Spherical Cap $L_2$ Discrepancy -- Blessing of Dimensionality and a Balanced Large-Cap Variant

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Brauchart, Johann S., Dick, Josef, Pillichshammer, Friedrich
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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_version_ 1866913057675935744
author Brauchart, Johann S.
Dick, Josef
Pillichshammer, Friedrich
author_facet Brauchart, Johann S.
Dick, Josef
Pillichshammer, Friedrich
contents We prove that the information complexity (i.e., the inverse) of the classical spherical cap $L_2$ discrepancy on the $d$-dimensional sphere $\mathbb{S}^d$ decreases with dimension $d$, indicating a ``blessing of dimensionality'' for the associated numerical integration problem. We then introduce a modified spherical cap $L_2$ discrepancy that emphasizes large caps (close to hemispheres). For this variant, the problem does not become easier with increasing $d$. We also establish a Stolarsky invariance principle which connects the modified spherical cap $L_2$ discrepancy to numerical integration in the Sobolev space $H^{(d+1)/2}(\mathbb{S}^d)$, represented by the reproducing kernel $K(\boldsymbol{x}, \boldsymbol{y}) = 1 - \tfrac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \|\boldsymbol{x} - \boldsymbol{y}\|$. Stolarsky's invariance principle then implies that the worst-case integration error in this space grows polynomially with $d$.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2604_21340
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Spherical Cap $L_2$ Discrepancy -- Blessing of Dimensionality and a Balanced Large-Cap Variant
Brauchart, Johann S.
Dick, Josef
Pillichshammer, Friedrich
Numerical Analysis
Number Theory
11K38, 65D30, 65C05, 65Y20
We prove that the information complexity (i.e., the inverse) of the classical spherical cap $L_2$ discrepancy on the $d$-dimensional sphere $\mathbb{S}^d$ decreases with dimension $d$, indicating a ``blessing of dimensionality'' for the associated numerical integration problem. We then introduce a modified spherical cap $L_2$ discrepancy that emphasizes large caps (close to hemispheres). For this variant, the problem does not become easier with increasing $d$. We also establish a Stolarsky invariance principle which connects the modified spherical cap $L_2$ discrepancy to numerical integration in the Sobolev space $H^{(d+1)/2}(\mathbb{S}^d)$, represented by the reproducing kernel $K(\boldsymbol{x}, \boldsymbol{y}) = 1 - \tfrac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \|\boldsymbol{x} - \boldsymbol{y}\|$. Stolarsky's invariance principle then implies that the worst-case integration error in this space grows polynomially with $d$.
title Spherical Cap $L_2$ Discrepancy -- Blessing of Dimensionality and a Balanced Large-Cap Variant
topic Numerical Analysis
Number Theory
11K38, 65D30, 65C05, 65Y20
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.21340