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Liang Xu

Publications and source records attributed to Liang Xu.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

ReWorld: Multi-Dimensional Reward Modeling for Embodied World Models

Recently, video-based world models that learn to simulate the dynamics have gained increasing attention in robot learning. However, current approaches primarily emphasize visual generative quality while overlooking physical fidelity, dynamic consistency, and task logic, especially for contact-rich manipulation tasks, which limits their applicability to downstream tasks. To this end, we introduce ReWorld, a framework aimed to employ reinforcement learning to align the video-based embodied world models with physical realism, task completion capability, embodiment plausibility and visual quality. Specifically, we first construct a large-scale (~235K) video preference dataset and employ it to train a hierarchical reward model designed to capture multi-dimensional reward consistent with human preferences. We further propose a practical alignment algorithm that post-trains flow-based world models using this reward through a computationally efficient PPO-style algorithm. Comprehensive experiments and theoretical analysis demonstrate that ReWorld significantly improves the physical fidelity, logical coherence, embodiment and visual quality of generated rollouts, outperforming previous methods.

cs.RO↗

Quantum tunnelling-integrated optoplasmonic nanotrap enables conductance visualisation of individual proteins

Biological electron transfer (ET) relies on quantum mechanical tunnelling through a dynamically folded protein. Yet, the spatiotemporal coupling between structural fluctuations and electron flux remains poorly understood, largely due to limitations in existing experimental techniques, such as ensemble averaging and non-physiological operating conditions. Here, we introduce a quantum tunnelling-integrated optoplasmonic nanotrap (QTOP-trap), an optoelectronic platform that combines plasmonic optical trapping with real-time quantum tunnelling measurements. This label-free approach enables single-molecule resolution of protein conductance in physiological electrolytes, achieving sub-3 nm spatial precision and 10-μs temporal resolution. By synchronising optoelectronic measurements, QTOP-trap resolves protein-specific conductance signatures and directly correlates tertiary structure dynamics with conductance using a "protein switch" strategy. This methodology establishes a universal framework for dissecting non-equilibrium ET mechanisms in individual conformational-active proteins, with broad implications for bioenergetics research and biomimetic quantum device design.

physics.bio-ph↗

Trajectory Optimization for Unknown Maneuvering Target Tracking with Bearing-only Measurements

This paper studies trajectory optimization of an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) to track an unknown maneuvering target both in the 2D and 3D space. Due to the restrictions on sensing capabilities in the underwater scenario, the AUV is limited to collecting only bearing measurements to the target. A framework called {\it GP-based Bearing-only Tracking (GBT)} is proposed with integration of online learning and planning. First, a Gaussian process learning method is proposed for the AUV to handle unknown target motion, wherein pseudo linear transformation of bearing measurements is introduced to address nonlinearity of bearings. A probabilistic bearing-data-dependent bound on tracking error is then rigorously established. Based on it, optimal desired bearings that can reduce tracking uncertainty are obtained analytically. Finally, the trajectory optimization problem is formulated and transformed into an easily solved one with parametric transformation. Numerical examples and comparison with existing methods verify the feasibility and superior performance of our proposed framework.

eess.SY↗

Supermassive Black Hole and Broad-line Region in NGC 5548: 2023 Reverberation Mapping Results

We present the results of the 2023 spectroscopic reverberation mapping (RM) campaign for active galactic nuclei (AGN) of NGC 5548, continuing our long-term monitoring program. Using the Lijiang 2.4-meter telescope, we obtained 74 spectra with a median cadence of 1.9 days. Through detailed spectral decomposition, we measured the light curves of the optical continuum at 5100~Å and the broad He~{\sc ii}, He~{\sc i}, H$γ$, and H$β$ emission lines. The time lags of these lines relative to the continuum are measured as $1.3^{+1.6}_{-0.6}$, $2.3^{+1.5}_{-2.1}$, $10.0^{+2.0}_{-1.8}$, and $15.6^{+2.6}_{-2.9}$ days (rest-frame), respectively. Velocity-resolved lag profiles for H$γ$ and H$β$ were constructed. Combined with data from previous seasons (2015$-$2021), we find that the radial ionization stratification of the broad-line region (BLR) is stable; the average virial mass of the supermassive black hole in NGC~5548 is $(2.6\pm1.1)\times 10^{8}M_{\odot}$, consistent with the $M_{\rm BH}-σ_*$ relation; the broad He~{\sc ii} line exhibits the largest responsivity, followed by broad He~{\sc i} (or H$γ$) and H$β$ lines; the BLR kinematics show significant temporal evolution, transitioning from virialized motions to signatures of inflow and outflow. Furthermore, an analysis of 35 years of historical data confirms a 3.5-year time lag between variations in the optical luminosity and the BLR radius, potentially implicating the role of radiation pressure or dynamical structure changes in the inner accretion disk. Long-term campaign demonstrates that the BLR in NGC 5548 is a robust yet dynamically evolving entity, providing crucial insights into AGN structure and accretion physics.

