N)$ symbol field operations. The first such algorithm is The Games-Chan Algorithm which considers binary sequences of period $2^n$, and is known for its extreme simplicity. We generalize this algorithm and apply it efficiently for several families of binary sequences. Our algorithm is very simple, it requires $βN$ bit operations for a small constant $β$, where $N$ is the period of the sequence. We make an analysis on the number of bit operations required by the algorithm and compare it with previous algorithms. In the process, the algorithm also finds the recursion for the shortest linear feedback shift-register which generates the sequence. Some other interesting properties related to shift-register sequences, which might not be too surprising but generally unnoted, are also consequences of our exposition.

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arXiv2019

An improved Recursive Construction for Disjoint Steiner Quadruple Systems

Let $D(n)$ be the number of pairwise disjoint Steiner quadruple systems. A simple counting argument shows that $D(n) \leq n-3$ and a set of $n-3$ such systems is called a large set. No nontrivial large set was constructed yet, although it is known that they exist if $n \equiv 2$ or $4~(\text{mod}~6)$ is large enough. When $n \geq 7$ and $n \equiv 1$ or $5~(\text{mod}~6)$, we present a recursive construction and prove a recursive formula on $D(4n)$, as follows: $$ D(4n) \geq 2n + \min \{D(2n) ,2n-7\}. $$ The related construction has a few advantages over some of the previously known constructions for pairwise disjoint Steiner quadruple systems.

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arXiv2019

Network-Coding Solutions for Minimal Combination Networks and Their Sub-networks

Minimal multicast networks are fascinating and efficient combinatorial objects, where the removal of a single link makes it impossible for all receivers to obtain all messages. We study the structure of such networks, and prove some constraints on their possible solutions. We then focus on the combination network, which is one of the simplest and most insightful network in network-coding theory. Of particular interest are minimal combination networks. We study the gap in alphabet size between vector-linear and scalar-linear network-coding solutions for such minimal combination networks and some of their sub-networks. For minimal multicast networks with two source messages we find the maximum possible gap. We define and study sub-networks of the combination network, which we call Kneser networks, and prove that they attain the upper bound on the gap with equality. We also prove that the study of this gap may be limited to the study of sub-networks of minimal combination networks, by using graph homomorphisms connected with the $q$-analog of Kneser graphs. Additionally, we prove a gap for minimal multicast networks with three or more source messages by studying Kneser networks. Finally, an upper bound on the gap for full minimal combination networks shows nearly no gap, or none in some cases. This is obtained using an MDS-like bound for subspaces over a finite field.

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arXiv2019

Private Proximity Retrieval Codes

A \emph{private proximity retrieval} (\emph{PPR}) scheme is a protocol which allows a user to retrieve the identities of all records in a database that are within some distance $r$ from the user's record $x$. The user's \emph{privacy} at each server is given by the fraction of the record $x$ that is kept private. In this paper, this research is initiated and protocols that offer trade-offs between privacy and computational complexity and storage are studied. In particular, we assume that each server stores a copy of the database and study the required minimum number of servers by our protocol which provides a given privacy level. Each server gets a query in the protocol and the set of queries forms a code. We study the family of codes generated by the set of queries and in particular the minimum number of codewords in such a code which is the minimum number of servers required for the protocol. These codes are closely related to a family of codes known as \emph{covering designs}. We introduce several lower bounds on the sizes of such codes as well as several constructions. This work focuses on the case when the records are binary vectors together with the Hamming distance. Other metrics such as the Johnson metric are also investigated.

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arXiv2019

Bounds on the Length of Functional PIR and Batch codes

A functional $k$-PIR code of dimension $s$ consists of $n$ servers storing linear combinations of $s$ linearly independent information symbols. Any linear combination of the $s$ information symbols can be recovered by $k$ disjoint subsets of servers. The goal is to find the smallest number of servers for given $k$ and $s$. We provide lower bounds on the number of servers and constructions which yield upper bounds on this number. For $k \leq 4$, exact bounds on the number of servers are proved. Furthermore, we provide some asymptotic bounds. The problem coincides with the well known private information retrieval problem based on a coded database to reduce the storage overhead, when each linear combination contains exactly one information symbol. If any multiset of size $k$ of linear combinations from the linearly independent information symbols can be recovered by $k$ disjoint subset of servers, then the servers form a functional $k$-batch code. A~functional $k$-batch code is a functional $k$-PIR code, where all the $k$ linear combinations in the multiset are equal. We provide some bounds on the number of servers for functional $k$-batch codes. In particular we present a random construction and a construction based on simplex codes, WOM codes, and RIO codes.

