Lacunaryx: Computing bounded-degree factors of lacunary polynomials

In this paper, we report on an implementation in the free software Mathemagix of lacunary factorization algorithms, distributed as a library called Lacunaryx. These algorithms take as input a polynomial in sparse representation, that is as a list of nonzero monomials, and an integer $d$, and compute its irreducible degree-$\le d$ factors. The complexity of these algorithms is polynomial in the sparse size of the input polynomial and $d$.Comment: 6 page

Computing low-degree factors of lacunary polynomials: a Newton-Puiseux approach

We present a new algorithm for the computation of the irreducible factors of degree at most $d$, with multiplicity, of multivariate lacunary polynomials over fields of characteristic zero. The algorithm reduces this computation to the computation of irreducible factors of degree at most $d$ of univariate lacunary polynomials and to the factorization of low-degree multivariate polynomials. The reduction runs in time polynomial in the size of the input polynomial and in $d$. As a result, we obtain a new polynomial-time algorithm for the computation of low-degree factors, with multiplicity, of multivariate lacunary polynomials over number fields, but our method also gives partial results for other fields, such as the fields of $p$-adic numbers or for absolute or approximate factorization for instance. The core of our reduction uses the Newton polygon of the input polynomial, and its validity is based on the Newton-Puiseux expansion of roots of bivariate polynomials. In particular, we bound the valuation of $f(X,\phi)$ where $f$ is a lacunary polynomial and $\phi$ a Puiseux series whose vanishing polynomial has low degree.Comment: 22 page

Bounded-degree factors of lacunary multivariate polynomials

In this paper, we present a new method for computing bounded-degree factors of lacunary multivariate polynomials. In particular for polynomials over number fields, we give a new algorithm that takes as input a multivariate polynomial f in lacunary representation and a degree bound d and computes the irreducible factors of degree at most d of f in time polynomial in the lacunary size of f and in d. Our algorithm, which is valid for any field of zero characteristic, is based on a new gap theorem that enables reducing the problem to several instances of (a) the univariate case and (b) low-degree multivariate factorization. The reduction algorithms we propose are elementary in that they only manipulate the exponent vectors of the input polynomial. The proof of correctness and the complexity bounds rely on the Newton polytope of the polynomial, where the underlying valued field consists of Puiseux series in a single variable.Comment: 31 pages; Long version of arXiv:1401.4720 with simplified proof

Difficulté du résultant et des grands déterminants

21 pagesLe résultant est un polynôme permettant de déterminer si plusieurs polynômes donnés ont une racine commune. Canny a pu donner un algorithme PSPACE calculant le résultant à l'aide de calculs de déterminants, mais pose la question de sa complexité exacte. On s'intéresse ici à donner une estimation plus fine de cette complexité. D'une part, on montre que le résultant est dans AM, et qu'il est NP-difficile sous réduction probabiliste. D'autre part, les matrices en jeu étant descriptibles par des circuits de taille raisonnable, on montre que le calcul du déterminant pour de telles matrices est PSPACE-complet

Symmetric Determinantal Representation of Formulas and Weakly Skew Circuits

We deploy algebraic complexity theoretic techniques for constructing symmetric determinantal representations of for00504925mulas and weakly skew circuits. Our representations produce matrices of much smaller dimensions than those given in the convex geometry literature when applied to polynomials having a concise representation (as a sum of monomials, or more generally as an arithmetic formula or a weakly skew circuit). These representations are valid in any field of characteristic different from 2. In characteristic 2 we are led to an almost complete solution to a question of B\"urgisser on the VNP-completeness of the partial permanent. In particular, we show that the partial permanent cannot be VNP-complete in a finite field of characteristic 2 unless the polynomial hierarchy collapses.Comment: To appear in the AMS Contemporary Mathematics volume on Randomization, Relaxation, and Complexity in Polynomial Equation Solving, edited by Gurvits, Pebay, Rojas and Thompso

