Coalescing systems of non-Brownian particles

A well-known result of Arratia shows that one can make rigorous the notion of starting an independent Brownian motion at every point of an arbitrary closed subset of the real line and then building a set-valued process by requiring particles to coalesce when they collide. Arratia noted that the value of this process will be almost surely a locally finite set at all positive times, and a finite set almost surely if the initial value is compact: the key to both of these facts is the observation that, because of the topology of the real line and the continuity of Brownian sample paths, at the time when two particles collide one or the other of them must have already collided with each particle that was initially between them. We investigate whether such instantaneous coalescence still occurs for coalescing systems of particles where either the state space of the individual particles is not locally homeomorphic to an interval or the sample paths of the individual particles are discontinuous. We give a quite general criterion for a coalescing system of particles on a compact state space to coalesce to a finite set at all positive times almost surely and show that there is almost sure instantaneous coalescence to a locally finite set for systems of Brownian motions on the Sierpinski gasket and stable processes on the real line with stable index greater than one.     

The Markov modulated regulated Brownian motion: A second-order fluid flow model of a finite buffer

A second-order fluid flow model of a queue with finite capacity buffer and variable net input process is presented, based on the previous work of Karandikar and Kulkarni (1995). Queue length is modelled as a Brownian motion whose parameters are controlled by a finite state Markov chain. The process, termed a Markov modulated regulated Brownian motion (MMRBM), provides analytical solutions for steady state queue length distributions, overflow losses and idleness probabilities using boundary regulators. Applications of the model include queues with failure-prone servers and ATM statistical multiplexers with variable traffic loads. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Conditioned stochastic differential equations: theory, examples and application to finance

We generalize the notion of Brownian bridge. More precisely, we study a standard Brownian motion for which a certain functional is conditioned to follow a given law. Such processes appear as weak solutions of stochastic differential equations that we call conditioned stochastic differential equations. The link with the theory of initial enlargement of filtration is made and after a general presentation several examples are studied: the conditioning of a standard Brownian motion (and more generally of a Markov diffusion) by its value at a given date, the conditioning of a geometric Brownian motion with negative drift by its quadratic variation and finally the conditioning of a standard Brownian motion by its first hitting time of a given level. As an application, we introduce the notion of weak information on a complete market, and we give a “quantitative” value to this weak information.     

Fractional Lévy Processes as a Result of Compact Interval Integral Transformation

Fractional Brownian motion can be represented as an integral of a deterministic kernel w.r.t. an ordinary Brownian motion either on infinite or compact interval. In previous literature fractional Lévy processes are defined by integrating the infinite interval kernel w.r.t. a general Lévy process. In this article we define fractional Lévy processes using the com pact interval representation.

We prove that the fractional Lévy processes presented via different integral transformations have the same finite dimensional distributions if and only if they are fractional Brownian motions. Also, we present relations between different fractional Lévy processes and analyze the properties of such processes. A financial example is introduced as well.     

Stochastic Two-Dimensional Hydrodynamical Systems: Wong-Zakai Approximation and Support Theorem

We deal with a class of abstract nonlinear stochastic models with multiplicative noise, which covers many 2D hydrodynamical models including the 2D Navier–Stokes equations, 2D MHD models and 2D magnetic Bénard problems as well as some shell models of turbulence. Our main result describes the support of the distribution of solutions. Both inclusions are proved by means of a general Wong–Zakai type result of convergence in probability for nonlinear stochastic PDEs driven by a Hilbert-valued Brownian motion and some adapted finite dimensional approximation of this process.     

Numerical interface curves for some nonlinear diffusion equations

An initial value problem for the generalized Kolmogorov-Petrowsky-Piscunov (nonlinear degenerate reaction-diffusion) equation is studied numerically by the help of a slightly modified finite difference scheme of Douglas-Yanenko-Mimura type. If the initial function has compact support, the solution also will have compact support and an interface appears between the domains where the solution is positive and where it is zero. We present some examples for different parameter values where the numerical solution as well as numerical interfaces behave according to the analytical theory. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

An identity of hitting times and its application to the valuation of guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit

In this paper we explore an identity in distribution of hitting times of a finite variation process (integrated geometric Brownian motion) and a diffusion process (geometric Brownian motion with affine drift), both of which arise from various applications in financial mathematics. We develop semi-analytical solutions to fair charges of variable annuity guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit from both a policyholder’s perspective and an insurer’s perspective. The pricing framework from the policyholder’s perspective was known previously in the literature only by numerical methods, whereas the insurer’s pricing method was used in the industry but only with Monte Carlo simulations. While comparing their similarities and differences, we prove under the assumption of no friction cost the two pricing approaches are equivalent. In the presence of friction cost, the semi-analytic solutions in this paper lead to a fast and accurate algorithm for determining rider charges and other management fees.     

