The Shape of Learning: Anisotropy and Intrinsic Dimensions in Transformer-Based Models

arXiv:2311.05928v2 Announce Type: replace-cross
Abstract: In this study, we present an investigation into the anisotropy dynamics and intrinsic dimension of embeddings in transformer architectures, focusing on the dichotomy between encoders and decoders. Our findings reveal that the anisotropy profile in transformer decoders exhibits a distinct bell-shaped curve, with the highest anisotropy concentrations in the middle layers. This pattern diverges from the more uniformly distributed anisotropy observed in encoders. In addition, we found that the intrinsic dimension of embeddings increases in …

abstract architectures arxiv cs.ai cs.cl cs.it cs.lg dimensions dynamics embeddings intrinsic investigation math.it profile study transformer type