Directional–Deformation–Dissipation Architecture (D³A)

This work introduces and fixes a structural architectural layer for adaptive systems that is not reducible to control laws, optimization objectives, or learning algorithms. The Directional–Deformation–Dissipation Architecture (D³A) defines a canonical set of irreducible primitives and a strict causal ordering governing directed change, structural deformation, adaptive dissipation, residual drift, alignment, and internal time. The architecture explicitly separates structural behavior from algorithmic realization and establishes conditions for valid and invalid compositions. This document is an architectural core specification. It intentionally omits operational, algorithmic, and implementational details and does not propose a controller, learning method, or objective function. Its purpose is to serve as a reference layer for engineering analysis, system design, and future standardization of long-horizon adaptive systems operating under delay, drift, and non-stationarity.