27 Search Results for "Hecher, Markus"


Document
Computing Twin-Width via Treedepth and Vertex Integrity

Authors: Robert Ganian and Mathis Rocton

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 364, 43rd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2026)


Abstract
Twin-width is a graph parameter that has become central to explaining the fixed-parameter tractability of first-order model checking across many graph classes. Despite its algorithmic importance, computing twin-width remains poorly understood: even recognizing graphs of twin-width at most four is NP-hard, and no fixed-parameter approximations parameterized by twin-width itself are known. A recent approach towards breaking this barrier focuses on first developing fixed-parameter algorithms for computing or approximating twin-width under parameterizations distinct from twin-width. Our first result establishes that approximating twin-width is fixed-parameter tractable when parameterized by treedepth, thereby breaking the long-standing barrier that all previous tractable parameterizations were based on deletion distance. The proof proceeds via oriented twin-width, yielding the first constructive evidence that this variant may be easier to handle algorithmically. As our second main result, we show that computing twin-width exactly is fixed-parameter tractable with respect to vertex integrity. This constitutes the first non-trivial parameterized algorithm for computing optimal contraction sequences.

Cite as

Robert Ganian and Mathis Rocton. Computing Twin-Width via Treedepth and Vertex Integrity. In 43rd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 364, pp. 42:1-42:20, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)


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@InProceedings{ganian_et_al:LIPIcs.STACS.2026.42,
  author =	{Ganian, Robert and Rocton, Mathis},
  title =	{{Computing Twin-Width via Treedepth and Vertex Integrity}},
  booktitle =	{43rd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2026)},
  pages =	{42:1--42:20},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-412-3},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{364},
  editor =	{Mahajan, Meena and Manea, Florin and McIver, Annabelle and Thắng, Nguy\~{ê}n Kim},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2026.42},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-255318},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2026.42},
  annote =	{Keywords: twin-width, fixed-parameter algorithms, treedepth, vertex integrity}
}
Document
Designing Compact ILPs via Fast Witness Verification

Authors: Michał Włodarczyk

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 358, 20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025)


Abstract
The standard formalization of preprocessing in parameterized complexity is given by kernelization. In this work, we depart from this paradigm and study a different type of preprocessing for problems without polynomial kernels, still aiming at producing instances that are easily solvable in practice. Specifically, we ask for which parameterized problems an instance (I,k) can be reduced in polynomial time to an integer linear program (ILP) with poly(k) constraints. We show that this property coincides with the parameterized complexity class WK[1], previously studied in the context of Turing kernelization lower bounds. In turn, the class WK[1] enjoys an elegant characterization in terms of witness verification protocols: a yes-instance should admit a witness of size poly(k) that can be verified in time poly(k). By combining known data structures with new ideas, we design such protocols for several problems, such as r-Way Cut, Vertex Multiway Cut, Steiner Tree, and Minimum Common String Partition, thus showing that they can be modeled by compact ILPs. We also present explicit ILP and MILP formulations for Weighted Vertex Cover on graphs with small (unweighted) vertex cover number. We believe that these results will provide a background for a systematic study of ILP-oriented preprocessing procedures for parameterized problems.

Cite as

Michał Włodarczyk. Designing Compact ILPs via Fast Witness Verification. In 20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 358, pp. 16:1-16:18, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{wlodarczyk:LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.16,
  author =	{W{\l}odarczyk, Micha{\l}},
  title =	{{Designing Compact ILPs via Fast Witness Verification}},
  booktitle =	{20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025)},
  pages =	{16:1--16:18},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-407-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{358},
  editor =	{Agrawal, Akanksha and van Leeuwen, Erik Jan},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.16},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-251481},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.16},
  annote =	{Keywords: integer programming, kernelization, nondeterminism, multiway cut}
}
Document
The PACE 2025 Parameterized Algorithms and Computational Experiments Challenge: Dominating Set and Hitting Set

Authors: Mario Grobler and Sebastian Siebertz

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 358, 20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025)


Abstract
The 10th iteration of the of the Parameterized Algorithms and Computational Experiments challenge (PACE) 2025 was devoted to engineer algorithms solving the Dominating Set problem as well as the Hitting Set problem. In contrast to the last iterations, these problems are (under standard assumptions) not fixed-parameter tractable (fpt) in general. However, restricting the structure of the input (e.g. to planar graphs or degenerate graphs for Dominating Set, or to set systems with sets of bounded size for Hitting Set) renders these problems fpt. Following the spirit of the last iterations of the PACE challenge, there is an exact track and a heuristic track for each problem; each track coming with a benchmark set of 100 public instances and 100 private instances. Overall, the PACE 2025 had 71 participants from 25 teams, 13 countries, and 3 continents. In this report, we briefly describe the setup of the challenge, the selection of benchmark instances, as well as the ranking of the participating teams. We also briefly outline the approaches used in the submitted solvers.

