A note on distance-regular graphs with a small number of vertices compared to the valency

In this note we study distance-regular graphs with a small number of vertices compared to the valency. We show that for a given α>2$\alpha >2$, there are finitely many distance-regular graphs Γ$\Gamma$ with valency k$k$, diameter D≥3$D\ge 3$ and v$v$ vertices satisfying v≤αk$v\le \alpha k$ unless (D=3$D=3$ and Γ$\Gamma$ is imprimitive) or (D=4$D=4$ and Γ$\Gamma$ is antipodal and bipartite). We also show, as a consequence of this result, that there are finitely many distance-regular graphs with valency k≥3$k\ge 3$, diameter D≥3$D\ge 3$ and _c2≥εk$c_2\ge \epsilon k$ for a given 0<ε<1$0<\epsilon <1$ unless (D=3$D=3$ and Γ$\Gamma$ is imprimitive) or (D=4$D=4$ and Γ$\Gamma$ is antipodal and bipartite).     

Concentration and multiplicity of solutions for a fourth-order equation with critical nonlinearity

In this paper, we consider the problem (_Pε)$(P_{\epsilon })$ : Δ²u=u^n+4/n-4+εu,u>0${\mathrm{\Delta }}^{2}u=u^{n+4/n-4}+\epsilon u,u>0$ in Ω,u=Δu=0$\Omega ,u=\mathrm{\Delta }u=0$ on ∂Ω$\mathrm{\partial }\Omega$, where Ω$\Omega$ is a bounded and smooth domain in Rⁿ,n>8${\mathbb{R}}^n,n>8$ and ε>0$\epsilon >0$. We analyze the asymptotic behavior of solutions of (_Pε)$(P_{\epsilon })$ which are minimizing for the Sobolev inequality as ε→0$\epsilon \to 0$ and we prove existence of solutions to (_Pε)$(P_{\epsilon })$ which blow up and concentrate around a critical point of the Robin's function. Finally, we show that for ε$\epsilon$ small, (_Pε)$(P_{\epsilon })$ has at least as many solutions as the Ljusternik–Schnirelman category of Ω$\Omega$.     

Critical exponents for non-simultaneous blow-up in a localized parabolic system

The paper deals with the radially symmetric solutions of _ut=Δu+u^m(x,t)vⁿ(0,t)$u_t=\Delta u+u^m(x,t)v^n(0,t)$, _vt=Δv+u^p(0,t)v^q(x,t)$v_t=\Delta v+u^p(0,t)v^q(x,t)$, subject to null Dirichlet boundary conditions. For the blow-up classical solutions, we propose the critical exponents for non-simultaneous blow-up by determining the complete and optimal classification for all the non-negative exponents: (i) There exist initial data such that u$u$ (v$v$) blows up alone if and only if m>p+1$m>p+1$ (q>n+1$q>n+1$), which means that any blow-up is simultaneous if and only if m≤p+1$m\le p+1$, q≤n+1$q\le n+1$. (ii) Any blow-up is u$u$ (v$v$) blowing up with v$v$ (u$u$) remaining bounded if and only if m>p+1$m>p+1$, q≤n+1$q\le n+1$ (m≤p+1$m\le p+1$, q>n+1$q>n+1$). (iii) Both non-simultaneous and simultaneous blow-up may occur if and only if m>p+1$m>p+1$, q>n+1$q>n+1$. Moreover, we consider the blow-up rate and set estimates which were not obtained in the previously known work for the same model.     