astro-ph.GA↗

Benchmark for two-dimensional large scale coherent structures in partially magnetized ExB plasmas -- Community collaboration & lessons learned

Low-temperature plasmas are essential to both fundamental scientific research and critical industrial applications. As in many areas of science, numerical simulations have become a vital tool for uncovering new physical phenomena and guiding technological development. Code benchmarking remains crucial for verifying implementations and evaluating performance. This work continues the Landmark benchmark initiative, a series specifically designed to support the verification of low-temperature plasma codes. In this study, seventeen simulation codes from a collaborative community of nineteen international institutions modeled a partially magnetized ExB Penning discharge. The emergence of large scale coherent structures, or rotating plasma spokes, endows this configuration with an enormous range of time scales, making it particularly challenging to simulate. The codes showed excellent agreement on the rotation frequency of the spoke as well as key plasma properties, including time-averaged ion density, plasma potential, and electron temperature profiles. Achieving this level of agreement came with challenges, and we share lessons learned on how to conduct future benchmarking campaigns. Comparing code implementations, computational hardware, and simulation runtimes also revealed interesting trends, which are summarized with the aim of guiding future plasma simulation software development.

physics.plasm-ph↗

Intermediate Domain-guided Adaptation for Unsupervised Chorioallantoic Membrane Vessel Segmentation

The chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) model is a widely used in vivo platform for studying angiogenesis, especially in relation to tumor growth, drug delivery, and vascular biology.Since the topology and morphology of developing blood vessels is a key evaluation metric, accurate vessel segmentation is essential for quantitative analysis of angiogenesis. However, manual segmentation is extremely time-consuming, labor-intensive, and prone to inconsistency due to its subjective nature. Moreover, research on CAM vessel segmentation algorithms remains limited, and the lack of public datasets contributes to poor prediction performance. To address these challenges, we propose an innovative Intermediate Domain-guided Adaptation (IDA) method, which utilizes the similarity between CAM images and retinal images, along with existing public retinal datasets, to perform unsupervised training on CAM images. Specifically, we introduce a Multi-Resolution Asymmetric Translation (MRAT) strategy to generate intermediate images to promote image-level interaction. Then, an Intermediate Domain-guided Contrastive Learning (IDCL) module is developed to disentangle cross-domain feature representations. This method overcomes the limitations of existing unsupervised domain adaptation (UDA) approaches, which primarily concentrate on directly source-target alignment while neglecting intermediate domain information. Notably, we create the first CAM dataset to validate the proposed algorithm. Extensive experiments on this dataset show that our method outperforms compared approaches. Moreover, it achieves superior performance in UDA tasks across retinal datasets, highlighting its strong generalization capability. The CAM dataset and source codes are available at https://github.com/Light-47/IDA.

eess.IV↗

TeleOpBench: A Simulator-Centric Benchmark for Dual-Arm Dexterous Teleoperation

Teleoperation is a cornerstone of embodied-robot learning, and bimanual dexterous teleoperation in particular provides rich demonstrations that are difficult to obtain with fully autonomous systems. While recent studies have proposed diverse hardware pipelines-ranging from inertial motion-capture gloves to exoskeletons and vision-based interfaces-there is still no unified benchmark that enables fair, reproducible comparison of these systems. In this paper, we introduce TeleOpBench, a simulator-centric benchmark tailored to bimanual dexterous teleoperation. TeleOpBench contains 30 high-fidelity task environments that span pick-and-place, tool use, and collaborative manipulation, covering a broad spectrum of kinematic and force-interaction difficulty. Within this benchmark we implement four representative teleoperation modalities-(i) MoCap, (ii) VR device, (iii) arm-hand exoskeletons, and (iv) monocular vision tracking-and evaluate them with a common protocol and metric suite. To validate that performance in simulation is predictive of real-world behavior, we conduct mirrored experiments on a physical dual-arm platform equipped with two 6-DoF dexterous hands. Across 10 held-out tasks we observe a strong correlation between simulator and hardware performance, confirming the external validity of TeleOpBench. TeleOpBench establishes a common yardstick for teleoperation research and provides an extensible platform for future algorithmic and hardware innovation. Codes is now available at https://github.com/cyjdlhy/TeleOpBench .

