Complexity of the Steiner Network Problem with Respect to the Number of Terminals

In the Directed Steiner Network problem we are given an arc-weighted digraph $G$, a set of terminals $T \subseteq V(G)$, and an (unweighted) directed request graph $R$ with $V(R)=T$. Our task is to output a subgraph $G' \subseteq G$ of the minimum cost such that there is a directed path from $s$ to $t$ in $G'$ for all $st \in A(R)$. It is known that the problem can be solved in time $|V(G)|^{O(|A(R)|)}$ [Feldman&Ruhl, SIAM J. Comput. 2006] and cannot be solved in time $|V(G)|^{o(|A(R)|)}$ even if $G$ is planar, unless Exponential-Time Hypothesis (ETH) fails [Chitnis et al., SODA 2014]. However, as this reduction (and other reductions showing hardness of the problem) only shows that the problem cannot be solved in time $|V(G)|^{o(|T|)}$ unless ETH fails, there is a significant gap in the complexity with respect to $|T|$ in the exponent. We show that Directed Steiner Network is solvable in time $f(R)\cdot |V(G)|^{O(c_g \cdot |T|)}$, where $c_g$ is a constant depending solely on the genus of $G$ and $f$ is a computable function. We complement this result by showing that there is no $f(R)\cdot |V(G)|^{o(|T|^2/ \log |T|)}$ algorithm for any function $f$ for the problem on general graphs, unless ETH fails

Asymptotically optimal covering designs

A (v,k,t) covering design, or covering, is a family of k-subsets, called blocks, chosen from a v-set, such that each t-subset is contained in at least one of the blocks. The number of blocks is the covering's size}, and the minimum size of such a covering is denoted by C(v,k,t). It is easy to see that a covering must contain at least (v choose t)/(k choose t) blocks, and in 1985 R\"odl [European J. Combin. 5 (1985), 69-78] proved a long-standing conjecture of Erd\H{o}s and Hanani [Publ. Math. Debrecen 10 (1963), 10-13] that for fixed k and t, coverings of size (v choose t)/(k choose t) (1+o(1)) exist (as v \to \infty). An earlier paper by the first three authors [J. Combin. Des. 3 (1995), 269-284] gave new methods for constructing good coverings, and gave tables of upper bounds on C(v,k,t) for small v, k, and t. The present paper shows that two of those constructions are asymptotically optimal: For fixed k and t, the size of the coverings constructed matches R\"odl's bound. The paper also makes the o(1) error bound explicit, and gives some evidence for a much stronger bound

On traces of tensor representations of diagrams

Let $T$ be a set, of {\em types}, and let \iota,o:T\to\oZ_+. A {\em $T$-diagram} is a locally ordered directed graph $G$ equipped with a function $\tau:V(G)\to T$ such that each vertex $v$ of $G$ has indegree $\iota(\tau(v))$ and outdegree $o(\tau(v))$. (A directed graph is {\em locally ordered} if at each vertex $v$, linear orders of the edges entering $v$ and of the edges leaving $v$ are specified.) Let $V$ be a finite-dimensional \oF-linear space, where \oF is an algebraically closed field of characteristic 0. A function $R$ on $T$ assigning to each $t\in T$ a tensor $R(t)\in V^{*\otimes \iota(t)}\otimes V^{\otimes o(t)}$ is called a {\em tensor representation} of $T$. The {\em trace} (or {\em partition function}) of $R$ is the \oF-valued function $p_R$ on the collection of $T$-diagrams obtained by `decorating' each vertex $v$ of a $T$-diagram $G$ with the tensor $R(\tau(v))$, and contracting tensors along each edge of $G$, while respecting the order of the edges entering $v$ and leaving $v$. In this way we obtain a {\em tensor network}. We characterize which functions on $T$-diagrams are traces, and show that each trace comes from a unique `strongly nondegenerate' tensor representation. The theorem applies to virtual knot diagrams, chord diagrams, and group representations

