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Yuming Xiao

Publications and source records attributed to Yuming Xiao.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

SkillScope: Toward Fine-Grained Least-Privilege Enforcement for Agent Skills

Agent Skills have become a practical way to extend LLM agents by packaging metadata, natural-language instructions, and executable resources into reusable capability bundles. However, this growing Skill ecosystem introduces a new compliance risk: a Skill may perform high-impact actions that fall outside the scope permitted by the user's current request, thereby violating least privilege. Existing skill detection approaches are insufficient for this problem because it is inherently task-conditioned: the same action may be legitimate under one user prompt but over-privileged under another. In this paper, we present SkillScope, a framework for fine-grained least-privilege enforcement in Agent Skills. SkillScope adopts a graph-based analysis approach that models instruction-level procedures and code-level operations as fine-grained action nodes. It extracts potential over-privilege candidates, validates them under graph-instantiated user tasks through runtime analysis, and constrains validated over-privileged actions via control-flow privilege constraining. We evaluate SkillScope through effectiveness experiments and large-scale real-world measurement. SkillScope achieves a 94.53% skill-level F1 score for over-privilege detection. In the wild, SkillScope validates 6,590 of 68,312 valid real-world Skills as exhibiting over-privileged behaviors, showing that least-privilege violations are prevalent in current Skill ecosystems. In the privilege-constraining evaluation, SkillScope reduces triggered over-privileged action-in-task instances by 88.56% while preserving legitimate task completion.

cs.CR

V2E: Validating Smart Contract Vulnerabilities through Profit-driven Exploit Generation and Execution

Smart contracts are a critical component of blockchain systems. Due to the large amount of digital assets carried by smart contracts, their security is of critical importance. Although numerous tools have been developed for detecting smart contract vulnerability, their effectiveness remains limited, particularly due to the high false positives included in the reported results. Therefore, developers and auditors are often overwhelmed with manually verifying the reported issues. A fundamental reason behind this is that while a reported vulnerability satisfies specific vulnerable patterns, it may not actually be exploitable, either because the vulnerable code cannot be triggered or it does not result in any financial loss. In this paper, we propose V2E, a new framework for validating whether a reported vulnerability is truly exploitable. The core idea of V2E is to automatically generate executable Proof-of-Concept Exploit (PoC for short), and then assess if the vulnerability could be triggered and incur any real damage (i.e., causing financial loss) by the PoC. While LLMs have shown proficiency in PoC generation, achieving our task is by no means trivial. In detail, it is difficult for LLM to: (1) generate and update PoC to trigger a specific vulnerability, (2) evaluate the PoC's effectiveness to validate exploitable vulnerability. To this end, V2E automates the whole process through a novel combination of PoC generation, validation, and refinement: (1) Firstly, V2E generates targeted PoCs by analyzing potential vulnerability paths. (2) Then, V2E verifies the validity of PoCs through triggerability and profitability analysis. (3) In addition, V2E iteratively refines the generated PoC based on PoC execution feedback, therefore, increasing the chance to confirm the vulnerability. Evaluation on 264 manually labeled contracts shows that V2E outperforms the baseline approach.

cs.SE

Enhancement of hydrogen absorption and hypervalent metal hydride formation in lanthanum using cryogenic ball milling

Rare earth superhydrides exhibit high temperature superconductivity but are difficult to characterize and use in applications due to their high formation and stability pressures, which are typically in excess of 100 GPa. We studied how modification of the rare earth precursor improves hydrogen reactivity and hydrogen uptake for forming such metal hydrides at lower pressures. An elemental lanthanum precursor was milled at liquid nitrogen temperatures for different time intervals. After exposure to gaseous hydrogen at 380 C and 100 bar, we found a systematic enhancement of hydrogen absorption with increasing ball milling time for forming the LaHx, x=2-3 phase. Exposing the precursor to pressures up to 60 GPa with an ammonia borane (BNH6) hydrogen source resulted in a hypervalent LaH4 phase. This LaH4 phase is associated with the suppression of a rhombohedral distortion of the Fm3-m cubic structure after cryomilling the precursor.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Structural transition and uranium valence change in UTe$_2$ at high pressure revealed by x-ray diffraction and spectroscopy

