Boolean approximate counting CSPs with weak conservativity, and implications for ferromagnetic two-spin

TL;DR

This paper classifies the complexity of approximate counting in Boolean CSPs under weak conservativity assumptions, providing new insights into ferromagnetic two-spin problems and the role of pinning functions.

Contribution

It extends the classification of Boolean CSP counting problems to scenarios with weak conservativity, including ferromagnetic two-spin problems and pinning function considerations.

Findings

Complete classification for weakly conservative Boolean SPs.

Characterization of ferromagnetic two-spin problem complexity.

Identification of conditions where pinning functions are insufficient.

Abstract

We analyse the complexity of approximate counting constraint satisfactions problems $\mathrm{\#CSP}(\mathcal{F})$, where $\mathcal{F}$ is a set of nonnegative rational-valued functions of Boolean variables. A complete classification is known in the conservative case, where $\mathcal{F}$ is assumed to contain arbitrary unary functions. We strengthen this result by fixing any permissive strictly increasing unary function and any permissive strictly decreasing unary function, and adding only those to $\mathcal{F}$: this is weak conservativity. The resulting classification is employed to characterise the complexity of a wide range of two-spin problems, fully classifying the ferromagnetic case. In a further weakening of conservativity, we also consider what happens if only the pinning functions are assumed to be in $\mathcal{F}$ (instead of the two permissive unaries). We show that any set of functions for which pinning is not sufficient to recover the two kinds of permissive unaries must either have a very simple range, or must satisfy a certain monotonicity condition. We exhibit a non-trivial example of a set of functions satisfying the monotonicity condition.