The Limited Power of Powering: Polynomial Identity Testing and a Depth-four Lower Bound for the Permanent

Polynomial identity testing and arithmetic circuit lower bounds are two central questions in algebraic complexity theory. It is an intriguing fact that these questions are actually related. One of the authors of the present paper has recently proposed a "real {\tau}-conjecture" which is inspired by this connection. The real {\tau}-conjecture states that the number of real roots of a sum of products of sparse univariate polynomials should be polynomially bounded. It implies a superpolynomial lower bound on the size of arithmetic circuits computing the permanent polynomial. In this paper we show that the real {\tau}-conjecture holds true for a restricted class of sums of products of sparse polynomials. This result yields lower bounds for a restricted class of depth-4 circuits: we show that polynomial size circuits from this class cannot compute the permanent, and we also give a deterministic polynomial identity testing algorithm for the same class of circuits.Comment: 16 page

Factoring bivariate lacunary polynomials without heights

We present an algorithm which computes the multilinear factors of bivariate lacunary polynomials. It is based on a new Gap Theorem which allows to test whether a polynomial of the form P(X,X+1) is identically zero in time polynomial in the number of terms of P(X,Y). The algorithm we obtain is more elementary than the one by Kaltofen and Koiran (ISSAC'05) since it relies on the valuation of polynomials of the previous form instead of the height of the coefficients. As a result, it can be used to find some linear factors of bivariate lacunary polynomials over a field of large finite characteristic in probabilistic polynomial time.Comment: 25 pages, 1 appendi

Fast in-place accumulated bilinear formulae

Bilinear operations are ubiquitous in computer science and in particular in computer algebra and symbolic computation. One of the most fundamental arithmetic operation is the multiplication, and when applied to, e.g., polynomials or matrices, its result is a bilinear function of its inputs. In terms of arithmetic operations, many sub-quadratic (resp. sub-cubic) algorithms were developed for these tasks. But these fast algorithms come at the expense of (potentially large) extra temporary space to perform the computation. On the contrary, classical, quadratic (resp. cubic) algorithms, when computed sequentially, quite often require very few (constant) extra registers. Further work then proposed simultaneously ``fast'' and ``in-place'' algorithms, for both matrix and polynomial operations We here propose algorithms to extend the latter line of work for accumulated algorithms arising from a bilinear formula. Indeed one of the main ingredient of the latter line of work is to use the (free) space of the output as intermediate storage. When the result has to be accumulated, i.e., if the output is also part of the input, this free space thus does not even exist. To be able to design accumulated in-place algorithm we thus relax the in-place model to allow algorithms to also modify their input, therefore to use them as intermediate storage for instance, provided that they are restored to their initial state after completion of the procedure. This is in fact a natural possibility in many programming environments. Furthermore, this restoration allows for recursive combinations of such procedures, as the (non concurrent) recursive calls will not mess-up the state of their callers. We propose here a generic technique transforming any bilinear algorithm into an in-place algorithm under this model. This then directly applies to polynomial and matrix multiplication algorithms, including fast ones

The Multivariate Resultant is NP-hard in any Characteristic

The multivariate resultant is a fundamental tool of computational algebraic geometry. It can in particular be used to decide whether a system of n homogeneous equations in n variables is satisfiable (the resultant is a polynomial in the system's coefficients which vanishes if and only if the system is satisfiable). In this paper we present several NP-hardness results for testing whether a multivariate resultant vanishes, or equivalently for deciding whether a square system of homogeneous equations is satisfiable. Our main result is that testing the resultant for zero is NP-hard under deterministic reductions in any characteristic, for systems of low-degree polynomials with coefficients in the ground field (rather than in an extension). We also observe that in characteristic zero, this problem is in the Arthur-Merlin class AM if the generalized Riemann hypothesis holds true. In positive characteristic, the best upper bound remains PSPACE.Comment: 13 page