High pressure x-ray diffraction up to 30 GPa and resonant emission x-ray spectroscopy and partial fluorescence yield x-ray absorption spectroscopy up to 52 GPa were used to study how the structural and electronic properties of UTe$_2$ evolve with pressure at room temperature. An orthorhombic to tetragonal phase transition was observed to occur between 5 and 7 GPa, with a large volume collapse of nearly 11% and a nearest U-U distance increase by about 4%. This lower to higher symmetry transition suggests less 5f electron participation in bonding when the weakly correlated superconducting phase in the tetragonal structure of UTe$_2$ appears. Beyond 7 GPa, no new structural transitions were found up to 30 GPa. The resonant x-ray emission spectra clearly demonstrate an intermediate valence of U, nearly +3.74 at 1.8 GPa and room temperature, and reveal that the U valence shifts towards 4+, passes through a peak at 2.8 GPa, and then decreases towards 3+ and settles down to a nearly constant value above 15 GPa. These experiments reveal that some fundamental structural and valence changes occur in UTe2 at relatively low pressures, which could be responsible for the interplay between unconventional superconductivity, magnetic ordering, and weakly correlated superconductivity that is manifested in the temperature-pressure phase diagram of UTe2.

cond-mat.str-el

The minimal periodic solutions for superquadratic autonomous Hamiltonian systems without the Palais-Smale condition

In this paper, we prove the existence of periodic solutions with any prescribed minimal period $T>0$ for even second order Hamiltonian systems and convex first order Hamiltonian systems under the weak Nehari condition instead of Ambrosetti-Rabinowitz's. To this end, we shall develop the method of Nehari manifold to directly deal with a frequently occurring problem where the Nehari manifold is not a manifold.

math.DS

Crystal Structure and Phonon Density of States of FeSi up to 120 GPa

The strongly correlated material FeSi exhibits several unusual thermal, magnetic, and structural properties under varying pressure-temperature (P-T) conditions. It is a potential thermoelectric alloy and a materials of several geological implications as a possible constituent at the Earth's core mantle boundary (CMB). The phase transition behavior and lattice dynamics of FeSi under different P-T conditions remain elusive. A previous theoretical work predicted a pressure induced B20-B2 transition at ambient temperature, yet the transition is only observed at high P-T conditions in the experiments. Furthermore, the closing of the electronic gap due to a dramatic renormalization of the electronic structure and phonon anomalies has been reported based on density function calculations. In this study we have performed high pressure powder diffraction and Nuclear Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering (NRIXS) measurements up to 120 GPa to understand the phase stability and the lattice dynamics. Our study shows evidence for a nonhydrostatic stress induced B20-B2 transition in FeSi around 36 GPa for the first time. The Fe partial phonon density of states (PDOS) and thermal parameters were derived from NRIXS up to 120 GPa with the density function theoretical (DFT) calculations. These calculations further predict and are consistent with pressure-induced metallization and band gap closing around 12 GPa.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Observation of Conventional Near Room Temperature Superconductivity in Carbonaceous Sulfur Hydride

The phenomenon of high temperature superconductivity, approaching room temperature, has been realized in a number of hydrogen-dominant alloy systems under high pressure conditions1-12. A significant discovery in reaching room temperature superconductivity is the photo-induced reaction of sulfur, hydrogen, and carbon that initially forms of van der Waals solids at sub-megabar pressures. Carbonaceous sulfur hydride has been demonstrated to be tunable with respect to carbon content, leading to different superconducting final states with different structural symmetries. A modulated AC susceptibility technique adapted for a diamond anvil cell confirms a Tc of 260 kelvin at 133 GPa in carbonaceous sulfur hydride. Furthermore, direct synchrotron infrared reflectivity measurements on the same sample under the same conditions reveal a superconducting gap of ~85 meV at 100 K in close agreement to the expected value from Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) theory13-18. Additionally, x-ray diffraction in tandem with AC magnetic susceptibility measurements above and below the superconducting transition temperature, and as a function of pressure at 107-133 GPa, reveal the Pnma structure of the material is responsible for the close to room-temperature superconductivity at these pressures.

cond-mat.supr-con

Novel Valence Transition in Elemental Metal Europium around 80 GPa

Valence transition could induce structural, insulator-metal, nonmagnetic-magnetic and superconducting transitions in rare-earth metals and compounds, while the underlying physics remains unclear due to the complex interaction of localized 4f electrons as well as their coupling with itinerant electrons. The valence transition in the elemental metal europium (Eu) still has remained as a matter of debate. Using resonant x-ray emission scattering and x-ray diffraction, we pressurize the states of 4f electrons in Eu and study its valence and structure transitions up to 160 GPa. We provide compelling evidence for a valence transition around 80 GPa, which coincides with a structural transition from a monoclinic (C2/c) to an orthorhombic phase (Pnma). We show that the valence transition occurs when the pressure-dependent energy gap between 4f and 5d electrons approaches the Coulomb interaction. Our discovery is critical for understanding the electrodynamics of Eu, including magnetism and high-pressure superconductivity.