cs.RO↗

Safety Meets Speed: Accelerated Neural MPC with Safety Guarantees and No Retraining

While Model Predictive Control (MPC) enforces safety via constraints, its real-time execution can exceed embedded compute budgets. We propose a Barrier-integrated Adaptive Neural Model Predictive Control (BAN-MPC) framework that synergizes neural networks' fast computation with MPC's constraint-handling capability. To ensure strict safety, we replace traditional Euclidean distance with Control Barrier Functions (CBFs) for collision avoidance. We integrate an offline-learned neural value function into the optimization objective of a Short-horizon MPC, substantially reducing online computational complexity. Additionally, we use a second neural network to learn the sensitivity of the value function to system parameters, and adaptively adjust the neural value function based on this neural sensitivity when model parameters change, eliminating the need for retraining and reducing offline computation costs. The hardware in-the-loop (HIL) experiments on Jetson Nano show that BAN-MPC solves 200 times faster than traditional MPC, enabling collision-free navigation with control error below 5\% under model parameter variations within 15\%, making it an effective embedded MPC alternative.

cs.RO↗

Inverse Weak measurement in SERF magnetometer

Weak measurement techniques have been extensively applied in the field of quantum precision measurement to detect ultra-small signals due to the amplification effect. In this work, we propose an optical detection system for a spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) magnetometer based on the inverse weak measurement (IWM) framework. By using the spatial pattern of a probe laser as the measurement pointer, we successfully detect ultra-weak magnetic fields. In our model, the spatial pattern of the probe laser is weakly coupled to its polarization, which is sensitive to external magnetic fields. Through post-selection on the optical polarization, the ultra-small magnetic field is significantly amplified with the amplification factor inversely proportional to the coupling strength, as reflected in the measured displacement of the final spatial pattern. By analysing the response curve of the probe laser displacement to the magnetic field, we identify the point of maximum sensitivity, achieving a magnetic field sensitivity of 182.8 fT/Hz1/2. Furthermore, in the IWM scheme, the detected signals depend only on the internal degrees of freedom of the probe laser, making the system robust against the fluctuations in laser power. To demonstrate this advantage, we compute the Allan standard deviation of the output signals for both conventional and IWM detection methods. The results indicate that the IWM-based method improves stability of detection by one to two orders of magnitude. This work presents a novel detection approach that integrates weak measurement techniques, offering a significant enhancement in the performance of SERF magnetometers.

physics.ins-det↗

Robust Convolution Neural ODEs via Contractivity-promoting regularization

Neural networks can be fragile to input noise and adversarial attacks. In this work, we consider Convolutional Neural Ordinary Differential Equations (NODEs), a family of continuous-depth neural networks represented by dynamical systems, and propose to use contraction theory to improve their robustness. For a contractive dynamical system two trajectories starting from different initial conditions converge to each other exponentially fast. Contractive Convolutional NODEs can enjoy increased robustness as slight perturbations of the features do not cause a significant change in the output. Contractivity can be induced during training by using a regularization term involving the Jacobian of the system dynamics. To reduce the computational burden, we show that it can also be promoted using carefully selected weight regularization terms for a class of NODEs with slope-restricted activation functions. The performance of the proposed regularizers is illustrated through benchmark image classification tasks on MNIST and FashionMNIST datasets, where images are corrupted by different kinds of noise and attacks.

cs.LG↗

GLM-4.5: Agentic, Reasoning, and Coding (ARC) Foundation Models

We present GLM-4.5, an open-source Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) large language model with 355B total parameters and 32B activated parameters, featuring a hybrid reasoning method that supports both thinking and direct response modes. Through multi-stage training on 23T tokens and comprehensive post-training with expert model iteration and reinforcement learning, GLM-4.5 achieves strong performance across agentic, reasoning, and coding (ARC) tasks, scoring 70.1% on TAU-Bench, 91.0% on AIME 24, and 64.2% on SWE-bench Verified. With much fewer parameters than several competitors, GLM-4.5 ranks 3rd overall among all evaluated models and 2nd on agentic benchmarks. We release both GLM-4.5 (355B parameters) and a compact version, GLM-4.5-Air (106B parameters), to advance research in reasoning and agentic AI systems. Code, models, and more information are available at https://github.com/zai-org/GLM-4.5.

