English

Rational arrival processes with strictly positive densities need not be Markovian

Probability 2026-03-31 v1

Abstract

Telek (2022) asked whether a rational arrival process (RAP), specified by matrices G0{G}_0 and G1{G}_1 and an initial row vector ν{\nu}, with strictly positive joint densities and a unique dominant real eigenvalue of G0{G}_0 must admit an equivalent Markovian arrival process (MAP). A counterexample of order 33 is given, showing the answer is no, and that the conjecture fails even under the stronger condition of exact normalisation (G0+G1)1=0({G}_0+{G}_1){1}={0}. The construction combines a strictly positive exponential baseline with a two-dimensional correction driven by an irrational rotation. Strict positivity of all joint densities follows from the continuous-time damping of the correction block; the obstruction to MAP realisability comes from the poles of the boundary generating function at e±iφe^{\pm i\varphi}, which cannot be peripheral eigenvalues of any finite nonnegative matrix when φ/π\varphi/\pi is irrational.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2603.28047,
  title  = {Rational arrival processes with strictly positive densities need not be Markovian},
  author = {Oscar Peralta},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2603.28047},
  year   = {2026}
}
R2 v1 2026-07-01T11:43:29.958Z