cond-mat.str-el

Lonsdaleite: The diamond with optimized bond lengths and enhanced hardness

Diamond is known as the hardest substance due to its ultra-strong tetrahedral sp3 carbon bonding framework. The only weak link is its cubic cleavage planes between (111) buckled honeycomb layers. Compressing graphite single crystals and heating to moderate temperatures, we synthesized a bulk, pure, hexagonal diamond (lonsdaleite) with distorted carbon tetrahedrons that shorten the bond between its hexagonal (001) buckled honeycomb layers, thus strengthening their linkage. We observed direct transformation of graphite (100) to lonsdaleite (002) and graphite (002) to lonsdaleite (100). We find the bulk lonsdaleite has superior mechanical properties of Vicker hardnesses HV = 164+/-11 GPa and 124+/-13 GPa, measured on the surface corresponding to the original graphite (001) and (100) surfaces, respectively. Properties of lonsdaleite as the supreme material can be further enhanced by purifying the starting material graphite carbon and fine-tuning the high pressure-temperature synthesis conditions.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Pressure induced collapse of magnetic order in jarosite

We report a pressure-induced phase transition in the frustrated kagomé material jarosite at ~45 GPa, which leads to the disappearance of magnetic order. Using a suite of experimental techniques, we characterize the structural, electronic, and magnetic changes in jarosite through this phase transition. Synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy experiments, analyzed in aggregate with the results from density functional theory calculations, indicate that the material changes from a R-3m structure to a structure with a R-3c space group. The resulting phase features a rare twisted kagomé lattice in which the integrity of the equilateral Fe3+ triangles persists. Based on symmetry arguments we hypothesize that the resulting structural changes alter the magnetic interactions to favor a possible quantum paramagnetic phase at high pressure.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Pressure-Driven Valence Increase and Metallization in Kondo Insulator Ce$_3$Bi$_4$Pt$_3$

We report the results of high pressure x-ray diffraction, x-ray absorption, and electrical transport measurements of Kondo insulator Ce$_3$Bi$_4$Pt$_3$ up to 42 GPa, the highest pressure reached in the study of any Ce-based KI. We observe a smooth decrease in volume and movement toward intermediate Ce valence with pressure, both of which point to increased electron correlations. Despite this, temperature-dependent resistance data show the suppression of the interaction-driven ambient pressure insulating ground state. We also discuss potential ramifications of these results for the predicted topological KI state.

cond-mat.str-el

Pressure enhanced interplay among lattice, spin and charge in La2FeMnO6 mixed perovskite

Spin crossover plays a central role in the structural instability, net magnetic moment modification, metallization, and even in superconductivity in corresponding materials. Most reports on the pressure-induced spin crossover with a large volume collapse so far focused on compounds with single transition metal. Here we report a comprehensive high-pressure investigation of a mixed Fe-Mn perovskite La2FeMnO6. Under pressure, the strong coupling between Fe and Mn leads to a combined valence/spin transition: Fe3+(S = 5/2) to Fe2+(S = 0) and Mn3+(S = 2) to Mn4+(S = 3/2), with an isostructural phase transition. The spin transitions of both Fe and Mn are offset by ~ 20 GPa of the onset pressure, and the lattice collapse occurs in between. Interestingly, Fe3+ ion shows an abnormal behavior when it reaches a lower valence state (Fe2+) accompanied by a + 0.5 eV energy shift in Fe K-absorption edge at 15 GPa. This process is associated with the charge-spin-orbital state transition from high spin Fe3+ to low spin Fe2+, caused by the significantly enhanced t2g-eg crystal field splitting in the compressed lattice under high pressure. Density Functional Theory calculations confirm the energy preference of the high-pressure state with charge redistribution accompanied by spin state transition of Fe ions. Moreover, La2FeMnO6 maintains semiconductor behaviors even when the pressure reached 144.5 GPa as evidenced by the electrical transport measurements, despite the huge resistivity decreasing 7 orders of magnitude compared with that at ambient pressure. The investigation carried out here demonstrates high flexibility of double perovskites and their good potentials for optimizing the functionality of these materials.

