An efficient dimer method with preconditioning and linesearch

The dimer method is a Hessian-free algorithm for computing saddle points. We augment the method with a linesearch mechanism for automatic step size selection as well as preconditioning capabilities. We prove local linear convergence. A series of numerical tests demonstrate significant performance gains. Citation http://arxiv.org/abs/1407.2817 Article Download View An efficient dimer method with preconditioning and … Read more

Justification of Constrained Game Equilibrium Models

We consider an extension of a noncooperative game where players have joint binding constraints. In this model, the constrained equilibrium can not be implemented within the same noncooperative framework and requires some other additional regulation procedures. We consider several approaches to resolution of this problem. In particular, a share allocation method is presented and substantiated. … Read more

Convex Quadratic Relaxations for Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programs in Power Systems

This paper presents a set of new convex quadratic relaxations for nonlinear and mixed-integer nonlinear programs arising in power systems. The considered models are motivated by hybrid discrete/continuous applications where existing approximations do not provide optimality guarantees. The new relaxations offer computational efficiency along with minimal optimality gaps, providing an interesting alternative to state-of-the-art semi-definite … Read more

Fabrication-Adaptive Optimization, with an Application to Photonic Crystal Design

It is often the case that the computed optimal solution of an optimization problem cannot be implemented directly, irrespective of data accuracy, due to either (i) technological limitations (such as physical tolerances of machines or processes), (ii) the deliberate simplification of a model to keep it tractable (by ignoring certain types of constraints that pose … Read more

Trace-Penalty Minimization for Large-scale Eigenspace Computation

The Rayleigh-Ritz (RR) procedure, including orthogonalization, constitutes a major bottleneck in computing relatively high dimensional eigenspaces of large sparse matrices. Although operations involved in RR steps can be parallelized to a certain level, their parallel scalability, which is limited by some inherent sequential steps, is lower than dense matrix-matrix multiplications. The primary motivation of this … Read more

On RIC bounds of Compressed Sensing Matrices for Approximating Sparse Solutions Using Lq Quasi Norms

This paper follows the recent discussion on the sparse solution recovery with quasi-norms Lq; q\in(0,1) when the sensing matrix possesses a Restricted Isometry Constant \delta_{2k} (RIC). Our key tool is an improvement on a version of “the converse of a generalized Cauchy-Schwarz inequality” extended to the setting of quasi-norm. We show that, if \delta_{2k}\le 1/2, … Read more

Linearizing the Method of Conjugate Gradients

The method of conjugate gradients (CG) is widely used for the iterative solution of large sparse systems of equations $Ax=b$, where $A\in\Re^{n\times n}$ is symmetric positive definite. Let $x_k$ denote the $k$–th iterate of CG. In this paper we obtain an expression for $J_k$, the Jacobian matrix of $x_k$ with respect to $b$. We use … Read more

Effective Strategies to Teach Operations Research to Non-Mathematics Majors

Operations Research (OR) is the discipline of applying advanced analytical methods to help make better decisions (Horner (2003)). OR is characterized by its broad applicability and its interdisciplinary nature. Currently, in addition to mathematics, many other undergraduate programs such as management sciences, business, economics, electrical engineering, civil engineering, chemical engineering, and related fields, have incorporated … Read more

Reweighted $\ell_1hBcMinimization for Sparse Solutions to Underdetermined Linear Systems

Numerical experiments have indicated that the reweighted $\ell_1$-minimization performs exceptionally well in locating sparse solutions of underdetermined linear systems of equations. Thus it is important to carry out a further investigation of this class of methods. In this paper, we point out that reweighted $\ell_1$-methods are intrinsically associated with the minimization of the so-called merit … Read more

Global Search Strategies for Solving Multilinear Least-squares Problems

The multilinear least-squares (MLLS) problem is an extension of the linear least-squares problem. The difference is that a multilinear operator is used in place of a matrix-vector product. The MLLS is typically a large-scale problem characterized by a large number of local minimizers. It originates, for instance, from the design of filter networks. We present … Read more