Cite as

Mario Grobler and Sebastian Siebertz. The PACE 2025 Parameterized Algorithms and Computational Experiments Challenge: Dominating Set and Hitting Set. In 20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 358, pp. 32:1-32:17, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{grobler_et_al:LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.32,
  author =	{Grobler, Mario and Siebertz, Sebastian},
  title =	{{The PACE 2025 Parameterized Algorithms and Computational Experiments Challenge: Dominating Set and Hitting Set}},
  booktitle =	{20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025)},
  pages =	{32:1--32:17},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-407-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{358},
  editor =	{Agrawal, Akanksha and van Leeuwen, Erik Jan},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.32},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-251644},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.32},
  annote =	{Keywords: PACE 2025 Report, Dominating Set, Hitting Set, Algorithm Engineering, FPT, Heuristics}
}
Document
PACE Solver Description
PACE Solver Description: UzL Solver for Dominating Set and Hitting Set

Authors: Max Bannach, Florian Chudigiewitsch, and Marcel Wienöbst

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 358, 20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025)


Abstract
This document contains a short description of our solver for the dominating set and hitting set problems that we submitted to the exact tracks of the PACE Challenge 2025. The solver is based on a straightforward MaxSAT formulation supplemented by hitting-set-based reduction rules. It utilizes a clique solver if the reduced instance is a (small) input for the vertex cover problem and tries to match certain lower bounds by expressing the reduced instance as a sat problem.

Cite as

Max Bannach, Florian Chudigiewitsch, and Marcel Wienöbst. PACE Solver Description: UzL Solver for Dominating Set and Hitting Set. In 20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 358, pp. 39:1-39:4, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{bannach_et_al:LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.39,
  author =	{Bannach, Max and Chudigiewitsch, Florian and Wien\"{o}bst, Marcel},
  title =	{{PACE Solver Description: UzL Solver for Dominating Set and Hitting Set}},
  booktitle =	{20th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation (IPEC 2025)},
  pages =	{39:1--39:4},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-407-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{358},
  editor =	{Agrawal, Akanksha and van Leeuwen, Erik Jan},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.39},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-251710},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.IPEC.2025.39},
  annote =	{Keywords: exact algorithms, dominating set, hitting set}
}
Document
Invited Paper
Inconsistency-Tolerant Semantics Based on (Preferred) Repairs (Invited Paper)

Authors: Camille Bourgaux

Published in: OASIcs, Volume 138, Joint Proceedings of the 20th and 21st Reasoning Web Summer Schools (RW 2024 & RW 2025)


Abstract
Real-world datasets are plagued by data quality issues which may render the data inconsistent w.r.t. a set of constraints, be they given by database integrity constraints or ontologies. A prominent way to handle such inconsistent data is to use inconsistency-tolerant semantics to obtain meaningful answers to queries. Most of these semantics are based on some notion of repairs, which represent ways of restoring the data consistency. The most basic kind of repairs is that of subset repairs, which are maximal consistent subsets of the dataset. However, in many scenarios, one can define preferred repairs based on some preference information. These lecture notes present inconsistency-tolerant semantics, focusing on the repair-based ones, then review different kinds of preferred repairs that have been considered in the literature. We present in particular the relationships between different kinds of preferred repairs and other notions related to inconsistency handling, the computational complexity of reasoning with (preferred) repairs, and some implementations.