cond-mat.str-el

Spin Quenching Assisted by a Strongly Anisotropic Compression Behavior in MnP

We studied the crystal structure and spin state of MnP under high pressure with synchrotron X-ray diffraction and X-ray emission spectroscopy. MnP has an exceedingly strong anisotropy in compressibility, with the primary compressible direction along the b axis of the Pnma structure. X-ray emission spectroscopy reveals a pressure-driven quenching of the spin state in MnP. Firstprinciples calculations suggest that the strongly anisotropic compression behavior significantly enhances the dispersion of the Mn d-orbitals and the splitting of the d orbital levels compared to the hypothetical isotropic compression behavior. Thus, we propose spin quenching results mainly from the significant enhancement of the itinerancy of d electrons and partly from spin rearrangement occurring in the split d-orbital levels near the Fermi level. This explains the fast suppression of magnetic ordering in MnP under high pressure. The spin quenching lags behind the occurrence of superconductivity at ~8 GPa implying that spin fluctuations govern the electron pairing for superconductivity.

cond-mat.supr-con

The existence of two non-contractible closed geodesics on every bumpy Finsler compact space form

Let $M=S^n/ Γ$ and $h$ be a nontrivial element of finite order $p$ in $π_1(M)$, where the integer $n\geq2$, $Γ$ is a finite group which acts freely and isometrically on the $n$-sphere and therefore $M$ is diffeomorphic to a compact space form. In this paper, we establish first the resonance identity for non-contractible homologically visible minimal closed geodesics of the class $[h]$ on every Finsler compact space form $(M, F)$ when there exist only finitely many distinct non-contractible closed geodesics of the class $[h]$ on $(M, F)$. Then as an application of this resonance identity, we prove the existence of at least two distinct non-contractible closed geodesics of the class $[h]$ on $(M, F)$ with a bumpy Finsler metric, which improves a result of Taimanov in [Taimanov 2016] by removing some additional conditions. Also our results extend the resonance identity and multiplicity results on $\mathcal{R}P^n$ in [arXiv:1607.02746] to general compact space forms.

math.DS

Resonance identity and multiplicity of non-contractible closed geodesics on Finsler $\mathbb{R}P^{n}$

In this paper, we establish first the resonance identity for non-contractible homologically visible prime closed geodesics on Finsler $n$-dimensional real projective space $(\mathbb{R}P^n,F)$ when there exist only finitely many distinct non-contractible closed geodesics on $(\mathbb{R}P^n,F)$, where the integer $n\geq2$. Then as an application of this resonance identity, we prove the existence of at least two distinct non-contractible closed geodesics on $\mathbb{R}P^{n}$ with a bumpy and irreversible Finsler metric. Together with two previous results on bumpy and reversible Finsler metrics in \cite{DLX2015} and \cite{Tai2016}, it yields that every $\mathbb{R}P^{n}$ with a bumpy Finsler metric possesses at least two distinct non-contractible closed geodesics.

math.DS

Pressure-resistant intermediate valence in Kondo insulator SmB6

Resonant x-ray emission spectroscopy (RXES) was used to determine the pressure dependence of the f-electron occupancy in the Kondo insulator SmB6. Applied pressure reduces the f-occupancy, but surprisingly, the material maintains a significant divalent character up to a pressure of at least 35 GPa. Thus, the closure of the resistive activation energy gap and onset of magnetic order are not driven by stabilization of an integer valent state. Over the entire pressure range, the material maintains a remarkably stable intermediate valence that can in principle support a nontrivial band structure.

cond-mat.str-el

Topological structure of non-contractible loop space and closed geodesics on real projective spaces with odd dimensions

In this paper, we use Chas-Sullivan theory on loop homology and Leray-Serre spectral sequence to investigate the topological structure of the non-contractible component of the free loop space on the real projective spaces with odd dimensions. Then we apply the result to get the resonance identity of non-contractible homologically visible prime closed geodesics on such spaces provided the total number of distinct prime closed geodesics is finite.

math.GT

Nonharmonic Phonons in $α$-Iron at High Temperatures

Phonon densities of states (DOS) of bcc $α$-$^{57}$Fe were measured from room temperature through the 1044K Curie transition and the 1185K fcc $γ$-Fe phase transition using nuclear resonant inelastic x-ray scattering. At higher temperatures all phonons shift to lower energies (soften) with thermal expansion, but the low transverse modes soften especially rapidly above 700K, showing strongly nonharmonic behavior that persists through the magnetic transition. Interatomic force constants for the bcc phase were obtained by iteratively fitting a Born-von Kármán model to the experimental phonon spectra using a genetic algorithm optimization. The second-nearest-neighbor fitted axial force constants weakened significantly at elevated temperatures. An unusually large nonharmonic behavior is reported, which increases the vibrational entropy and accounts for a contribution of 35 meV/atom in the free energy at high temperatures. The nonharmonic contribution to the vibrational entropy follows the thermal trend of the magnetic entropy, and may be coupled to magnetic excitations. A small change in vibrational entropy across the $α$-$γ$ structural phase transformation is also reported.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci