0
$\begingroup$

I am wondering if I can show that

For given $x,y\in \mathbb{R}$ there are two stochastic processes $S_t$ and $B_t$ such that $S_t$ and $B_t$ are two one dimensional Brownian motions starting at $x$ and $y$ respectively and $P\{S_t = B_t\}=1$ for $t>>0$.

I thank in advance for any help!

$\endgroup$
5
  • 4
    $\begingroup$ This is called coalescent brownian motion. Set $T=\inf{t:S_t=B_t}$ and set $W_t = 1_{t\leq T}S+1_{t>T}B_t$. $\endgroup$
    – RaphaelB4
    May 3, 2020 at 5:41
  • $\begingroup$ @RaphaelB4 Thank you! I think I got the idea but, with the notation given by you, I cannot see how it is possible to show $P\{S_t=B_t\}=1$. Could I have more hint? $\endgroup$
    – Lev Bahn
    May 3, 2020 at 14:33
  • $\begingroup$ @RaphaelB4 If I understand correctly, the $W_t$ in your explanation is the Brownian motion starting from $x$ and coincide with $B_t^y$ for $t >T$. Now, I see why they are equal for large enough $t$. But I am still thinking why then $W_t$ is Brownian motion. $\endgroup$
    – Lev Bahn
    May 3, 2020 at 16:15
  • $\begingroup$ @RaphaelB4 Actually, come to think of it, $T$ does not need to be finite which means it cannot solve my problem. $\endgroup$
    – Lev Bahn
    May 3, 2020 at 16:31
  • 3
    $\begingroup$ $T<\infty$ almost surely but it is not bounded. If you want the equallity for a fixed $t$ it is not possible as the gaussian law $\mathcal{N}(x,t)$ and $\mathcal{N}(y,t)$ are different. $\endgroup$
    – RaphaelB4
    May 3, 2020 at 16:56

1 Answer 1

1
$\begingroup$

Thanks to @RaphaelB4, I could figure out the proof even for general $d-$dimensional case. Here is my proof.

Let $B_t^x$ and $B_t^y$ be two independent $1-$dimensional Brownian motions with initial points $x$ and $y$ in $\mathbb{R}$ respectively. Now, let \begin{align*} \tau=\inf\{t\geq 0 : B_t^x=B_t^y\} \end{align*}

then note that $\tau<\infty$ a.s. because $1D$ Brownian motion is recurrent. Now, consider $W_t^y=B_t^y\chi_{[0,\tau ]}+B_t^x\chi_{(\tau,\infty)}$ then $W_t^y$ is a $1-$dimensional Brownian motion with initial point $y$ and with $P\{B_t^x=W_t^y \text{ for all $t>\tau$} \}=1.$

Now, we want to construct $d-$dimensional Brownian motion for arbitrary $d\in \mathbb{Z}^+$. Let $x,y\in \mathbb{R}^d$ be given. Then, by the result above, for each $i\in \{1,\dots, d\}$, if $x_i$ and $y_i$ are $i$th entries of vectors $x$ and $y$, there exist two $1-$dimensional Brownian motions $B_t^{x_i}$ and $B_t^{y_i}$ with initial points $x_i$ and $y_i$ respectively such that $P\{B_t^{x_i}=B_t^{y_i} \text{ for all }t\geq\tau_i \}=1$ where $\tau_i=\inf\{t\geq 0 :B_t^{x_i}=B_t^{y_i}\}$. Now, let $B_t^x$ and $B_t^y$ be $\mathbb{R}^d$ valued function such that \begin{align*} B_t^x=\begin{bmatrix} B_t^{x_1}\\ \vdots\\ B_t^{x_d} \end{bmatrix}\hspace{4cm} B_t^y=\begin{bmatrix} B_t^{y_1}\\ \vdots\\ B_t^{y_d} \end{bmatrix} \end{align*}

Now, let $T=\max_{ i} \tau_i$. Noting that $P\{\tau_i<\infty\}=1$ we know that \begin{align*} P\{T<\infty \}=P\left( \bigcap_i \{\tau_i<\infty\} \right)=1. \end{align*} (https://stats.stackexchange.com/a/100576)

Then $B_t^x$ and $B_t^y$ are two $d-$dimensional Brownian motions such that $P\{B_t^x=B_t^y \text{ for all }t>T\}=1$.

$\endgroup$
4
  • $\begingroup$ @PierrePC Thanks for pointing that out. You are absolutely right. Maybe I need to make the last $T$ specific. $\endgroup$
    – Lev Bahn
    Jul 3, 2020 at 18:53
  • $\begingroup$ @PierrePC The reason why they are equal in one dimensional case is because brownian motion is recurrent in one dimensional case. In the case of multidimension, the equality get changed to less than equal to. $\endgroup$
    – Lev Bahn
    Jul 3, 2020 at 19:02
  • $\begingroup$ @PierrePC Ah.... Yeah... Come to think of it.... you are right. $\endgroup$
    – Lev Bahn
    Jul 3, 2020 at 19:33
  • $\begingroup$ In $d > 1$ case, if you need a minimal coupling time $T$, then look up "mirror coupling" of Brownian motions. $\endgroup$ Jul 3, 2020 at 20:26

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.