Estimation for stochastic differential equations with a small diffusion coefficient

We consider a multidimensional diffusion X$X$ with drift coefficient b(_Xt,α)$b(X_t,\alpha )$ and diffusion coefficient εa(_Xt,β)$\epsilon a(X_t,\beta )$ where α$\alpha$ and β$\beta$ are two unknown parameters, while ε$\epsilon$ is known. For a high frequency sample of observations of the diffusion at the time points k/n$k/n$, k=1,…,n$k=1,\dots ,n$, we propose a class of contrast functions and thus obtain estimators of (α,β)$(\alpha ,\beta )$. The estimators are shown to be consistent and asymptotically normal when n→∞$n\to \infty$ and ε→0$\epsilon \to 0$ in such a way that ε⁻¹n^−ρ${\epsilon }^{-1}{n}^{-\rho }$ remains bounded for some ρ>0$\rho >0$. The main focus is on the construction of explicit contrast functions, but it is noted that the theory covers quadratic martingale estimating functions as a special case. In a simulation study we consider the finite sample behaviour and the applicability to a financial model of an estimator obtained from a simple explicit contrast function.     

On a family of differential operators with the coupling parameter in the boundary condition

We study a family of differential operators _Lα${\mathbf{L}}_{\alpha }$ in two variables, depending on the coupling parameter α?0$\alpha ?0$ that appears only in the boundary conditions. Our main concern is the spectral properties of _Lα${\mathbf{L}}_{\alpha }$, which turn out to be quite different for α<1$\alpha <1$ and for α>1$\alpha >1$. In particular, _Lα${\mathbf{L}}_{\alpha }$ has a unique self-adjoint realization for α<1$\alpha <1$ and many such realizations for α>1$\alpha >1$. In the more difficult case α>1$\alpha >1$ an analysis of non-elliptic pseudodifferential operators in dimension one is involved.     

Cycles embedding on folded hypercubes with faulty nodes

Let F_Fv$F{F}_v$ be the set of faulty nodes in an n$n$-dimensional folded hypercube F_Qn$F{Q}_n$ with |F_Fv|≤n−2$\left|F{F}_v\right|\le n-2$. In this paper, we show that if n≥3$n\ge 3$, then every edge of F_Qn−F_Fv$F{Q}_n-F{F}_v$ lies on a fault-free cycle of every even length from 4$4$ to 2ⁿ−2|F_Fv|$2^n-2\left|F{F}_v\right|$, and if n≥2$n\ge 2$ and n$n$ is even, then every edge of F_Qn−F_Fv$F{Q}_n-F{F}_v$ lies on a fault-free cycle of every odd length from n+1$n+1$ to 2ⁿ−2|F_Fv|−1$2^n-2\left|F{F}_v\right|-1$.     

Counting minimal semi-Sturmian words

A finite Sturmian   word w$w$ is a balanced word over the binary alphabet {a,b}$\{a,b\}$, that is, for all subwords u$u$ and v$v$ of w$w$ of equal length, |_|u|a−_|v|a|≤1$|{\left|u\right|}_a-{\left|v\right|}_a|\le 1$, where _|u|a${\left|u\right|}_a$ and _|v|a${\left|v\right|}_a$ denote the number of occurrences of the letter a$a$ in u$u$ and v$v$, respectively. There are several other characterizations, some leading to efficient algorithms for testing whether a finite word is Sturmian. These algorithms find important applications in areas such as pattern recognition, image processing, and computer graphics. Recently, Blanchet-Sadri and Lensmire considered finite semi-Sturmian words of minimal length and provided an algorithm for generating all of them using techniques from graph theory. In this paper, we exploit their approach in order to count the number of minimal semi-Sturmian words. We also present some other results that come from applying this graph theoretical framework to subword complexity.     

Parametric inference for discretely observed multidimensional diffusions with small diffusion coefficient

We consider a multidimensional diffusion X$X$ with drift coefficient b(α,_Xt)$b(\alpha ,X_t)$ and diffusion coefficient ?σ(β,_Xt)$?\sigma (\beta ,X_t)$. The diffusion sample path is discretely observed at times _tk=kΔ$t_k=k\Delta$ for k=1…n$k=1\dots n$ on a fixed interval [0,T]$[0,T]$. We study minimum contrast estimators derived from the Gaussian process approximating X$X$ for small ?$?$. We obtain consistent and asymptotically normal estimators of α$\alpha$ for fixed Δ$\Delta$ and ?→0$?\to 0$ and of (α,β)$(\alpha ,\beta )$ for Δ→0$\Delta \to 0$ and ?→0$?\to 0$ without any condition linking ?$?$ and Δ$\Delta$. We compare the estimators obtained with various methods and for various magnitudes of Δ$\Delta$ and ?$?$ based on simulation studies. Finally, we investigate the interest of using such methods in an epidemiological framework.     

