On matrix elements for the quantized cat map modulo prime powers

The quantum cat map is a model for a quantum system with underlying chaotic dynamics. In this paper we study the matrix elements of smooth observables in this model, when taking arithmetic symmetries into account. We give explicit formulas for the matrix elements as certain exponential sums. With these formulas we can show that there are sequences of eigenfunctions for which the matrix elements decay significantly slower then was previously conjectured. We also prove a limiting distribution for the fluctuation of the normalized matrix elements around their average.Comment: 26 pages, final version, to appear in AH

Implied volatility of basket options at extreme strikes

In the paper, we characterize the asymptotic behavior of the implied volatility of a basket call option at large and small strikes in a variety of settings with increasing generality. First, we obtain an asymptotic formula with an error bound for the left wing of the implied volatility, under the assumption that the dynamics of asset prices are described by the multidimensional Black-Scholes model. Next, we find the leading term of asymptotics of the implied volatility in the case where the asset prices follow the multidimensional Black-Scholes model with time change by an independent increasing stochastic process. Finally, we deal with a general situation in which the dependence between the assets is described by a given copula function. In this setting, we obtain a model-free tail-wing formula that links the implied volatility to a special characteristic of the copula called the weak lower tail dependence function

Regenerative Composition Structures

A new class of random composition structures (the ordered analog of Kingman's partition structures) is defined by a regenerative description of component sizes. Each regenerative composition structure is represented by a process of random sampling of points from an exponential distribution on the positive halfline, and separating the points into clusters by an independent regenerative random set. Examples are composition structures derived from residual allocation models, including one associated with the Ewens sampling formula, and composition structures derived from the zero set of a Brownian motion or Bessel process. We provide characterisation results and formulas relating the distribution of the regenerative composition to the L{\'e}vy parameters of a subordinator whose range is the corresponding regenerative set. In particular, the only reversible regenerative composition structures are those associated with the interval partition of $[0,1]$ generated by excursions of a standard Bessel bridge of dimension $2 - 2 \alpha$ for some $\alpha \in [0,1]$