A simple proof of second-order sufficient optimality conditions in nonlinear semidefinite optimization

Abstract

In this note, we present an elementary proof for a well-known second-order sufficient optimality condition in nonlinear semidefinite optimization which does not rely on the enhanced theory of second-order tangents. Our approach builds on an explicit elementary computation of the so-called second subderivative of the indicator function associated with the semidefinite cone which recovers the best curvature term known in the literature.