Home

Simplifying explicit subtyping coercions in a polymorphic calculus with effects


Algebraic effect handlers are becoming an increasingly popular way of structuring effectful computations, and their performance is often a concern. One of the proposed approaches towards efficient compilation is tracking effect information through explicit subtyping coercions. However, in the presence of polymorphism, these coercions are compiled into additional arguments of compiled functions, incurring significant overhead. In this paper, we present a polymorphic effectful calculus, identify simplification phases needed to reduce the number of unnecessary constraints, and prove that they preserve semantics. In addition, we implement the simplification algorithm in the Eff language and evaluate its performance on a number of benchmarks. Though we do not prove the optimality of the presented simplifications, the results show that the algorithm eliminates all coercions, resulting in code as efficient as manually monomorphised one.


Published on December 1, 2025
On the consistency of stronger lower bounds for NEXP
Authors: Neil Thapen.


It was recently shown by Atserias, Buss and Mueller that the standard complexity-theoretic conjecture NEXP not in P / poly is consistent with the relatively strong bounded arithmetic theory V^0_2, which can prove a substantial part of complexity theory. We observe that their approach can be extended to show that the stronger conjectures NEXP not in EXP / poly and NEXP not in coNEXP are consistent with a stronger theory, which includes every true universal number-sort sentence.


Published on November 21, 2025
Type Isomorphisms for Multiplicative-Additive Linear Logic


We characterize type isomorphisms in the multiplicative-additive fragment of linear logic (MALL), and thus in *-autonomous categories with finite products, extending a result for the multiplicative fragment by Balat and Di Cosmo. This yields a much richer equational theory involving distributivity and cancellation laws. The unit-free case is obtained by relying on the proof-net syntax introduced by Hughes and Van Glabbeek. We use the sequent calculus to extend our results to full MALL, including all units, thanks to a study of cut-elimination and rule commutations.


Published on November 21, 2025
Checking Continuous Stochastic Logic against Quantum Continuous-Time Markov Chains
Authors: Ming Xu ; Jingyi Mei ; Ji Guan ; Yuxin Deng ; Nengkun Yu.


Verifying quantum systems has attracted a lot of interest in the last decades.In this paper, we study the quantitative model-checking of quantum continuous-time Markov chains (quantum CTMCs). The branching-time properties of quantum CTMCs are specified by continuous stochastic logic (CSL), which is well-known for verifying real-time systems, including classical CTMCs. The core of checking the CSL formulas lies in tackling multiphase until formulas. We develop an algebraic method using proper projection, matrix exponentiation, and definite integration to symbolically calculate the probability measures of path formulas. Thus the decidability of CSL is established. To be efficient, numerical methods are incorporated to guarantee that the time complexity is polynomial in the encoding size of the input model and linear in the size of the input formula. A running example of Apollonian networks is further provided to demonstrate our method.


Published on November 11, 2025
Alignment complete relational Hoare logics for some and all


In relational verification, judicious alignment of computational steps facilitates proof of relations between programs using simple relational assertions. Relational Hoare logics (RHL) provide compositional rules that embody various alignments of executions. Seemingly more flexible alignments can be expressed in terms of product automata based on program transition relations. A single degenerate alignment rule (sequential composition), atop a complete Hoare logic, comprises a RHL for $\forall\forall$ properties that is complete in the sense of Cook. The notion of alignment completeness was previously proposed as an additional measure, and some rules were shown to be alignment complete with respect to a few ad hoc forms of alignment automata. This paper proves alignment completeness with respect to a general class of $\forall\forall$ alignment automata, for a RHL comprised of standard rules together with a rule of semantics-preserving rewrites based on Kleene algebra with tests. A new logic for $\forall\exists$ properties is introduced and shown to be sound and alignment complete for a new general class of automata. The $\forall\forall$ and $\forall\exists$ automata are shown to be semantically complete. Thus both logics are complete in the sense of Cook. The paper includes discussion of why alignment is not the only important principle for relational reasoning and proposes entailment completeness as further means to evaluate RHLs.


Published on November 10, 2025

Managing Editors

 

Stefan Milius
Editor-in-Chief

Brigitte Pientka
Fabio Zanasi
Executive Editors


Editorial Board
Executive Board
Publisher

eISSN: 1860-5974


Logical Methods in Computer Science is an open-access journal, covered by SCOPUS, DBLPWeb of Science, Mathematical Reviews and Zentralblatt. The journal is a member of the Free Journal Network. All journal content is licensed under a Creative Commons license.