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In this work we study two, seemingly unrelated, notions. Locally decodable codes (LDCs) are codes that allow the recovery of each message bit from a constant number of entries of the codeword. Polynomial identity testing (PIT) is one of the fundamental problems of algebraic complexity: we are given a circuit computing a multivariate polynomial and we have to determine whether the polynomial is identically zero. We improve known results on LDCs and on polynomial identity testing and show a relation between the two notions. In particular we obtain the following results: (1) We show that if E: F n ↦ → F m is a linear LDC with two queries, then m = exp(Ω(n)). Previously this was known only for fields of size ≪ 2 n [O. Goldreich et al., Comput. Complexity, 15 (2006), pp. 263–296]. (2) We show that from every depth 3 arithmetic circuit (ΣΠΣ circuit), C, with a bounded (constant) top fan-in that computes the zero polynomial, one can construct an LDC. More formally, assume that C is minimal (no subset of the multiplication gates sums to zero) and simple (no linear function appears in all the multiplication gates). Denote by d the degree of the polynomial computed by C and by r the rank of the linear functions appearing in C. Then we can construct a linear LDC with two queries that encodes messages of length r/polylog(d) by codewords of length O(d). (3) We prove a structural theorem for ΣΠΣ circuits, with a bounded top fan-in, that

Abstract — We study ΣΠΣ(k) circuits, i.e., depth three arithmetic circuits with top fanin k. We give the first deterministic polynomial time blackbox identity test for ΣΠΣ(k) circuits over the field Q of rational numbers, thus resolving a question posed by Klivans and Spielman (STOC 2001). Our main technical result is a structural theorem for ΣΠΣ(k) circuits that compute the zero polynomial. In particular we show that if a ΣΠΣ(k) circuit C = ∑ i∈[k] Ai

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Abstract — We consider the problem of minimizing the resources used for network coding while achieving the desired throughput in a multicast scenario. Since this problem is NPhard, we seek a method for quickly finding sufficiently good solutions. To this end, we take an evolutionary approach based on a genetic algorithm that works in an algebraic framework, combined with randomized polynomial identity testing methods. We demonstrate the advantage of the proposed method over other existing minimal approaches by carrying out simulations on a number of different sets of network topologies. We also show, as the more important benefit of the proposed approach, its applicability to a variety of generalized optimization scenarios. I.

In this paper we give the first deterministic polynomial time algorithm for testing whether a diagonal depth-3 circuit C(x1,..., xn) (i.e. C is a sum of powers of linear functions) is zero. We also prove an exponential lower bound showing that such a circuit will compute determinant or permanent only if there are exponentially many linear functions. Our techniques generalize to the following new results: 1. Suppose we are given a depth-3 circuit (over any field F) of the form: C(x1,..., xn):= k� i=1 ℓ ei,1 i,1 · · · ℓei,s i,s where, the ℓi,j’s are linear functions living in F[x1,..., xn]. We can test whether C is zero deterministically in poly (nk, max{(1 + ei,1) · · · (1 + ei,s) | 1 � i � k}) field operations. This immediately gives a deterministic poly(nk2 d) time identity test for general depth-3 circuits of degree d. 2. We prove that if the above circuit C(x1,..., xn) computes the determinant � (or permanent) of an m × m formal matrix with a “small ” s = o then � m log m k = 2 Ω(m). Our lower bounds work for all fields F. (Previous exponential lower bounds for depth-3 only work for nonzero characteristic.) 3. We present applications of our ideas to depth-4 circuits and an exponentially faster identity test for homogeneous diagonal circuits (deterministically in poly(n k log(d)) field operations over finite fields).

In this paper we show that lower bounds for bounded depth arithmetic circuits imply derandomization of polynomial identity testing for bounded depth arithmetic circuits. More formally, if there exists an explicit polynomial f(x1,..., xm) that cannot be computed by a depth d arithmetic circuit of small size then there exists an efficient deterministic algorithm to test whether a given depth d − 8 circuit is identically zero or not (assuming the individual degrees of the tested circuit are not too high). In particular, if we are guaranteed that the tested circuit computes a multilinear polynomial then we can perform the identity test efficiently. To the best of our knowledge this is the first hardness-randomness tradeoff for bounded depth arithmetic circuits. The above results are obtained using the the arithmetic Nisan-Wigderson generator of [KI04] together with a new theorem on bounded depth circuits, which is the main technical contribution of our work. This theorem deals with polynomial equations of the form P (x1,..., xn, y) ≡ 0 and shows that if P has a circuit of depth d and size s and if the polynomial f(x1,..., xn) satisfies P (x1,..., xn, f(x1,..., xn)) ≡ 0 then f has a circuit of depth d + 3 and size O(s · r + m r), where m is the total degree of f and r is the degree of y in P.

