Finite-Time Convergence Guarantees for Time-Parallel Methods

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Antonucci, Giancarlo Antonino, Hauser, Raphael Andreas, Samaddar, Debasmita, Buchanan, James
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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_version_ 1866914437335613440
author Antonucci, Giancarlo Antonino
Hauser, Raphael Andreas
Samaddar, Debasmita
Buchanan, James
author_facet Antonucci, Giancarlo Antonino
Hauser, Raphael Andreas
Samaddar, Debasmita
Buchanan, James
contents Time-parallel algorithms, such as Parareal, are well-understood for linear problems, but their convergence analysis for nonlinear, chaotic systems remains limited. This paper introduces a new theoretical framework for analysing time-decomposition methods as contraction mappings that converge in a finite number of iterations. We derive a finite-time guarantee linking the initial error, convergence rate, and iteration count, defined via a geometric outer--inner-ball condition. We apply this framework to Parareal, deriving explicit estimates for the convergence factor $β$ on nonlinear problems and showing it scales as $\mathcal{O}(h^2)$ when the macroscopic time grid is uniformly refined. Further, we address the failure of standard convergence criteria in chaotic regimes by introducing a proximity function. This chaos-aware criterion weighs solution discontinuities by the system's Lyapunov exponent (or the solver's Lipschitz constant), allowing the algorithm to converge to the correct statistical attractor without enforcing futile pointwise accuracy on divergent trajectories. Numerical experiments on the Logistic, Lorenz, and Lorenz-96 systems demonstrate that this approach decouples the iteration count from the total simulation time. By isolating the intrinsic mathematical bounds from hardware-dependent overheads, we establish that the method is strictly algorithmically scalable.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2604_00855
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Finite-Time Convergence Guarantees for Time-Parallel Methods
Antonucci, Giancarlo Antonino
Hauser, Raphael Andreas
Samaddar, Debasmita
Buchanan, James
Numerical Analysis
65L05, 65Y05, 37M05, 65P20
G.1.7; G.1.0
Time-parallel algorithms, such as Parareal, are well-understood for linear problems, but their convergence analysis for nonlinear, chaotic systems remains limited. This paper introduces a new theoretical framework for analysing time-decomposition methods as contraction mappings that converge in a finite number of iterations. We derive a finite-time guarantee linking the initial error, convergence rate, and iteration count, defined via a geometric outer--inner-ball condition. We apply this framework to Parareal, deriving explicit estimates for the convergence factor $β$ on nonlinear problems and showing it scales as $\mathcal{O}(h^2)$ when the macroscopic time grid is uniformly refined. Further, we address the failure of standard convergence criteria in chaotic regimes by introducing a proximity function. This chaos-aware criterion weighs solution discontinuities by the system's Lyapunov exponent (or the solver's Lipschitz constant), allowing the algorithm to converge to the correct statistical attractor without enforcing futile pointwise accuracy on divergent trajectories. Numerical experiments on the Logistic, Lorenz, and Lorenz-96 systems demonstrate that this approach decouples the iteration count from the total simulation time. By isolating the intrinsic mathematical bounds from hardware-dependent overheads, we establish that the method is strictly algorithmically scalable.
title Finite-Time Convergence Guarantees for Time-Parallel Methods
topic Numerical Analysis
65L05, 65Y05, 37M05, 65P20
G.1.7; G.1.0
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.00855