Cite as

Camille Bourgaux. Inconsistency-Tolerant Semantics Based on (Preferred) Repairs (Invited Paper). In Joint Proceedings of the 20th and 21st Reasoning Web Summer Schools (RW 2024 & RW 2025). Open Access Series in Informatics (OASIcs), Volume 138, pp. 5:1-5:67, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{bourgaux:OASIcs.RW.2024/2025.5,
  author =	{Bourgaux, Camille},
  title =	{{Inconsistency-Tolerant Semantics Based on (Preferred) Repairs}},
  booktitle =	{Joint Proceedings of the 20th and 21st Reasoning Web Summer Schools (RW 2024 \& RW 2025)},
  pages =	{5:1--5:67},
  series =	{Open Access Series in Informatics (OASIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-405-5},
  ISSN =	{2190-6807},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{138},
  editor =	{Artale, Alessandro and Bienvenu, Meghyn and Garc{\'\i}a, Yazm{\'\i}n Ib\'{a}\~{n}ez and Murlak, Filip},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/OASIcs.RW.2024/2025.5},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-250504},
  doi =		{10.4230/OASIcs.RW.2024/2025.5},
  annote =	{Keywords: Knowledge bases, databases, inconsistency handling, repairs, preferences}
}
Document
Algorithmic Hardness of the Partition Function for Nucleic Acid Strands

Authors: Gwendal Ducloz, Ahmed Shalaby, and Damien Woods

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 347, 31st International Conference on DNA Computing and Molecular Programming (DNA 31) (2025)


Abstract
To understand and engineer biological and artificial nucleic acid systems, algorithms are employed for prediction of secondary structures at thermodynamic equilibrium. Dynamic programming algorithms are used to compute the most favoured, or Minimum Free Energy (MFE), structure, and the Partition Function (PF) - a tool for assigning a probability to any structure. However, in some situations, such as when there are large numbers of strands, or pseudoknotted systems, NP-hardness results show that such algorithms are unlikely, but only for MFE. Curiously, algorithmic hardness results were not shown for PF, leaving two open questions on the complexity of PF for multiple strands and single strands with pseudoknots. The challenge is that while the MFE problem cares only about one, or a few structures, PF is a summation over the entire secondary structure space, giving theorists the vibe that computing PF should not only be as hard as MFE, but should be even harder. We answer both questions. First, we show that computing PF is #P-hard for systems with an unbounded number of strands, answering a question of Condon Hajiaghayi, and Thachuk [DNA27]. Second, for even a single strand, but allowing pseudoknots, we find that PF is #P-hard. Our proof relies on a novel magnification trick that leads to a tightly-woven set of reductions between five key thermodynamic problems: MFE, PF, their decision versions, and #SSEL that counts structures of a given energy. Our reductions show these five problems are fundamentally related for any energy model amenable to magnification. That general classification clarifies the mathematical landscape of nucleic acid energy models and yields several open questions.

Cite as

Gwendal Ducloz, Ahmed Shalaby, and Damien Woods. Algorithmic Hardness of the Partition Function for Nucleic Acid Strands. In 31st International Conference on DNA Computing and Molecular Programming (DNA 31). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 347, pp. 1:1-1:23, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{ducloz_et_al:LIPIcs.DNA.31.1,
  author =	{Ducloz, Gwendal and Shalaby, Ahmed and Woods, Damien},
  title =	{{Algorithmic Hardness of the Partition Function for Nucleic Acid Strands}},
  booktitle =	{31st International Conference on DNA Computing and Molecular Programming (DNA 31)},
  pages =	{1:1--1:23},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-399-7},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{347},
  editor =	{Schaeffer, Josie and Zhang, Fei},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.DNA.31.1},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-238504},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.DNA.31.1},
  annote =	{Keywords: Partition function, minimum free energy, nucleic acid, DNA, RNA, secondary structure, computational complexity, #P-hardness}
}
Document
Reducing Quantum Circuit Synthesis to #SAT

Authors: Dekel Zak, Jingyi Mei, Jean-Marie Lagniez, and Alfons Laarman

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 340, 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)


Abstract
Quantum circuit synthesis is the task of decomposing a given quantum operator into a sequence of elementary quantum gates. Since the finite target gate set cannot exactly implement any given operator, approximation is often necessary. Model counting, or #SAT, has recently been demonstrated as a promising new approach for tackling core problems in quantum circuit analysis. In this work, we show for the first time that the universal quantum circuit synthesis problem can be reduced to maximum model counting. We formulate a #SAT encoding for exact and approximate depth-optimal quantum circuit synthesis into the Clifford+T gate set. We evaluate our method with an open-source implementation that uses the maximum model counter d4Max as a backend. For this purpose, we extended d4Max with support for complex and negative weights to represent amplitudes. Experimental results show that existing classical tools have potential for the quantum circuit synthesis problem.