In this paper we consider the problem of determining whether an unknown arithmetic circuit, for which we have oracle access, computes the identically zero polynomial. This problem is known as the black-box polynomial identity testing (PIT) problem. Our focus is on polynomials that can be written in the form f(¯x) = ∑ k i=1 hi(¯x) · gi(¯x), where each hi is a polynomial that depends on only ρ linear functions, and each gi is a product of linear functions (when hi = 1, for each i, then we get the class of depth-3 circuits with k multiplication gates, also known as ΣΠΣ(k) circuits, but the general case is much richer). When maxi(deg(hi · gi)) = d we say that f is computable by a ΣΠΣ(k, d, ρ) circuit. We obtain the following results. 1. A deterministic black-box identity testing algorithm for ΣΠΣ(k, d, ρ) circuits that runs in quasi-polynomial time (for ρ = polylog(n + d)). In particular this gives the first black-box quasi-polynomial time PIT algorithm for depth-3 circuits with k multiplication gates. 2. A deterministic black-box identity testing algorithm for read-k ΣΠΣ circuits (depth-3 circuits where each variable appears at most k times) that runs in time n 2O(k2). In particular

Abstract—We show that the rank of a depth-3 circuit (over any field) that is simple, minimal and zero is at most O(k 3 log d). The previous best rank bound known was 2 O(k2) (log d) k−2 by Dvir and Shpilka (STOC 2005). This almost resolves the rank question first posed by Dvir and Shpilka (as we also provide a simple and minimal identity of rank Ω(k log d)). Our rank bound significantly improves (dependence on k exponentially reduced) the best known deterministic blackbox identity tests for depth-3 circuits by Karnin and Shpilka (CCC 2008). Our techniques also shed light on the factorization pattern of nonzero depth-3 circuits, most strikingly: the rank of linear factors of a simple, minimal and nonzero depth-3 circuit (over any field) is at most O(k 3 log d). The novel feature of this work is a new notion of maps between sets of linear forms, called ideal matchings, used to study depth-3 circuits. We prove interesting structural results about depth-3 identities using these techniques. We believe that these can lead to the goal of a deterministic polynomial time identity test for these circuits. I.

Abstract. We study the problem of identity testing for depth-3 circuits of top fanin k and degree d (called ΣΠΣ(k, d) identities). We give a new structure theorem for such identities. A direct application of our theorem improves the known deterministic d kO(k) time black-box identity test over rationals (Kayal & Saraf, FOCS 2009) to one that takes d O(k2)-time. Our structure theorem essentially says that the number of independent variables in a real depth-3 identity is very small. This theorem settles affirmatively the stronger rank conjectures posed by Dvir & Shpilka (STOC 2005) and Kayal & Saraf (FOCS 2009). Our techniques provide a unified framework that actually beats all known rank bounds and hence gives the best running time (for every field) for black-box identity tests. Our main theorem (almost optimally) pins down the relation between higher dimensional Sylvester-Gallai theorems and the rank of depth-3 identities in a very transparent manner. The existence of this was hinted at by Dvir & Shpilka (STOC 2005), but first proven, for reals, by Kayal & Saraf (FOCS 2009). We introduce the concept of Sylvester-Gallai rank bounds for any field, and show the intimate connection between this and depth-3 identity rank bounds. We also prove the first ever theorem about high dimensional Sylvester-Gallai configurations over any field. Our proofs and techniques are very different from previous results and devise a very interesting ensemble of combinatorics and algebra. The latter concepts are ideal theoretic and involve a new Chinese remainder theorem. Our proof methods explain the structure of any depth-3 identity C: there is a nucleus of C that forms a low rank identity, while the remainder is a high dimensional Sylvester-Gallai configuration. 1.