A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

Super Level Sets and Exponential Decay: A Synergistic Approach to Stable Neural Network Training




AuthorsChaudary, Jatin; Nidhi, Dipak; Heikkonen, Jukka; Merisaari, Harri; Kanth, Rajiv

PublisherAI Access Foundation

Publication year2025

JournalJournal of Artificial Intelligence Research

Journal name in sourceJournal of Artificial Intelligence Research

Article number21

Volume83

ISSN1076-9757

eISSN1943-5037

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1613/jair.1.17272

Web address https://doi.org/10.1613/jair.1.17272

Self-archived copy’s web addresshttps://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/499842072


Abstract

This paper presents a theoretically grounded optimization framework for neural network training that integrates an Exponentially Decaying Learning Rate with Lyapunov-based stability analysis. We develop a dynamic learning rate algorithm and prove that it induces connected and stable descent paths through the loss landscape by maintaining the connectivity of super-level sets π‘†πœ†={πœƒβˆˆR𝑛:L(πœƒ) β‰₯πœ†}. Under the condition that the Lyapunov function 𝑉(πœƒ)=L(πœƒ)satisfiesβˆ‡π‘‰(πœƒ)Β·βˆ‡L(πœƒ) β‰₯0, we establish that these super-level sets are not only connected but also equiconnected across epochs, providing uniform topological stability. We further derive convergence guarantees using a second-order Taylor expansion and demonstrate that our exponentially scheduled learning rate with gradient-based modulation leads to a monotonic decrease in loss. The proposed algorithm incorporates this schedule into a stability-aware update mechanism that adapts step sizes based on both curvature and energy-level geometry. This work formalizes the role of topological structure in convergence dynamics and introduces a provably stable optimization algorithm for high-dimensional, non-convex neural networks.


Downloadable publication

This is an electronic reprint of the original article.
This reprint may differ from the original in pagination and typographic detail. Please cite the original version.




Funding information in the publication
Jatin Chaudhary would like to acknowledge the University of Turku Graduate School’s grant for conducting thiswork.


Last updated on 2025-11-09 at 07:23