Paolo Buttà

Vertex intrinsic fitness: How to produce arbitrary scale-free networks

We study a recent model of random networks based on the presence of an intrinsic character of the vertices called fitness. The vertex fitnesses are drawn from a given probability distribution density. The edges between pairs of vertices are drawn according to a linking probability function depending on the fitnesses of the two vertices involved. We study here different choices for the probability distribution densities and the linking functions. We find that, irrespective of the particular choices, the generation of scale-free networks is straightforward. We then derive the general conditions under which scale-free behavior appears. This model could then represent a possible explanation for the ubiquity and robustness of such structures.

On the propagation of a perturbation in an anharmonic system

We give a not trivial upper bound on the velocity of disturbances in an infinitely extended anharmonic system at thermal equilibrium. The proof is achieved by combining a control on the non equilibrium dynamics with an explicit use of the state invariance with respect to the time evolution.

Soft and Hard Wall in a Stochastic Reaction Diffusion Equation

We consider a stochastically perturbed reaction diffusion equation in a bounded interval, with boundary conditions imposing the two stable phases at the endpoints. We investigate the asymptotic behavior of the front separating the two stable phases, as the intensity of the noise vanishes and the size of the interval diverges. In particular, we prove that, in a suitable scaling limit, the front evolves according to a one-dimensional diffusion process with a non-linear drift accounting for a “soft” repulsion from the boundary. We finally show how a “hard” repulsion can be obtained by an extra diffusive scaling.

On the Validity of an Einstein Relation in Models of Interface Dynamics

We consider models of interface dynamics derived from Ising systems with Kac interactions and we prove the validity of the “Einstein relation”θ=μσ, whereθ is the proportionality coefficient in the motion by curvature,μ is the interface mobility, andσ is the surface tension.

Computing the Structured Pseudospectrum of a Toeplitz Matrix and Its Extreme Points

The computation of the structured pseudospectral abscissa and radius (with respect to the Frobenius norm) of a Toeplitz matrix is discussed and two algorithms based on a low-rank property to construct extremal perturbations are presented. The algorithms are inspired by those considered in [N. Guglielmi and M. Overton, SIAM J. Matrix Anal. Appl., 32 (2011), pp. 1166--1192] for the unstructured case, but their extension to structured pseudospectra and analysis presents several difficulties. Natural generalizations of the algorithms, allowing us to draw significant sections of the structured pseudospectra in proximity of extremal points, are also discussed. Since no algorithms are available in the literature to draw such structured pseudospectra, the approach we present seems promising to extend existing software tools (Eigtool, Seigtool) to structured pseudospectra representation for Toeplitz matrices. We discuss local convergence properties of the algorithms and show some applications to a few illustrative...

Hydrodynamic Limit of Brownian Particles Interacting with Short- and Long-Range Forces

We investigate the time evolution of a model system of interacting particles moving in a d-dimensional torus. The microscopic dynamics is first order in time with velocities set equal to the negative gradient of a potential energy term Ψ plus independent Brownian motions: Ψ is the sum of pair potentials, V(r)+γdJ(γr); the second term has the form of a Kac potential with inverse range γ. Using diffusive hydrodynamic scaling (spatial scale γ−1, temporal scale γ−2) we obtain, in the limit γ↓0, a diffusive-type integrodifferential equation describing the time evolution of the macroscopic density profile.

A SIMPLE HAMILTONIAN MODEL OF RUNAWAY PARTICLE WITH SINGULAR INTERACTION

We consider a Hamiltonian system given by a charged particle under the action of a constant electric field and interacting with a medium, which is described as a Vlasov fluid. We assume that the action of the charged particle on the fluid is negligible and that the latter has one-dimensional symmetry. We prove that if the singularity of the particle/medium interaction is integrable and the electric field intensity is large enough, then the particle escapes to infinity with a quasi-uniformly accelerated motion. A key tool in the proof is a new estimate on the growth in time of the fluid particle velocity for one-dimensional Vlasov fluids with bounded interactions.

Slow Motion and Metastability for a Nonlocal Evolution Equation

In this paper we consider a nonlocal evolution equation in one dimension, which describes the dynamics of a ferromagnetic system in the mean field approximation. In the presence of a small magnetic field, it admits two stationary and homogeneous solutions, representing the stable and metastable phases of the physical system. We prove the existence of an invariant, one dimensional manifold connecting the stable and metastable phases. This is the unstable manifold of a distinguished, spatially nonhomogeneous, stationary solution, called the critical droplet.(4, 10) We show that the points on the manifold are droplets longer or shorter than the critical one, and that their motion is very slow in agreement with the theory of metastable patterns. We also obtain a new proof of the existence of the critical droplet, which is supplied with a local uniqueness result.

Front fluctuations for the stochastic Cahn–Hilliard equation

We consider the Cahn-Hilliard equation in one space dimension, perturbed by the derivative of a space and time white noise of intensity

On the Stability Problem of Stationary Solutions for the Euler Equation on a 2-Dimensional Torus

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