Dirichlet外问题与漂移布朗运动

利用Dirichlet外问题与漂移布朗运动之间存在的密切联系,对Dirichlet外问题提出了一种新的有效的概率数值方法,这种方法运用了解的随机表达式、布朗运动、漂移布朗运动以及球面首中位置和时间的分布等．     

Weak Convergence of a Numerical Method for a Stochastic Heat Equation

Weak convergence with respect to a space of twice continuously differentiable test functions is established for a discretisation of a heat equation with homogeneous Dirichlet boundary conditions in one dimension, forced by a space-time Brownian motion. The discretisation is based on finite differences in space and time, incorporating a spectral approximation in space to the Brownian motion.     

Stochastic systems in Riemannian manifolds

A formulation of stochastic systems in a Riemannian manifold is given by stochastic differential equations in the tangent bundle of the manifold. Brownian motion is constructed in a compact Riemannian manifold as well as the horizontal lift of this process to the bundle of orthonormal frames. The solution of some stochastic differential equations in the tangent bundle of the manifold is defined by the transformation of the measure for the manifold-valued Brownian motion by a suitable Radon-Nikodym derivative. Real-valued stochastic integrals are defined for this Brownian motion using parallelism along the Brownian paths. A stochastic control problem is formulated and solved for these stochastic systems where a suitable convexity condition is assumed.This research was supported by NSF Grants Nos. GK-32136, ENG-75-06562, and MCS-76-01695.The author wishes to thank D. Gromoll, J. Simons, and J. Thorpe for some helpful conversations on differential geometry.     

Characterization of the least concave majorant of brownian motion,conditional on a vertex point,with application to construction

The characterization of the least concave majorant of brownian motion by Pitman (1983,Seminar on Stochastic Processes, 1982 (eds. E. Cinlar, K. L. Chung and R. K. Getoor), 219–228, Birkhäuser, Boston) is tweaked, conditional on a vertex point. The joint distribution of this vertex point is derived and is shown to be generated with extreme ease. A procedure is then outlined by which one can construct the least concave majorant of a standard Brownian motion path over any finite, closed subinterval of (0, ∞). This construction is exact in distribution. One can also construct a linearly interpolated version of the Brownian motion path (i.e. we construct the Brownian motion path over a grid of points and linearly interpolate) corresponding to this least concave majorant over the same finite interval. A discussion of how to translate the aforementioned construction to the least concave majorant of a Brownian bridge is also presented.     

Non-independence of excursions of the Brownian sheet and of additive Brownian motion

A classical and important property of Brownian motion is that given its zero set, distinct excursions away from zero are independent. In this paper, we examine the analogous question for the Brownian sheet, and also for additive Brownian motion. Our main result is that given the level set of the Brownian sheet at level zero, distinct excursions of the sheet away from zero are not independent. In fact, given the zero set of the Brownian sheet in the entire non-negative quadrant, and the sign of all but a finite number of excursions away from zero, the signs of the remaining excursions are determined. For additive Brownian motion, we prove the following definitive result: given the zero set of additive Brownian motion and the sign of a single excursion, the signs of all other excursions are determined. In an appendix by John B. Walsh, it is shown that given the absolute value of the sheet in the entire quadrant and, in addition, the sign of the sheet at a fixed, non-random time point, then the whole sheet can be recovered.

