arXiv subjects

Matthew J. Colbrook

Publications and source records attributed to Matthew J. Colbrook.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Sharp Computational Bounds for Spectral Types of Schrödinger Operators

We prove sharp bounds for determining the spectral-type decomposition of Schrödinger operators in the spirit of Smale's program on the foundations of computation. For explicit one-dimensional self-adjoint Schrödinger operators $H=-{\mathrm d^2}/{\mathrm dx^2}+V$ on $L^2(\mathbb R)$, where $V\in C^\infty(\mathbb R;\mathbb R)$ is given by a finite description of all derivatives and derivative bounds, the pure point and absolutely continuous spectral sets cannot, in general, be recovered by any single limiting procedure. The singular continuous spectral set is strictly harder: it cannot, in general, be recovered by two nested limiting procedures. Analytic constructions of dichotomies realize the lower bounds: Gordon-type repetitions for pure point spectrum, high barriers for absolutely continuous spectrum, and an inverse spectral construction for singular continuous spectrum based on Riesz products, moment-killing perturbations, and a computational Gelfand--Levitan scheme. The finite-description framework also implies corresponding limitations on what can be certified in fixed formal systems (e.g., when used in computer-assisted proofs). Conversely, using wavelet-based certified computation, we prove matching upper bounds for broad classes of self-adjoint differential operators on $\mathbb R^d$ with coefficients of locally bounded variation and quantitative local variation control: two limits suffice for the pure point and absolutely continuous parts, and three for the singular continuous part. This provides a sharp hierarchy for spectral types.

math.NA↗

arXiv2026

A Complete Resolution of Forsythe's Conjecture for Restarted Conjugate Gradients

Forsythe's conjecture, published in 1968, asserts that for each restart length $s$, every exact-arithmetic restarted conjugate-gradient iteration on a real symmetric positive definite problem either terminates or has normalised residuals that converge separately along the even and odd restart subsequences. Apart from the classical steepest-descent case, this asymptotic question remained unresolved in full generality for nearly six decades. We give a complete classification by restart length in the original finite-dimensional setting and identify a sharp threshold. For $s=2$ and $s=3$, every problem either terminates or has convergent even and odd residual directions. For every $s\ge4$, there is a diagonal positive definite counterexample of dimension $s+4$ which never terminates and whose even residual directions do not converge. Together with Akaike's theorem for $s=1$, this shows that the conjectured universal conclusion is true precisely for $s\in\{1,2,3\}$ and false for every $s\ge4$. The positive results follow from a degree-independent double-orthogonality identity and an analysis of the low-degree fixed-point sets. At restart length four, rational interval arithmetic and Sturm sequences certify a transverse Hopf point of the leading vector field of the rescaled squared-weight map. Analytic periodic-orbit and shadowing arguments yield the counterexample at restart length four, and degree elevation extends the construction to every larger restart length. The classification for all $s\ge2$ is also formally verified in Lean.

math.NA↗

arXiv2026

A counterexample to Kenig's conjecture for the Laplace double-layer operator

Layer potentials provide a classical approach to boundary value problems for Laplace's equation on Lipschitz domains. Kenig's 1994 spectral-radius conjecture for the double-layer operator would ensure operator-norm convergence of the associated Neumann series on mean-zero $L^2$ densities when the boundary is connected. We disprove this conjecture by constructing a bounded simply connected planar Lipschitz domain whose double-layer operator on arclength $L^2$ has essential spectral radius strictly greater than $1/2$. More precisely, for every $t>1/2$ sufficiently close to $1/2$, we obtain such a domain with $\pm i t$ in its Fredholm essential spectrum. The construction starts from smooth graphs whose shapes repeat under translation. In the limit of separated scales, refinement makes solutions of adjoint resolvent equations grow with fixed forcing. The graph slopes remain uniformly bounded. A computer-assisted certificate proves this growth through an inequality for Hermitian $2\times2$ matrices. Its strict margin at $- i/2$ persists at nearby spectral parameters. Normalisation and a Floquet transform then give compactly supported densities with small residuals on the full graphs. We insert rescaled segments of successive graphs into one bounded boundary, where these densities form a weakly null sequence of approximate eigenvectors. The same spectral conclusion holds on a single periodic Lipschitz graph. The certificate combines continuous estimates, exact rational arithmetic and rigorous interval enclosures.

math.AP↗