Cite as

Dekel Zak, Jingyi Mei, Jean-Marie Lagniez, and Alfons Laarman. Reducing Quantum Circuit Synthesis to #SAT. In 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 340, pp. 38:1-38:21, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{zak_et_al:LIPIcs.CP.2025.38,
  author =	{Zak, Dekel and Mei, Jingyi and Lagniez, Jean-Marie and Laarman, Alfons},
  title =	{{Reducing Quantum Circuit Synthesis to #SAT}},
  booktitle =	{31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)},
  pages =	{38:1--38:21},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-380-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{340},
  editor =	{de la Banda, Maria Garcia},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.38},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-238997},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.38},
  annote =	{Keywords: Maximum weighted model counting, quantum circuit synthesis}
}
Document
Short Paper
Towards Modern and Modular SAT for LCG (Short Paper)

Authors: Jip J. Dekker, Alexey Ignatiev, Peter J. Stuckey, and Allen Z. Zhong

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 340, 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)


Abstract
Lazy Clause Generation (LCG) is an architecture for building Constraint Programming (CP) solvers using an underlying Boolean Satisfiability (SAT) engine. The CP propagation engine lazily creates clauses that define the integer variables and impose problem restrictions. The SAT engine uses the clausal model to reason and search, including, crucially, the generation of nogoods. However, while SAT solving has made significant advances recently, the underlying SAT technology in most LCG solvers has largely remained the same. Using a new interface to SAT engines, IPASIR-UP, we can construct an LCG solver which can swap out the underlying SAT engine with any that supports the interface. This new approach means we need to revisit many of the design and engineering decisions for LCG solvers, to take maximum advantage of a better underlying SAT engine while adhering to the restrictions of the interface. In this paper, we explore the possibilities and challenges of using IPASIR-UP for LCG, showing that it can be used to create a highly competitive solver.

Cite as

Jip J. Dekker, Alexey Ignatiev, Peter J. Stuckey, and Allen Z. Zhong. Towards Modern and Modular SAT for LCG (Short Paper). In 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 340, pp. 42:1-42:12, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{dekker_et_al:LIPIcs.CP.2025.42,
  author =	{Dekker, Jip J. and Ignatiev, Alexey and Stuckey, Peter J. and Zhong, Allen Z.},
  title =	{{Towards Modern and Modular SAT for LCG}},
  booktitle =	{31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)},
  pages =	{42:1--42:12},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-380-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{340},
  editor =	{de la Banda, Maria Garcia},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.42},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-239038},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.42},
  annote =	{Keywords: Lazy Clause Generation, Boolean Satisfiability, IPASIR-UP}
}
Document
The 3-Decomposition Conjecture: A SAT-Based Approach with Specialized Propagators

Authors: Tianwei Zhang and Stefan Szeider

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 340, 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)


Abstract
We investigate the 3-decomposition conjecture, which states that every connected cubic graph can be decomposed into a spanning tree, a collection of cycles, and a matching. Using a SAT-based approach enhanced with specialized propagators, we verify the conjecture for all relevant graphs up to 28 vertices. Our method extends the Satisfiability Modulo Symmetries (SMS) framework with specialized propagators that exploit theoretical properties of minimal counterexamples (counterexamples with the minimal number of vertices), enabling efficient pruning. We demonstrate that graphs containing certain substructures cannot be minimal counterexamples to the conjecture, allowing us to exclude these patterns during the search dynamically. Our experimental results quantify the impact of different propagator configurations and forbidden subgraph constraints on solving efficiency, showing significant performance improvements when leveraging these techniques. The approach scales effectively to graphs of 28 vertices. Our work illustrates how combining SAT solving with specialized constraint propagation techniques can successfully address challenging combinatorial problems in contemporary graph theory.

