The calculation of limit probabilities for denumerable Markov processes from infinitesimal properties

Abstract

The problem considered is that of estimating the limit probability distribution (equilibrium distribution) πof a denumerable continuous time Markov process using only the matrix Q of derivatives of transition functions at the origin. We utilise relationships between the limit vector πand invariant measures for the jump-chain of the process (whose transition matrix we write P∗), and apply truncation theorems from Tweedie (1971) to P∗. When Q is regular, we derive algorithms for estimating πfrom truncations of Q; these extend results in Tweedie (1971), Section 4, from q-bounded processes to arbitrary regular processes. Finally, we show that this method can be extended even to non-regular chains of a certain type.