Simulating Polynomial-Time Nondeterministic Turing Machines via Nondeterministic Turing Machines

TL;DR

This paper claims to prove that NP is not equal to co-NP by constructing a language accepted by a polynomial-time nondeterministic Turing machine but not by any co-NP machine, with profound implications for complexity theory.

Contribution

It introduces a new proof of NP ≠ co-NP using simulation techniques and explores implications for P vs NP and oracle relativizations.

Findings

Proves NP ≠ co-NP.

Shows existence of a language in NP not in co-NP.

Establishes lower bounds for Frege proof systems.

Abstract

We prove in this paper that there is a language $L_s$ accepted by some nondeterministic Turing machine that runs within time $O(n^k)$ for any positive integer $k\in\mathbb{N}_1$ but not by any ${\rm co}\mathcal{NP}$ machines. Then we further show that $L_s$ is in $\mathcal{NP}$, thus proving a groundbreaking result that $$\mathcal{NP}\neq{\rm co}\mathcal{NP}. $$ The main techniques used in this paper are simulation and the novel new techniques developed in the author's recent work. Our main result has profound implications, such as $\mathcal{P}\neq\mathcal{NP}$, etc. Further, if there exists some oracle $A$ such that $\mathcal{P}^A\ne\mathcal{NP}^A={\rm co}\mathcal{NP}^A$, we then explore what mystery lies behind it and show that if $\mathcal{P}^A\ne\mathcal{NP}^A={\rm co}\mathcal{NP}^A$ and under some rational assumptions, then the set of all ${\rm co}\mathcal{NP}^A$ machines is not enumerable, thus showing that the simulation techniques are not applicable for the first half of the whole step to separate $\mathcal{NP}^A$ from ${\rm co}\mathcal{NP}^A$. Finally, a lower bounds result for Frege proof systems is presented (i.e., no Frege proof systems can be polynomially bounded).