On probabilistic results for the discrepancy of a hybrid-Monte Carlo sequence

In many applications it has been observed that hybrid-Monte Carlo sequences perform better than Monte Carlo and quasi-Monte Carlo sequences, especially in difficult problems. For a mixed s$s$-dimensional sequence m$m$, whose elements are vectors obtained by concatenating d$d$-dimensional vectors from a low-discrepancy sequence q$q$ with (s−d)$(s-d)$-dimensional random vectors, probabilistic upper bounds for its star discrepancy have been provided. In a paper of G. Ökten, B. Tuffin and V. Burago [G. Ökten, B. Tuffin, V. Burago, J. Complexity 22 (2006), 435–458] it was shown that for arbitrary ε>0$\epsilon >0$ the difference of the star discrepancies of the first N$N$ points of m$m$ and q$q$ is bounded by ε$\epsilon$ with probability at least 1−2exp(−ε²N/2)$1-2exp(-{\epsilon }^{2}N/2)$ for N$N$ sufficiently large. The authors did not study how large N$N$ actually has to be and if and how this actually depends on the parameters s$s$ and ε$\epsilon$. In this note we derive a lower bound for N$N$, which significantly depends on s$s$ and ε$\epsilon$. Furthermore, we provide a probabilistic bound for the difference of the star discrepancies of the first N$N$ points of m$m$ and q$q$, which holds without any restrictions on N$N$. In this sense it improves on the bound of Ökten, Tuffin and Burago and is more helpful in practice, especially for small sample sizes N$N$. We compare this bound to other known bounds.     

Octahedral norms and convex combination of slices in Banach spaces

We study the relation between octahedral norms, Daugavet property and the size of convex combinations of slices in Banach spaces. We prove that the norm of an arbitrary Banach space is octahedral if, and only if, every convex combination of w^?$w^{?}$-slices in the dual unit ball has diameter 2, which answers an open question. As a consequence we get that the Banach spaces with the Daugavet property and its dual spaces have octahedral norms. Also, we show that for every separable Banach space containing _?1${?}_1$ and for every ε>0$\epsilon >0$ there is an equivalent norm so that every convex combination of w^?$w^{?}$-slices in the dual unit ball has diameter at least 2−ε$2-\epsilon$.     

Abelian theorems for stochastic volatility models with application to the estimation of jump activity

In this paper, we prove a kind of Abelian theorem for a class of stochastic volatility models (X,V)$(X,V)$ where both the state process X$X$ and the volatility process V$V$ may have jumps. Our results relate the asymptotic behavior of the characteristic function of _XΔ$X_{\Delta }$ for some Δ>0$\Delta >0$ in a stationary regime to the Blumenthal–Getoor indexes of the Lévy processes driving the jumps in X$X$ and V$V$. The results obtained are used to construct consistent estimators for the above Blumenthal–Getoor indexes based on low-frequency observations of the state process X$X$. We derive convergence rates for the corresponding estimator and show that these rates cannot be improved in general.     

Crossing number additivity over edge cuts

Consider a graph G$G$ with a minimal edge cut F$F$ and let _G1$G_1$, _G2$G_2$ be the two (augmented) components of G−F$G-F$. A long-open question asks under which conditions the crossing number of G$G$ is (greater than or) equal to the sum of the crossing numbers of _G1$G_1$ and _G2$G_2$—which would allow us to consider those graphs separately. It is known that crossing number is additive for |F|∈{0,1,2}$\left|F\right|\in \{0,1,2\}$ and that there exist graphs violating this property with |F|≥4$\left|F\right|\ge 4$. In this paper, we show that crossing number is additive for |F|=3$\left|F\right|=3$, thus closing the final gap in the question.     