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arXiv2019

Low-Power Cooling Codes with Efficient Encoding and Decoding

A class of low-power cooling (LPC) codes, to control simultaneously both the peak temperature and the average power consumption of interconnects, was introduced recently. An $(n,t,w)$-LPC code is a coding scheme over $n$ wires that (A) avoids state transitions on the $t$ hottest wires (cooling), and (B) limits the number of transitions to $w$ in each transmission (low-power). A few constructions for large LPC codes that have efficient encoding and decoding schemes, are given. In particular, when $w$ is fixed, we construct LPC codes of size $(n/w)^{w-1}$ and show that these LPC codes can be modified to correct errors efficiently. We further present a construction for large LPC codes based on a mapping from cooling codes to LPC codes. The efficiency of the encoding/decoding for the constructed LPC codes depends on the efficiency of the decoding/encoding for the related cooling codes and the ones for the mapping.

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arXiv2019

Subspace Packings

The Grassmannian ${\mathcal G}_q(n,k)$ is the set of all $k$-dimensional subspaces of the vector space $\mathbb{F}_q^n$. It is well known that codes in the Grassmannian space can be used for error-correction in random network coding. On the other hand, these codes are $q$-analogs of codes in the Johnson scheme, i.e. constant dimension codes. These codes of the Grassmannian ${\mathcal G}_q(n,k)$ also form a family of $q$-analogs of block designs and they are called \emph{subspace designs}. The application of subspace codes has motivated extensive work on the $q$-analogs of block designs. In this paper, we examine one of the last families of $q$-analogs of block designs which was not considered before. This family called \emph{subspace packings} is the $q$-analog of packings. This family of designs was considered recently for network coding solution for a family of multicast networks called the generalized combination networks. A \emph{subspace packing} $t$-$(n,k,λ)^m_q$ is a set $\mathcal{S}$ of $k$-subspaces from ${\mathcal G}_q(n,k)$ such that each $t$-subspace of ${\mathcal G}_q(n,t)$ is contained in at most $λ$ elements of $\mathcal{S}$. The goal of this work is to consider the largest size of such subspace packings.

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arXiv2019

Grassmannian Codes with New Distance Measures for Network Coding

Grassmannian codes are known to be useful in error-correction for random network coding. Recently, they were used to prove that vector network codes outperform scalar linear network codes, on multicast networks, with respect to the alphabet size. The multicast networks which were used for this purpose are generalized combination networks. In both the scalar and the vector network coding solutions, the subspace distance is used as the distance measure for the codes which solve the network coding problem in the generalized combination networks. In this work we show that the subspace distance can be replaced with two other possible distance measures which generalize the subspace distance. These two distance measures are shown to be equivalent under an orthogonal transformation. It is proved that the Grassmannian codes with the new distance measures generalize the Grassmannian codes with the subspace distance and the subspace designs with the strength of the design. Furthermore, optimal Grassmannian codes with the new distance measureshave minimal requirements for network coding solutions of some generalized combination networks. The coding problems related to these two distance measures, especially with respect to network coding, are discussed. Finally, by using these new concepts it is proved that codes in the Hamming scheme form a subfamily of the Grassmannian codes.

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arXiv2019

On the Access Complexity of PIR Schemes

Private information retrieval has been reformulated in an information-theoretic perspective in recent years. The two most important parameters considered for a PIR scheme in a distributed storage system are the storage overhead and PIR rate. The complexity of the computations done by the servers for the various tasks of the distributed storage system is an important parameter in such systems which didn't get enough attention in PIR schemes. As a consequence, we take into consideration a third parameter, the access complexity of a PIR scheme, which characterizes the total amount of data to be accessed by the servers for responding to the queries throughout a PIR scheme. We use a general covering codes approach as the main tool for improving the access complexity. With a given amount of storage overhead, the ultimate objective is to characterize the tradeoff between the rate and access complexity of a PIR scheme. This covering codes approach raises a new interesting coding problem of generalized coverings similarly to the well-known generalized Hamming weights.

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arXiv2018

PIR schemes with small download complexity and low storage requirements

In the classical model for (information theoretically secure) Private Information Retrieval (PIR), a user wishes to retrieve one bit of a database that is stored on a set of $n$ servers, in such a way that no individual server gains information about which bit the user is interested in. The aim is to design schemes that minimise communication between the user and the servers. More recently, there have been moves to consider more realistic models where the total storage of the set of servers, or the per server storage, should be minimised (possibly using techniques from distributed storage), and where the database is divided into $R$-bit records with $R>1$, and the user wishes to retrieve one record rather than one bit. When $R$ is large, downloads from the servers to the user dominate the communication complexity and so the aim is to minimise the total number of downloaded bits. Shah, Rashmi and Ramchandran show that at least $R+1$ bits must be downloaded from servers in the worst case, and provide PIR schemes meeting this bound. Sun and Jafar determine the best asymptotic download cost of a PIR scheme (as $R\rightarrow\infty$), where this cost is defined as the ratio of the message length $R$ and the total number of bits downloaded. This paper provides various bounds on the download complexity of a PIR scheme, generalising those of Shah et al. to the case when the number $n$ of servers is bounded, and providing links with classical techniques due to Chor et al. The paper also provides a range of constructions for PIR schemes that are either simpler or perform better than previously known schemes, including explicit schemes that achieve the best asymptotic download complexity of Sun and Jafar with significantly lower upload complexity, and general techniques for constructing a scheme with good worst case download complexity from a scheme with good download complexity on average.

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arXiv2018

Domination Mappings into the Hamming Ball: Existence, Constructions, and Algorithms

The Hamming ball of radius $w$ in $\{0,1\}^n$ is the set ${\cal B}(n,w)$ of all binary words of length $n$ and Hamming weight at most $w$. We consider injective mappings $φ: \{0,1\}^m \to {\cal B}(n,w)$ with the following domination property: every position $j \in [n]$ is dominated by some position $i \in [m]$, in the sense that "switching off" position $i$ in $x \in \{0,1\}^m$ necessarily switches off position $j$ in its image $φ(x)$. This property may be described more precisely in terms of a bipartite \emph{domination graph} $G = ([m] \cup [n], E)$ with no isolated vertices, for all $(i,j) \in E$ and all $x \in \{0,1\}^m$, we require that $x_i = 0$ implies $y_j = 0$, where $y = φ(x)$. Although such domination mappings recently found applications in the context of coding for high-performance interconnects, to the best of our knowledge, they were not previously studied. In this paper, we begin with simple necessary conditions for the existence of an $(m,n,w)$-domination mapping $φ: \{0,1\}^m \to {\cal B}(n,w)$. We then provide several explicit constructions of such mappings, which show that the necessary conditions are also sufficient when $w=1$, when $w=2$ and $m$ is odd, or when $m \le 3w$. One of our main results herein is a proof that the trivial necessary condition $|{\cal B}(n,w)| \ge 2^m$ for the existence of an injection is, in fact, sufficient for the existence of an $(m,n,w)$-domination mapping whenever $m$ is sufficiently large. We also present a polynomial-time algorithm that, given any $m$, $n$, and $w$, determines whether an $(m,n,w)$-domination mapping exists for a domination graph with an equitable degree distribution.

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arXiv2018

Locality and Availability of Array Codes Constructed from Subspaces

Ever-increasing amounts of data are created and processed in internet-scale companies such as Google, Facebook, and Amazon. The efficient storage of such copious amounts of data has thus become a fundamental and acute problem in modern computing. No single machine can possibly satisfy such immense storage demands. Therefore, distributed storage systems (DSS), which rely on tens of thousands of storage nodes, are the only viable solution. Such systems are broadly used in all modern internet-scale systems. However, the design of a DSS poses a number of crucial challenges, markedly different from single-user storage systems. Such systems must be able to reconstruct the data efficiently, to overcome failure of servers, to correct errors, etc. Lots of research was done in the last few years to answer these challenges and the research is increasing in parallel to the increasing amount of stored data. The main goal of this paper is to consider codes which have two of the most important features of distributed storage systems, namely, locality and availability. Our codes are array codes which are based on subspaces of a linear space over a finite field. We present several constructions of such codes which are $q$-analog to some of the known block codes. Some of these codes possess independent intellectual merit. We examine the locality and availability of the constructed codes. In particular we distinguish between two types of locality and availability, node vs.~symbol, locality and availability. To our knowledge this is the first time that such a distinction is given in the literature.

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arXiv2018

PIR Array Codes with Optimal Virtual Server Rate

There has been much recent interest in Private information Retrieval (PIR) in models where a database is stored across several servers using coding techniques from distributed storage, rather than being simply replicated. In particular, a recent breakthrough result of Fazelli, Vardy and Yaakobi introduces the notion of a PIR code and a PIR array code, and uses this notion to produce efficient PIR protocols. In this paper we are interested in designing PIR array codes. We consider the case when we have $m$ servers, with each server storing a fraction $(1/s)$ of the bits of the database; here $s$ is a fixed rational number with $s > 1$. A PIR array code with the $k$-PIR property enables a $k$-server PIR protocol (with $k\leq m$) to be emulated on $m$ servers, with the overall storage requirements of the protocol being reduced. The communication complexity of a PIR protocol reduces as $k$ grows, so the virtual server rate, defined to be $k/m$, is an important parameter. We study the maximum virtual server rate of a PIR array code with the $k$-PIR property. We present upper bounds on the achievable virtual server rate, some constructions, and ideas how to obtain PIR array codes with the highest possible virtual server rate. In particular, we present constructions that asymptotically meet our upper bounds, and the exact largest virtual server rate is obtained when $1 < s \leq 2$. A $k$-PIR code (and similarly a $k$-PIR array code) is also a locally repairable code with symbol availability $k-1$. Such a code ensures $k$ parallel reads for each information symbol. So the virtual server rate is very closely related to the symbol availability of the code when used as a locally repairable code. The results of this paper are discussed also in this context, where subspace codes also have an important role.

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arXiv2018

Vector Network Coding Based on Subspace Codes Outperforms Scalar Linear Network Coding

This paper considers vector network coding solutions based on rank-metric codes and subspace codes. The main result of this paper is that vector solutions can significantly reduce the required alphabet size compared to the optimal scalar linear solution for the same multicast network. The multicast networks considered in this paper have one source with $h$ messages, and the vector solution is over a field of size $q$ with vectors of length~$t$. For a given network, let the smallest field size for which the network has a scalar linear solution be $q_s$, then the gap in the alphabet size between the vector solution and the scalar linear solution is defined to be $q_s-q^t$. In this contribution, the achieved gap is $q^{(h-2)t^2/h + o(t)}$ for any $q \geq 2$ and any even $h \geq 4$. If $h \geq 5$ is odd, then the achieved gap of the alphabet size is $q^{(h-3)t^2/(h-1) + o(t)}$. Previously, only a gap of size size one had been shown for networks with a very large number of messages. These results imply the same gap of the alphabet size between the optimal scalar linear and some scalar nonlinear network coding solution for multicast networks. For three messages, we also show an advantage of vector network coding, while for two messages the problem remains open. Several networks are considered, all of them are generalizations and modifications of the well-known combination networks. The vector network codes that are used as solutions for those networks are based on subspace codes, particularly subspace codes obtained from rank-metric codes. Some of these codes form a new family of subspace codes, which poses a new research problem.

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arXiv2017

Residual $q$-Fano Planes and Related Structures

One of the most intriguing problems, in $q$-analogs of designs, is the existence question of an infinite family of $q$-analog of Steiner systems, known also as $q$-Steiner systems, (spreads not included) in general, and the existence question for the $q$-analog of the Fano plane, known also as the $q$-Fano plane, in particular. These questions are in the front line of open problems in block design. There was a common belief and a conjecture that such structures do not exist. Only recently, $q$-Steiner systems were found for one set of parameters. In this paper, a definition for the $q$-analog of the residual design is presented. This new definition is different from previous known definition, but its properties reflect better the $q$-analog properties. The existence of a design with the parameters of the residual $q$-Steiner system in general and the residual $q$-Fano plane in particular are examined. We prove the existence of the residual $q$-Fano plane for all $q$, where $q$ is a prime power. The constructed structure is just one step from a construction of a $q$-Fano plane.

