GRIFDIR: Graph Resolution-Invariant FEM Diffusion Models in Function Spaces over Irregular Domains

arXiv cs.LG / 5/6/2026

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Key Points

  • The paper introduces GRIFDIR, a new score-based diffusion model designed to work in infinite-dimensional function spaces for function-valued data.
  • It addresses limitations in existing neural-operator backbones (e.g., Fourier neural operators) that are biased toward regular grids and struggle with irregular domain topology.
  • GRIFDIR uses finite-element representations of generalized graph convolution kernels to better handle unstructured meshes and complex geometries.
  • The authors validate the approach with unconditional and conditional sampling experiments on a range of domains, including non-convex and multiply-connected shapes.
  • Results indicate the method preserves resolution invariance while achieving high-fidelity modeling of functional distributions on challenging, non-trivial geometries.

Abstract

Score-based diffusion models in infinite-dimensional function spaces provide a mathematically principled framework for modelling function-valued data, offering key advantages such as resolution invariance and the ability to handle irregular discretisations. However, practical implementations have struggled to fully realise these benefits. Existing backbones like Fourier neural operators are often biased towards regular grids and fail to generalise to complex domain topologies. We propose a novel architecture for function-space diffusion models that represents generalised graph convolutional kernels as finite element functions, enabling the model to naturally handle unstructured meshes and complex geometries. We demonstrate the efficacy of our network architecture through a series of unconditional and conditional sampling experiments across diverse geometries, including non-convex and multiply-connected domains. Our results show that the proposed method maintains resolution invariance and achieves high fidelity in capturing functional distributions on non-trivial geometries.