On ω-automata and temporal logic

Shmuel Safra*, Moshe Y. Vardi

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

53 Scopus citations

Abstract

We study here the use of different representation for infinitary regular languages in extended temporal logic. We focus on three different kinds of acceptance conditions for finite automata on infinite words, due to J.R. Buechi, R.S. Streett, and E.A. Emerson and C.L. Lei (EL), and we study their computational properties. Our finding is that Buechi, Streett, and EL automata span a spectrum of succintness. EL automata are exponentially more succinct than Buechi automata, and complementation of EL automata is doubly exponential. Streett automata are of intermediate complexity. While translating from Streett automata to Buechi automata involves an exponential blow-up, so does that translation from EL automata to Streett automata. Furthermore, even though Streett automata are exponentially more succint than Buechi automata, complementation of Streett automata is only exponential. As a result, we show that the decision problem for ETLEL, where temporal connectives are represented by EL automata, is EXPSPACE-complete, and the decision problem for ETLS, where temporal connectives are represented by Streett automata, is PSPACE-complete.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProc Twenty First Annu ACM Symp Theory Comput
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Pages127-137
Number of pages11
ISBN (Print)0897913078, 9780897913072
DOIs
StatePublished - 1989
Externally publishedYes
EventProceedings of the Twenty First Annual ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing - Seattle, WA, USA
Duration: 15 May 198917 May 1989

Publication series

NameProc Twenty First Annu ACM Symp Theory Comput

Conference

ConferenceProceedings of the Twenty First Annual ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing
CitySeattle, WA, USA
Period15/05/8917/05/89

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