Approximating subset kk-connectivity problems

A subset $T \subseteq V$ of terminals is $k$-connected to a root $s$ in a directed/undirected graph $J$ if $J$ has $k$ internally-disjoint $vs$-paths for every $v \in T$; $T$ is $k$-connected in $J$ if $T$ is $k$-connected to every $s \in T$. We consider the {\sf Subset $k$-Connectivity Augmentation} problem: given a graph $G=(V,E)$ with edge/node-costs, node subset $T \subseteq V$, and a subgraph $J=(V,E_J)$ of $G$ such that $T$ is $k$-connected in $J$, find a minimum-cost augmenting edge-set $F \subseteq E \setminus E_J$ such that $T$ is $(k+1)$-connected in $J \cup F$. The problem admits trivial ratio $O(|T|^2)$. We consider the case $|T|>k$ and prove that for directed/undirected graphs and edge/node-costs, a $\rho$-approximation for {\sf Rooted Subset $k$-Connectivity Augmentation} implies the following ratios for {\sf Subset $k$-Connectivity Augmentation}: (i) $b(\rho+k) + {(\frac{3|T|}{|T|-k})}^2 H(\frac{3|T|}{|T|-k})$; (ii) $\rho \cdot O(\frac{|T|}{|T|-k} \log k)$, where b=1 for undirected graphs and b=2 for directed graphs, and $H(k)$ is the $k$th harmonic number. The best known values of $\rho$ on undirected graphs are $\min\{|T|,O(k)\}$ for edge-costs and $\min\{|T|,O(k \log |T|)\}$ for node-costs; for directed graphs $\rho=|T|$ for both versions. Our results imply that unless $k=|T|-o(|T|)$, {\sf Subset $k$-Connectivity Augmentation} admits the same ratios as the best known ones for the rooted version. This improves the ratios in \cite{N-focs,L}

Структурообразование в смешанных дисперсиях на основе битумных и эпоксидных эмульсий

Изучены процессы структурообразования в смешанной дисперсии на основе анионной и эпоксидной эмульсий в зависимости от концентрации эпоксидной смолы в структуре битумно-эпоксидного вяжущего, выделенного из полученной дисперсии. Показано, что уже при концентрации эпоксидной смолы 1% структура битумно-эпоксидного вяжущего характеризуется склонностью к проявлению упругих деформаций, а увеличение концентрации эпоксидной смолы до 5–15% приводит к формированию в дисперсионной среде битума пространственной структуры с повышенными прочностными и упруго-пластичными свойствами. Экспериментально доказано, что получение смешанных битумно-эпоксидных дисперсий является перспективным направлением при создании эффективных материалов с регулируемыми структурно-реологическими свойствами

Radial Fast Diffusion on the Hyperbolic Space

We consider radial solutions to the fast diffusion equation $u_t=\Delta u^m$ on the hyperbolic space $\mathbb{H}^{N}$ for $N \ge 2$, $m\in(m_s,1)$, $m_s=\frac{N-2}{N+2}$. By radial we mean solutions depending only on the geodesic distance $r$ from a given point $o \in \mathbb{H}^N$. We investigate their fine asymptotics near the extinction time $T$ in terms of a separable solution of the form ${\mathcal V}(r,t)=(1-t/T)^{1/(1-m)}V^{1/m}(r)$, where $V$ is the unique positive energy solution, radial w.r.t. $o$, to $-\Delta V=c\,V^{1/m}$ for a suitable $c>0$, a semilinear elliptic problem thoroughly studied in \cite{MS08}, \cite{BGGV}. We show that $u$ converges to ${\mathcal V}$ in relative error, in the sense that $\|{u^m(\cdot,t)}/{{\mathcal V}^m(\cdot,t)}-1\|_\infty\to0$ as $t\to T^-$. In particular the solution is bounded above and below, near the extinction time $T$, by multiples of $(1-t/T)^{1/(1-m)}e^{-(N-1)r/m}$.Comment: To appear in Proc. London Math. So