On functional limits of short- and long-memory linear processes with GARCH(1,1) noises

This paper considers the short- and long-memory linear processes with GARCH (1,1) noises. The functional limit distributions of the partial sum and the sample autocovariances are derived when the tail index α$\alpha$ is in (0,2)$(0,2)$, equal to 2, and in (2,∞)$(2,\infty )$, respectively. The partial sum weakly converges to a functional of α$\alpha$-stable process when α<2$\alpha <2$ and converges to a functional of Brownian motion when α≥2$\alpha \ge 2$. When the process is of short-memory and α<4$\alpha <4$, the autocovariances converge to functionals of α/2$\alpha /2$-stable processes; and if α≥4$\alpha \ge 4$, they converge to functionals of Brownian motions. In contrast, when the process is of long-memory, depending on α$\alpha$ and β$\beta$ (the parameter that characterizes the long-memory), the autocovariances converge to either (i) functionals of α/2$\alpha /2$-stable processes; (ii) Rosenblatt processes (indexed by β$\beta$, 1/2<β<3/4$1/2<\beta <3/4$); or (iii) functionals of Brownian motions. The rates of convergence in these limits depend on both the tail index α$\alpha$ and whether or not the linear process is short- or long-memory. Our weak convergence is established on the space of càdlàg functions on [0,1]$[0,1]$ with either (i) the _J1$J_1$ or the _M1$M_1$ topology (Skorokhod, 1956); or (ii) the weaker form S$S$ topology (Jakubowski, 1997). Some statistical applications are also discussed.     

A boundary blow-up elliptic problem with an inhomogeneous term

By a perturbation method and constructing comparison functions, we reveal how the inhomogeneous term h$h$ affects the exact asymptotic behaviour of solutions near the boundary to the problem △u=b(x)g(u)+λh(x)$△u=b\left(x\right)g\left(u\right)+\lambda h\left(x\right)$, u>0$u>0$ in Ω$\Omega$, u_|∂Ω=∞$u{|}_{\partial \Omega }=\infty$, where Ω$\Omega$ is a bounded domain with smooth boundary in R^N${\mathbb{R}}^N$, λ>0$\lambda >0$, g∈C¹[0,∞)$g\in C^1[0,\infty )$ is increasing on [0,∞)$[0,\infty )$, g(0)=0$g\left(0\right)=0$, g^′$g^{\prime }$ is regularly varying at infinity with positive index ρ$\rho$, the weight b$b$, which is non-trivial and non-negative in Ω$\Omega$, may be vanishing on the boundary, and the inhomogeneous term h$h$ is non-negative in Ω$\Omega$ and may be singular on the boundary.     

Breaking the chain

We consider the motion of a Brownian particle in R$\mathbb{R}$, moving between a particle fixed at the origin and another moving deterministically away at slow speed ε>0$\epsilon >0$. The middle particle interacts with its neighbours via a potential of finite range b>0$b>0$, with a unique minimum at a>0$a>0$, where b<2a$b<2a$. We say that the chain of particles breaks on the left- or right-hand side when the middle particle is at a distance greater than b$b$ from its left or right neighbour, respectively. We study the asymptotic location of the first break of the chain in the limit of small noise, in the case where ε=ε(σ)$\epsilon =\epsilon \left(\sigma \right)$ and σ>0$\sigma >0$ is the noise intensity.     

Characterizations of hypersurfaces of a Danielewski type

Let k$k$ be a field of characteristic zero and R$R$ a factorial affine k$k$-domain. Let B$B$ be an affineR$R$-domain. In terms of locally nilpotent derivations, we give criteria for B$B$ to be R$R$-isomorphic to the residue ring of a polynomial ring R[_X1,_X2,Y]$R[X_1,X_2,Y]$ over R$R$ by the ideal (_X1X2−φ(Y))$(X_1{X}_2-\phi \left(Y\right))$ for φ(Y)∈R[Y]?R$\phi \left(Y\right)\in R\left[Y\right]?R$.