Level-set methods for convex optimization

Convex optimization problems arising in applications often have favorable objective functions and complicated constraints, thereby precluding first-order methods from being immediately applicable. We describe an approach that exchanges the roles of the objective and constraint functions, and instead approximately solves a sequence of parametric level-set problems. A zero-finding procedure, based on inexact function evaluations and … Read more

On the Behavior of the Homogeneous Self-Dual Model for Conic Convex Optimization

There is a natural norm associated with a starting point of the homogeneous self-dual (HSD) embedding model for conic convex optimization. In this norm two measures of the HSD model’s behavior are precisely controlled independent of the problem instance: (i) the sizes of epsilon-optimal solutions, and (ii) the maximum distance of epsilon-optimal solutions to the … Read more

On the Primal-Dual Geometry of Level Sets in Linear and Conic Optimization

For a conic optimization problem: minimize cx subject to Ax=b, x \in C, we present a geometric relationship between the maximum norms of the level sets of the primal and the inscribed sizes of the level sets of the dual (or the other way around). Citation MIT Operations Research Center Working Paper Article Download View … Read more