  Model checking is a powerful method widely explored in formal verification.
Given a model of a system, e.g., a Kripke structure, and a formula specifying
its expected behaviour, one can verify whether the system meets the behaviour
by checking the formula against the model.
  Classically, system behaviour is expressed by a formula of a temporal logic,
such as LTL and the like. These logics are "point-wise" interpreted, as they
describe how the system evolves state-by-state. However, there are relevant
properties, such as those constraining the temporal relations between pairs of
temporally extended events or involving temporal aggregations, which are
inherently "interval-based", and thus asking for an interval temporal logic.
  In this paper, we give a formalization of the model checking problem in an
interval logic setting. First, we provide an interpretation of formulas of
Halpern and Shoham's interval temporal logic HS over finite Kripke structures,
which allows one to check interval properties of computations. Then, we prove
that the model checking problem for HS against finite Kripke structures is
decidable by a suitable small model theorem, and we provide a lower bound to
its computational complexity.

Logic in Computer Science;Computational Complexity