A π-calculus with explicit substitutions

AbstractA new formulation of the π-calculus, where name instantiation is handled explicitly via the introduction of a suitable combinator, is presented. The bisimulation semantics originally developed for the π-calculus are retrieved by giving the description of the corresponding strategies for name instantiation. The explicit handling of name instantiation allows us to reduce the π-calculus transitional semantics to a standard SOS framework. Hence, π-calculus bisimulation models can take fully advantage of the SOS meta-theory developed for ‘static’ process calculi. For instance, complete axiomatic characterizations of π-calculus bisimulation equivalences can be automatically derived by turning SOS rules into equations. This formulation of the π-calculus is very promising for the development of semantic-based automatic verification tools