Cite as

Tianwei Zhang and Stefan Szeider. The 3-Decomposition Conjecture: A SAT-Based Approach with Specialized Propagators. In 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 340, pp. 39:1-39:19, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{zhang_et_al:LIPIcs.CP.2025.39,
  author =	{Zhang, Tianwei and Szeider, Stefan},
  title =	{{The 3-Decomposition Conjecture: A SAT-Based Approach with Specialized Propagators}},
  booktitle =	{31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)},
  pages =	{39:1--39:19},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-380-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{340},
  editor =	{de la Banda, Maria Garcia},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.39},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-239005},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.39},
  annote =	{Keywords: SAT, Symmetry Breaking, Subgraphs, Propagators, Combinatorics}
}
Document
Scalable Counting of Minimal Trap Spaces and Fixed Points in Boolean Networks

Authors: Mohimenul Kabir, Van-Giang Trinh, Samuel Pastva, and Kuldeep S Meel

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 340, 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)


Abstract
Boolean Networks (BNs) serve as a fundamental modeling framework for capturing complex dynamical systems across various domains, including systems biology, computational logic, and artificial intelligence. A crucial property of BNs is the presence of trap spaces - subspaces of the state space that, once entered, cannot be exited. Minimal trap spaces, in particular, play a significant role in analyzing the long-term behavior of BNs, making their efficient enumeration and counting essential. The fixed points in BNs are a special case of minimal trap spaces. In this work, we formulate several meaningful counting problems related to minimal trap spaces and fixed points in BNs. These problems provide valuable insights both within BN theory (e.g., in probabilistic reasoning and dynamical analysis) and in broader application areas, including systems biology, abstract argumentation, and logic programming. To address these computational challenges, we propose novel methods based on approximate answer set counting, leveraging techniques from answer set programming. Our approach efficiently approximates the number of minimal trap spaces and the number of fixed points without requiring exhaustive enumeration, making it particularly well-suited for large-scale BNs. Our experimental evaluation on an extensive and diverse set of benchmark instances shows that our methods significantly improve the feasibility of counting minimal trap spaces and fixed points, paving the way for new applications in BN analysis and beyond.

Cite as

Mohimenul Kabir, Van-Giang Trinh, Samuel Pastva, and Kuldeep S Meel. Scalable Counting of Minimal Trap Spaces and Fixed Points in Boolean Networks. In 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 340, pp. 17:1-17:26, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{kabir_et_al:LIPIcs.CP.2025.17,
  author =	{Kabir, Mohimenul and Trinh, Van-Giang and Pastva, Samuel and Meel, Kuldeep S},
  title =	{{Scalable Counting of Minimal Trap Spaces and Fixed Points in Boolean Networks}},
  booktitle =	{31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)},
  pages =	{17:1--17:26},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-380-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{340},
  editor =	{de la Banda, Maria Garcia},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.17},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-238780},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.17},
  annote =	{Keywords: Computational systems biology, Boolean network, Fixed point, Trap space, Answer set counting, Projected counting, Abstract argumentation, Logic programming}
}
Document
Practically Feasible Proof Logging for Pseudo-Boolean Optimization

Authors: Wietze Koops, Daniel Le Berre, Magnus O. Myreen, Jakob Nordström, Andy Oertel, Yong Kiam Tan, and Marc Vinyals

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 340, 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)


Abstract
Certifying solvers have long been standard for decision problems in Boolean satisfiability (SAT), allowing for proof logging and checking with very limited overhead, but developing similar tools for combinatorial optimization has remained a challenge. A recent promising approach covering a wide range of solving paradigms is pseudo-Boolean proof logging, but this has mostly consisted of proof-of-concept works far from delivering the performance required for real-world deployment. In this work, we present an efficient toolchain based on VeriPB and CakePB for formally verified pseudo-Boolean optimization. We implement proof logging for the full range of techniques in the state-of-the-art solvers RoundingSat and Sat4j, including core-guided search and linear programming integration with Farkas certificates and cut generation. Our experimental evaluation shows that proof logging and checking performance in this much more expressive paradigm is now quite close to the level of SAT solving, and hence is clearly practically feasible.