     

Finite dimensional characteristic functions of Brownian rough path

The Brownian rough path is the canonical lifting of Brownian motion to the free nilpotent Lie group of order 2: Equivalently, it is a process taking values in the algebra of Lie polynomials of degree 2, which is described explicitly by the Brownian motion coupled with its area process. The aim of this article is to compute the finite dimensional characteristic functions of the Brownian rough path in ?^d and obtain an explicit formula for the case when d = 2     

Chernoff approximations of Feller semigroups in Riemannian manifolds

Chernoff approximations of Feller semigroups and the associated diffusion processes in Riemannian manifolds are studied. The manifolds are assumed to be of bounded geometry, thus including all compact manifolds and also a wide range of non-compact manifolds. Sufficient conditions are established for a class of second order elliptic operators to generate a Feller semigroup on a (generally non-compact) manifold of bounded geometry. A construction of Chernoff approximations is presented for these Feller semigroups in terms of shift operators. This provides approximations of solutions to initial value problems for parabolic equations with variable coefficients on the manifold. It also yields weak convergence of a sequence of random walks on the manifolds to the diffusion processes associated with the elliptic generator. For parallelizable manifolds this result is applied in particular to the representation of Brownian motion on the manifolds as limits of the corresponding random walks.     

Formation of singularities of solutions of the equations of motion of compressible fluids subjected to external forces in the case of several spatial variables

One considers a class of solutions with finite total energy and moment of inertia for the equations of motion of compressible fluids. It is shown that for a wide class of right-hand sides, including the viscosity term, initially smooth solutions may acquire singularities on a finite time interval. A sufficient condition for the appearance of singularities is found. This condition may be called “the best possible sufficient condition” in the sense that one can explicitly construct a time-global smooth solution for which this condition does not hold to within arbitrary infinitely small quantities. For a nontrivial constant state, perturbations with compact support are considered. A generalization is proved for the known theorem on the initial conditions for which the solution acquires singularities on a finite time interval. The effect of dry friction and rotation on the formation of singularities of smooth solutions is examined. __________ Translated from Trudy Seminara imeni I. G. Petrovskogo, No. 26, pp. 274–308, 2007.     

Discrete Solutions of Dirichlet Problems, Finite Volumes, and Circle Packings

Convergence results for discrete solutions of Dirichlet problems for Poisson equations are obtained, where discrete solutions are constructed for triangular grids using finite volumes with sides perpendicular to, but not necessarily bisecting, corresponding edges in underlying triangulations. A method, based on properties of circle packings, is described for generating triangular meshes and associated volumes. Also, the approximation of exit probabilities of the Brownian motion by exit probabilities of random walks on circle packings is discussed. Received July 24, 1997, and in revised form November 8, 1998.     

Gaussian moving averages,semimartingales and option pricing

We provide a characterization of the Gaussian processes with stationary increments that can be represented as a moving average with respect to a two-sided Brownian motion. For such a process we give a necessary and sufficient condition to be a semimartingale with respect to the filtration generated by the two-sided Brownian motion. Furthermore, we show that this condition implies that the process is either of finite variation or a multiple of a Brownian motion with respect to an equivalent probability measure. As an application we discuss the problem of option pricing in financial models driven by Gaussian moving averages with stationary increments. In particular, we derive option prices in a regularized fractional version of the Black–Scholes model.     

带跳的分数倒向重随机微分方程及相应的随机积分偏微分方程

本文首次把Poisson随机测度引入分数倒向重随机微分方程,基于可料的Girsanov变换证明由Brown运动、Poisson随机测度和Hurst参数在(1/2,1)范围内的分数Brown运动共同驱动的半线性倒向重随机微分方程解的存在唯一性.在此基础上,本文定义一类半线性随机积分偏微分方程的随机黏性解,并证明该黏性解由带跳分数倒向重随机微分方程的解唯一地给出,对经典的黏性解理论作出有益的补充.     

Asymptotic error distribution for the Euler scheme with locally Lipschitz coefficients

In traditional works on numerical schemes for solving stochastic differential equations (SDEs), the globally Lipschitz assumption is often assumed to ensure different types of convergence. In practice, this is often too strong a condition. Brownian motion driven SDEs used in applications sometimes have coefficients which are only Lipschitz on compact sets, but the paths of the SDE solutions can be arbitrarily large. In this paper, we prove convergence in probability and a weak convergence result under a less restrictive assumption, that is, locally Lipschitz and with no finite time explosion. We prove if a numerical scheme converges in probability uniformly on any compact time set (UCP) with a certain rate under a global Lipschitz condition, then the UCP with the same rate holds when a globally Lipschitz condition is replaced with a locally Lipschitz plus no finite explosion condition. For the Euler scheme, weak convergence of the error process is also established. The main contribution of this paper is the proof of $\sqrt{n}$ weak convergence of the normalized error process and the limit process is also provided. We further study the boundedness of the second moments of the weak limit process and its running supremum under both global Lipschitz and locally Lipschitz conditions.