English

Spectral Thresholds for Identifiability and Stability:Finite-Sample Phase Transitions in High-Dimensional Learning

Machine Learning 2025-11-26 v2 Machine Learning

Abstract

In high-dimensional learning, models remain stable until they collapse abruptly once the sample size falls below a critical level. This instability is not algorithm-specific but a geometric mechanism: when the weakest Fisher eigendirection falls beneath sample-level fluctuations, identifiability fails. Our Fisher Threshold Theorem formalizes this by proving that stability requires the minimal Fisher eigenvalue to exceed an explicit O(d/n)O(\sqrt{d/n}) bound. Unlike prior asymptotic or model-specific criteria, this threshold is finite-sample and necessary, marking a sharp phase transition between reliable concentration and inevitable failure. To make the principle constructive, we introduce the Fisher floor, a verifiable spectral regularization robust to smoothing and preconditioning. Synthetic experiments on Gaussian mixtures and logistic models confirm the predicted transition, consistent with d/nd/n scaling. Statistically, the threshold sharpens classical eigenvalue conditions into a non-asymptotic law; learning-theoretically, it defines a spectral sample-complexity frontier, bridging theory with diagnostics for robust high-dimensional inference.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2510.03809,
  title  = {Spectral Thresholds for Identifiability and Stability:Finite-Sample Phase Transitions in High-Dimensional Learning},
  author = {William Hao-Cheng Huang},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2510.03809},
  year   = {2025}
}
R2 v1 2026-07-01T06:17:07.880Z