8,177 research outputs found
Phase Transitions and Computational Difficulty in Random Constraint Satisfaction Problems
We review the understanding of the random constraint satisfaction problems,
focusing on the q-coloring of large random graphs, that has been achieved using
the cavity method of the physicists. We also discuss the properties of the
phase diagram in temperature, the connections with the glass transition
phenomenology in physics, and the related algorithmic issues.Comment: 10 pages, Proceedings of the International Workshop on
Statistical-Mechanical Informatics 2007, Kyoto (Japan) September 16-19, 200
Statistical Mechanical Formulation and Simulation of Prime Factorization of Integers
We propose a new formulation of the problem of prime factorization of
integers. With replica exchange Monte Carlo simulation, the behavior which is
seemed to indicate exponential computational hardness is observed. But this
formulation is expected to give a new insight into the computational complexity
of this problem from a statistical mechanical point of view.Comment: 5 pages, 5figures, Proceedings of 4th YSM-SPIP (Sendai, 14-16
December 2012
Biased landscapes for random Constraint Satisfaction Problems
The typical complexity of Constraint Satisfaction Problems (CSPs) can be
investigated by means of random ensembles of instances. The latter exhibit many
threshold phenomena besides their satisfiability phase transition, in
particular a clustering or dynamic phase transition (related to the tree
reconstruction problem) at which their typical solutions shatter into
disconnected components. In this paper we study the evolution of this
phenomenon under a bias that breaks the uniformity among solutions of one CSP
instance, concentrating on the bicoloring of k-uniform random hypergraphs. We
show that for small k the clustering transition can be delayed in this way to
higher density of constraints, and that this strategy has a positive impact on
the performances of Simulated Annealing algorithms. We characterize the modest
gain that can be expected in the large k limit from the simple implementation
of the biasing idea studied here. This paper contains also a contribution of a
more methodological nature, made of a review and extension of the methods to
determine numerically the discontinuous dynamic transition threshold.Comment: 32 pages, 16 figure
Clustering of solutions in hard satisfiability problems
We study the structure of the solution space and behavior of local search
methods on random 3-SAT problems close to the SAT/UNSAT transition. Using the
overlap measure of similarity between different solutions found on the same
problem instance we show that the solution space is shrinking as a function of
alpha. We consider chains of satisfiability problems, where clauses are added
sequentially. In each such chain, the overlap distribution is first smooth, and
then develops a tiered structure, indicating that the solutions are found in
well separated clusters. On chains of not too large instances, all solutions
are eventually observed to be in only one small cluster before vanishing. This
condensation transition point is estimated to be alpha_c = 4.26. The transition
approximately obeys finite-size scaling with an apparent critical exponent of
about 1.7. We compare the solutions found by a local heuristic, ASAT, and the
Survey Propagation algorithm up to alpha_c.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figure
Taming a non-convex landscape with dynamical long-range order: memcomputing Ising benchmarks
Recent work on quantum annealing has emphasized the role of collective
behavior in solving optimization problems. By enabling transitions of clusters
of variables, such solvers are able to navigate their state space and locate
solutions more efficiently despite having only local connections between
elements. However, collective behavior is not exclusive to quantum annealers,
and classical solvers that display collective dynamics should also possess an
advantage in navigating a non-convex landscape. Here, we give evidence that a
benchmark derived from quantum annealing studies is solvable in polynomial time
using digital memcomputing machines, which utilize a collection of dynamical
components with memory to represent the structure of the underlying
optimization problem. To illustrate the role of memory and clarify the
structure of these solvers we propose a simple model of these machines that
demonstrates the emergence of long-range order. This model, when applied to
finding the ground state of the Ising frustrated-loop benchmarks, undergoes a
transient phase of avalanches which can span the entire lattice and
demonstrates a connection between long-range behavior and their probability of
success. These results establish the advantages of computational approaches
based on collective dynamics of continuous dynamical systems
The Quantum Adiabatic Algorithm applied to random optimization problems: the quantum spin glass perspective
Among various algorithms designed to exploit the specific properties of
quantum computers with respect to classical ones, the quantum adiabatic
algorithm is a versatile proposition to find the minimal value of an arbitrary
cost function (ground state energy). Random optimization problems provide a
natural testbed to compare its efficiency with that of classical algorithms.
These problems correspond to mean field spin glasses that have been extensively
studied in the classical case. This paper reviews recent analytical works that
extended these studies to incorporate the effect of quantum fluctuations, and
presents also some original results in this direction.Comment: 151 pages, 21 figure
A Landscape Analysis of Constraint Satisfaction Problems
We discuss an analysis of Constraint Satisfaction problems, such as Sphere
Packing, K-SAT and Graph Coloring, in terms of an effective energy landscape.
Several intriguing geometrical properties of the solution space become in this
light familiar in terms of the well-studied ones of rugged (glassy) energy
landscapes. A `benchmark' algorithm naturally suggested by this construction
finds solutions in polynomial time up to a point beyond the `clustering' and in
some cases even the `thermodynamic' transitions. This point has a simple
geometric meaning and can be in principle determined with standard Statistical
Mechanical methods, thus pushing the analytic bound up to which problems are
guaranteed to be easy. We illustrate this for the graph three and four-coloring
problem. For Packing problems the present discussion allows to better
characterize the `J-point', proposed as a systematic definition of Random Close
Packing, and to place it in the context of other theories of glasses.Comment: 17 pages, 69 citations, 12 figure
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