Cite as

Wietze Koops, Daniel Le Berre, Magnus O. Myreen, Jakob Nordström, Andy Oertel, Yong Kiam Tan, and Marc Vinyals. Practically Feasible Proof Logging for Pseudo-Boolean Optimization. In 31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 340, pp. 21:1-21:27, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{koops_et_al:LIPIcs.CP.2025.21,
  author =	{Koops, Wietze and Le Berre, Daniel and Myreen, Magnus O. and Nordstr\"{o}m, Jakob and Oertel, Andy and Tan, Yong Kiam and Vinyals, Marc},
  title =	{{Practically Feasible Proof Logging for Pseudo-Boolean Optimization}},
  booktitle =	{31st International Conference on Principles and Practice of Constraint Programming (CP 2025)},
  pages =	{21:1--21:27},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-380-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{340},
  editor =	{de la Banda, Maria Garcia},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.21},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-238825},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.CP.2025.21},
  annote =	{Keywords: proof logging, certifying algorithms, combinatorial optimization, certification, pseudo-Boolean solving, 0-1 integer linear programming}
}
Document
Efficient Certified Reasoning for Binarized Neural Networks

Authors: Jiong Yang, Yong Kiam Tan, Mate Soos, Magnus O. Myreen, and Kuldeep S. Meel

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 341, 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)


Abstract
Neural networks have emerged as essential components in safety-critical applications - these use cases demand complex, yet trustworthy computations. Binarized Neural Networks (BNNs) are a type of neural network where each neuron is constrained to a Boolean value; they are particularly well-suited for safety-critical tasks because they retain much of the computational capacities of full-scale (floating-point or quantized) deep neural networks, but remain compatible with satisfiability solvers for qualitative verification and with model counters for quantitative reasoning. However, existing methods for BNN analysis suffer from either limited scalability or susceptibility to soundness errors, which hinders their applicability in real-world scenarios. In this work, we present a scalable and trustworthy approach for both qualitative and quantitative verification of BNNs. Our approach introduces a native representation of BNN constraints in a custom-designed solver for qualitative reasoning, and in an approximate model counter for quantitative reasoning. We further develop specialized proof generation and checking pipelines with native support for BNN constraint reasoning, ensuring trustworthiness for all of our verification results. Empirical evaluations on a BNN robustness verification benchmark suite demonstrate that our certified solving approach achieves a 9× speedup over prior certified CNF and PB-based approaches, and our certified counting approach achieves a 218× speedup over the existing CNF-based baseline. In terms of coverage, our pipeline produces fully certified results for 99% and 86% of the qualitative and quantitative reasoning queries on BNNs, respectively. This is in sharp contrast to the best existing baselines which can fully certify only 62% and 4% of the queries, respectively.

Cite as

Jiong Yang, Yong Kiam Tan, Mate Soos, Magnus O. Myreen, and Kuldeep S. Meel. Efficient Certified Reasoning for Binarized Neural Networks. In 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 341, pp. 32:1-32:22, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{yang_et_al:LIPIcs.SAT.2025.32,
  author =	{Yang, Jiong and Tan, Yong Kiam and Soos, Mate and Myreen, Magnus O. and Meel, Kuldeep S.},
  title =	{{Efficient Certified Reasoning for Binarized Neural Networks}},
  booktitle =	{28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)},
  pages =	{32:1--32:22},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-381-2},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{341},
  editor =	{Berg, Jeremias and Nordstr\"{o}m, Jakob},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.32},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-237665},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.32},
  annote =	{Keywords: Neural network verification, proof certification, SAT solving, approximate model counting}
}
Document
On Top-Down Pseudo-Boolean Model Counting

Authors: Suwei Yang, Yong Lai, and Kuldeep S. Meel

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 341, 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)


Abstract
Pseudo-Boolean model counting involves computing the number of satisfying assignments of a given pseudo-Boolean (PB) formula. In recent years, PB model counting has seen increased interest partly owing to the succinctness of PB formulas over typical propositional Boolean formulas in conjunctive normal form (CNF) at describing problem constraints. In particular, the research community has developed tools to tackle exact PB model counting. These recently developed counters follow one of the two existing major designs for model counters, namely the bottom-up model counter design. A natural question would be whether the other major design, the top-down model counter paradigm, would be effective at PB model counting, especially when the top-down design offered superior performance in CNF model counting literature. In this work, we investigate the aforementioned top-down design for PB model counting and introduce the first exact top-down PB model counter, PBMC. PBMC is a top-down search-based counter for PB formulas, with a new variable decision heuristic that considers variable coefficients. Through our evaluations, we highlight the superior performance of PBMC at PB model counting compared to the existing state-of-the-art counters PBCount, PBCounter, and Ganak. In particular, PBMC could count for 1849 instances while the next-best competing method, PBCount, could only count for 1773 instances, demonstrating the potential of a top-down PB counter design.