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arXiv2017

Cooling Codes: Thermal-Management Coding for High-Performance Interconnects

High temperatures have dramatic negative effects on interconnect performance and, hence, numerous techniques have been proposed to reduce the power consumption of on-chip buses. However, existing methods fall short of fully addressing the thermal challenges posed by high-performance interconnects. In this paper, we introduce new efficient coding schemes that make it possible to directly control the peak temperature of a bus by effectively cooling its hottest wires. This is achieved by avoiding state transitions on the hottest wires for as long as necessary until their temperature drops off. We also reduce the average power consumption by making sure that the total number of state transitions on all the wires is below a prescribed threshold. We show how each of these two features can be coded for separately or, alternatively, how both can be achieved at the same time. In addition, error-correction for the transmitted information can be provided while controlling the peak temperature and/or the average power consumption. In general, our cooling codes use $n > k$ wires to encode a given $k$-bit bus. One of our goals herein is to determine the minimum possible number of wires $n$ needed to encode $k$ bits while satisfying any combination of the three desired properties. We provide full theoretical analysis in each case. In particular, we show that $n = k+t+1$ suffices to cool the $t$ hottest wires, and this is the best possible. Moreover, although the proposed coding schemes make use of sophisticated tools from combinatorics, discrete geometry, linear algebra, and coding theory, the resulting encoders and decoders are fully practical. They do not require significant computational overhead and can be implemented without sacrificing a large circuit area.

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arXiv2017

Metrics Based on Finite Directed Graphs and Coding Invariants

Given a finite directed graph with $n$ vertices, we define a metric $d_G$ on $\mathbb{F}_q^n$, where $\mathbb{F}_q$ is the finite field with $q$ elements. The weight of a word is defined as the number of vertices that can be reached by a directed path starting at the support of the vector. Two canonical forms, which do not affect the metric, are given to each graph. Based on these forms we characterize each such metric. We further use these forms to prove that two graphs with different canonical forms yield different metrics. Efficient algorithms to check if a set of metric weights define a metric based on a graph are given. We provide tight bounds on the number of metric weights required to reconstruct the metric. Furthermore, we give a complete description of the group of linear isometries of the graph metrics and a characterization of the graphs for which every linear code admits a $G$-canonical decomposition. Considering those graphs, we are able to derive an expression of the packing radius of linear codes in such metric spaces. Finally, given a directed graph which determines a hierarchical poset, we present sufficient and necessary conditions to ensure the validity of the MacWilliams Identity and the MacWilliams Extension Property.

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arXiv2017

A New Approach to Examine q-Steiner Systems

One of the most intriguing problems, in $q$-analogs of designs and codes, is the existence question of an infinite family of $q$-analog of Steiner systems (spreads not included) in general, and the existence question for the $q$-analog of the Fano plane in particular. We exhibit a completely new method to attack this problem. In the process we define a new family of designs whose existence is implied by the existence of $q$-Steiner systems, but could exist even if the related $q$-Steiner systems do not exist. The method is based on a possible system obtained by puncturing all the subspaces of the $q$-Steiner system several times. We define the punctured system as a new type of design and enumerate the number of subspaces of various types that it might have. It will be evident that its existence does not imply the existence of the related $q$-Steiner system. On the other hand, this type of design demonstrates how close can we get to the related $q$-Steiner system. Necessary conditions for the existence of such designs are presented. These necessary conditions will be also necessary conditions for the existence of the related $q$-Steiner system. Trivial and nontrivial direct constructions and a nontrivial recursive construction for such designs, are given. Some of the designs have a symmetric structure, which is uniform in the dimensions of the existing subspaces in the system. Most constructions are based on this uniform structure of the design or its punctured designs. Finally, the structure of the $q$-Fano plane for any given $q$, was considered based on this new approach.

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