Private Low-Rank Approximation for Covariance Matrices, Dyson Brownian Motion, and Eigenvalue-Gap Bounds for Gaussian Perturbations

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Mangoubi, Oren, Vishnoi, Nisheeth K.
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2025
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author Mangoubi, Oren
Vishnoi, Nisheeth K.
author_facet Mangoubi, Oren
Vishnoi, Nisheeth K.
contents We consider the problem of approximating a $d \times d$ covariance matrix $M$ with a rank-$k$ matrix under $(\varepsilon,δ)$-differential privacy. We present and analyze a complex variant of the Gaussian mechanism and obtain upper bounds on the Frobenius norm of the difference between the matrix output by this mechanism and the best rank-$k$ approximation to $M$. Our analysis provides improvements over previous bounds, particularly when the spectrum of $M$ satisfies natural structural assumptions. The novel insight is to view the addition of Gaussian noise to a matrix as a continuous-time matrix Brownian motion. This viewpoint allows us to track the evolution of eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the matrix, which are governed by stochastic differential equations discovered by Dyson. These equations enable us to upper bound the Frobenius distance between the best rank-$k$ approximation of $M$ and that of a Gaussian perturbation of $M$ as an integral that involves inverse eigenvalue gaps of the stochastically evolving matrix, as opposed to a sum of perturbation bounds obtained via Davis-Kahan-type theorems. Subsequently, again using the Dyson Brownian motion viewpoint, we show that the eigenvalues of the matrix $M$ perturbed by Gaussian noise have large gaps with high probability. These results also contribute to the analysis of low-rank approximations under average-case perturbations, and to an understanding of eigenvalue gaps for random matrices, both of which may be of independent interest.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2502_07657
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Private Low-Rank Approximation for Covariance Matrices, Dyson Brownian Motion, and Eigenvalue-Gap Bounds for Gaussian Perturbations
Mangoubi, Oren
Vishnoi, Nisheeth K.
Data Structures and Algorithms
Cryptography and Security
Machine Learning
Numerical Analysis
Probability
We consider the problem of approximating a $d \times d$ covariance matrix $M$ with a rank-$k$ matrix under $(\varepsilon,δ)$-differential privacy. We present and analyze a complex variant of the Gaussian mechanism and obtain upper bounds on the Frobenius norm of the difference between the matrix output by this mechanism and the best rank-$k$ approximation to $M$. Our analysis provides improvements over previous bounds, particularly when the spectrum of $M$ satisfies natural structural assumptions. The novel insight is to view the addition of Gaussian noise to a matrix as a continuous-time matrix Brownian motion. This viewpoint allows us to track the evolution of eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the matrix, which are governed by stochastic differential equations discovered by Dyson. These equations enable us to upper bound the Frobenius distance between the best rank-$k$ approximation of $M$ and that of a Gaussian perturbation of $M$ as an integral that involves inverse eigenvalue gaps of the stochastically evolving matrix, as opposed to a sum of perturbation bounds obtained via Davis-Kahan-type theorems. Subsequently, again using the Dyson Brownian motion viewpoint, we show that the eigenvalues of the matrix $M$ perturbed by Gaussian noise have large gaps with high probability. These results also contribute to the analysis of low-rank approximations under average-case perturbations, and to an understanding of eigenvalue gaps for random matrices, both of which may be of independent interest.
title Private Low-Rank Approximation for Covariance Matrices, Dyson Brownian Motion, and Eigenvalue-Gap Bounds for Gaussian Perturbations
topic Data Structures and Algorithms
Cryptography and Security
Machine Learning
Numerical Analysis
Probability
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.07657