cs.CL↗

Perceiving and Acting in First-Person: A Dataset and Benchmark for Egocentric Human-Object-Human Interactions

Learning action models from real-world human-centric interaction datasets is important towards building general-purpose intelligent assistants with efficiency. However, most existing datasets only offer specialist interaction category and ignore that AI assistants perceive and act based on first-person acquisition. We urge that both the generalist interaction knowledge and egocentric modality are indispensable. In this paper, we embed the manual-assisted task into a vision-language-action framework, where the assistant provides services to the instructor following egocentric vision and commands. With our hybrid RGB-MoCap system, pairs of assistants and instructors engage with multiple objects and the scene following GPT-generated scripts. Under this setting, we accomplish InterVLA, the first large-scale human-object-human interaction dataset with 11.4 hours and 1.2M frames of multimodal data, spanning 2 egocentric and 5 exocentric videos, accurate human/object motions and verbal commands. Furthermore, we establish novel benchmarks on egocentric human motion estimation, interaction synthesis, and interaction prediction with comprehensive analysis. We believe that our InterVLA testbed and the benchmarks will foster future works on building AI agents in the physical world.

cs.CV↗

Light-IF: Endowing LLMs with Generalizable Reasoning via Preview and Self-Checking for Complex Instruction Following

While advancements in the reasoning abilities of LLMs have significantly enhanced their performance in solving mathematical problems, coding tasks, and general puzzles, their effectiveness in accurately adhering to instructions remains inconsistent, particularly with more complex directives. Our investigation identifies lazy reasoning during the thinking stage as the primary factor contributing to poor instruction adherence. To mitigate this issue, we propose a comprehensive framework designed to enable rigorous reasoning processes involving preview and self-checking, essential for satisfying strict instruction constraints. Specifically, we first generate instructions with complex constraints and apply a filtering process to obtain valid prompts, resulting in three distinct prompt datasets categorized as hard, easy, and pass. Then, we employ rejection sampling on the pass prompts to curate a small yet high-quality dataset, enabling a cold-start initialization of the model and facilitating its adaptation to effective reasoning patterns. Subsequently, we employ an entropy-preserving supervised fine-tuning (Entropy-SFT) strategy coupled with token-wise entropy-adaptive (TEA-RL) reinforcement learning guided by rule-based dense rewards. This approach encourages the model to transform its reasoning mechanism, ultimately fostering generalizable reasoning abilities that encompass preview and self-checking. Extensive experiments conducted on instruction-following benchmarks demonstrate remarkable performance improvements across various model scales. Notably, our Light-IF-32B model surpasses both larger open-source models such as DeepSeek-R1 and closed-source models like Doubao-1.6.

cs.CL↗

Distributed satellite information networks: Architecture, enabling technologies, and trends

Driven by the vision of ubiquitous connectivity and wireless intelligence, the evolution of ultra-dense constellation-based satellite-integrated Internet is underway, now taking preliminary shape. Nevertheless, the entrenched institutional silos and limited, nonrenewable heterogeneous network resources leave current satellite systems struggling to accommodate the escalating demands of next-generation intelligent applications. In this context, the distributed satellite information networks (DSIN), exemplified by the cohesive clustered satellites system, have emerged as an innovative architecture, bridging information gaps across diverse satellite systems, such as communication, navigation, and remote sensing, and establishing a unified, open information network paradigm to support resilient space information services. This survey first provides a profound discussion about innovative network architectures of DSIN, encompassing distributed regenerative satellite network architecture, distributed satellite computing network architecture, and reconfigurable satellite formation flying, to enable flexible and scalable communication, computing and control. The DSIN faces challenges from network heterogeneity, unpredictable channel dynamics, sparse resources, and decentralized collaboration frameworks. To address these issues, a series of enabling technologies is identified, including channel modeling and estimation, cloud-native distributed MIMO cooperation, grant-free massive access, network routing, and the proper combination of all these diversity techniques. Furthermore, to heighten the overall resource efficiency, the cross-layer optimization techniques are further developed to meet upper-layer deterministic, adaptive and secure information services requirements. In addition, emerging research directions and new opportunities are highlighted on the way to achieving the DSIN vision.

cs.IT↗

Learning Control for LQR with Unknown Packet Loss Rate Using Finite Channel Samples