Cite as

Suwei Yang, Yong Lai, and Kuldeep S. Meel. On Top-Down Pseudo-Boolean Model Counting. In 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 341, pp. 31:1-31:10, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{yang_et_al:LIPIcs.SAT.2025.31,
  author =	{Yang, Suwei and Lai, Yong and Meel, Kuldeep S.},
  title =	{{On Top-Down Pseudo-Boolean Model Counting}},
  booktitle =	{28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)},
  pages =	{31:1--31:10},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-381-2},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{341},
  editor =	{Berg, Jeremias and Nordstr\"{o}m, Jakob},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.31},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-237658},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.31},
  annote =	{Keywords: Pseudo-Boolean, Model Counting, Constraint Satisfiability}
}
Document
RustSAT: A Library for SAT Solving in Rust

Authors: Christoph Jabs

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 341, 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)


Abstract
State-of-the-art Boolean satisfiability (SAT) solvers constitute a practical and competitive approach for solving various real-world problems. To encourage their widespread adoption, the relatively high barrier of entry following from the low level syntax of SAT and the expert knowledge required to achieve tight integration with SAT solvers should be further reduced. We present RustSAT, a library with the aim of making SAT solving technology readily available in the Rust programming language. RustSAT provides functionality for helping with generating (Max)SAT instances, writing them to, or reading them from files. Furthermore, RustSAT includes interfaces to various state-of-the-art SAT solvers available with a unified Rust API. Lastly, RustSAT implements several encodings for higher level constraints (at-most-one, cardinality, and pseudo-Boolean), which are also available via a C and Python API.

Cite as

Christoph Jabs. RustSAT: A Library for SAT Solving in Rust. In 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 341, pp. 15:1-15:13, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{jabs:LIPIcs.SAT.2025.15,
  author =	{Jabs, Christoph},
  title =	{{RustSAT: A Library for SAT Solving in Rust}},
  booktitle =	{28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)},
  pages =	{15:1--15:13},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-381-2},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{341},
  editor =	{Berg, Jeremias and Nordstr\"{o}m, Jakob},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.15},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-237498},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.15},
  annote =	{Keywords: Rust, library, SAT solvers, constraint encodings}
}
Document
Fine-Grained Complexity Analysis of Dependency Quantified Boolean Formulas

Authors: Che Cheng, Long-Hin Fung, Jie-Hong Roland Jiang, Friedrich Slivovsky, and Tony Tan

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 341, 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)


Abstract
Dependency Quantified Boolean Formulas (DQBF) extend Quantified Boolean Formulas by allowing each existential variable to depend on an explicitly specified subset of the universal variables. The satisfiability problem for DQBF is NEXP-complete in general, with only a few tractable fragments known to date. We investigate the complexity of DQBF with k existential variables (k-DQBF) under structural restrictions on the matrix - specifically, when it is in Conjunctive Normal Form (CNF) or Disjunctive Normal Form (DNF) - as well as under constraints on the dependency sets. For DNF matrices, we obtain a clear classification: 2-DQBF is PSPACE-complete, while 3-DQBF is NEXP-hard, even with disjoint dependencies. For CNF matrices, the picture is more nuanced: we show that the complexity of k-DQBF ranges from NL-complete for 2-DQBF with disjoint dependencies to NEXP-complete for 6-DQBF with arbitrary dependencies.

Cite as

Che Cheng, Long-Hin Fung, Jie-Hong Roland Jiang, Friedrich Slivovsky, and Tony Tan. Fine-Grained Complexity Analysis of Dependency Quantified Boolean Formulas. In 28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 341, pp. 10:1-10:20, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)


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@InProceedings{cheng_et_al:LIPIcs.SAT.2025.10,
  author =	{Cheng, Che and Fung, Long-Hin and Jiang, Jie-Hong Roland and Slivovsky, Friedrich and Tan, Tony},
  title =	{{Fine-Grained Complexity Analysis of Dependency Quantified Boolean Formulas}},
  booktitle =	{28th International Conference on Theory and Applications of Satisfiability Testing (SAT 2025)},
  pages =	{10:1--10:20},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-381-2},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{341},
  editor =	{Berg, Jeremias and Nordstr\"{o}m, Jakob},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.10},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-237441},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.SAT.2025.10},
  annote =	{Keywords: Dependency quantified Boolean formulas, complexity, completeness, conjunctive normal form, disjunctive normal form}
}
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