This paper studies the linear quadratic regulator (LQR) problem over an unknown Bernoulli packet loss channel. The unknown loss rate is estimated using finite channel samples and a certainty-equivalence (CE) optimal controller is then designed by treating the estimate as the true rate. The stabilizing capability and sub-optimality of the CE controller critically depend on the estimation error of loss rate. For discrete-time linear systems, we provide a stability threshold for the estimation error to ensure closed-loop stability, and analytically quantify the sub-optimality in terms of the estimation error and the difference in modified Riccati equations. Next, we derive the upper bound on sample complexity for the CE controller to be stabilizing. Tailored results with less conservatism are delivered for scalar systems and n-dimensional systems with invertible input matrix. Moreover, we establish a sufficient condition, independent of the unknown loss rate, to verify whether the CE controller is stabilizing in a probabilistic sense. Finally, numerical examples are used to validate our results.

eess.SY↗

BRIGHT-VO: Brightness-Guided Hybrid Transformer for Visual Odometry with Multi-modality Refinement Module

Visual odometry (VO) plays a crucial role in autonomous driving, robotic navigation, and other related tasks by estimating the position and orientation of a camera based on visual input. Significant progress has been made in data-driven VO methods, particularly those leveraging deep learning techniques to extract image features and estimate camera poses. However, these methods often struggle in low-light conditions because of the reduced visibility of features and the increased difficulty of matching keypoints. To address this limitation, we introduce BrightVO, a novel VO model based on Transformer architecture, which not only performs front-end visual feature extraction, but also incorporates a multi-modality refinement module in the back-end that integrates Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) data. Using pose graph optimization, this module iteratively refines pose estimates to reduce errors and improve both accuracy and robustness. Furthermore, we create a synthetic low-light dataset, KiC4R, which includes a variety of lighting conditions to facilitate the training and evaluation of VO frameworks in challenging environments. Experimental results demonstrate that BrightVO achieves state-of-the-art performance on both the KiC4R dataset and the KITTI benchmarks. Specifically, it provides an average improvement of 20% in pose estimation accuracy in normal outdoor environments and 259% in low-light conditions, outperforming existing methods. For widespread use and further development, the research work is fully open-source at https://github.com/Anastasiawd/BrightVO.

cs.CV↗

Hybrid Physics-ML Modeling for Marine Vehicle Maneuvering Motions in the Presence of Environmental Disturbances

A hybrid physics-machine learning modeling framework is proposed for the surface vehicles' maneuvering motions to address the modeling capability and stability in the presence of environmental disturbances. From a deep learning perspective, the framework is based on a variant version of residual networks with additional feature extraction. Initially, an imperfect physical model is derived and identified to capture the fundamental hydrodynamic characteristics of marine vehicles. This model is then integrated with a feedforward network through a residual block. Additionally, feature extraction from trigonometric transformations is employed in the machine learning component to account for the periodic influence of currents and waves. The proposed method is evaluated using real navigational data from the 'JH7500' unmanned surface vehicle. The results demonstrate the robust generalizability and accurate long-term prediction capabilities of the nonlinear dynamic model in specific environmental conditions. This approach has the potential to be extended and applied to develop a comprehensive high-fidelity simulator.

cs.RO↗

Label-free Prediction of Vascular Connectivity in Perfused Microvascular Networks in vitro

Continuous monitoring and in-situ assessment of microvascular connectivity have significant implications for culturing vascularized organoids and optimizing the therapeutic strategies. However, commonly used methods for vascular connectivity assessment heavily rely on fluorescent labels that may either raise biocompatibility concerns or interrupt the normal cell growth process. To address this issue, a Vessel Connectivity Network (VC-Net) was developed for label-free assessment of vascular connectivity. To validate the VC-Net, microvascular networks (MVNs) were cultured in vitro and their microscopic images were acquired at different culturing conditions as a training dataset. The VC-Net employs a Vessel Queue Contrastive Learning (VQCL) method and a class imbalance algorithm to address the issues of limited sample size, indistinctive class features and imbalanced class distribution in the dataset. The VC-Net successfully evaluated the vascular connectivity with no significant deviation from that by fluorescence imaging. In addition, the proposed VC-Net successfully differentiated the connectivity characteristics between normal and tumor-related MVNs. In comparison with those cultured in the regular microenvironment, the averaged connectivity of MVNs cultured in the tumor-related microenvironment decreased by 30.8%, whereas the non-connected area increased by 37.3%. This study provides a new avenue for label-free and continuous assessment of organoid or tumor vascularization in vitro.

eess.IV↗