The operator formula for monotone triangles - simplified proof and three generalizations

We provide a simplified proof of our operator formula for the number of monotone triangles with prescribed bottom row, which enables us to deduce three generalizations of the formula. One of the generalizations concerns a certain weighted enumeration of monotone triangles which specializes to the weighted enumeration of alternating sign matrices with respect to the number of −1s in the matrix when prescribing (1,2,…,n) as the bottom row of the monotone triangle.     

A new proof of the refined alternating sign matrix theorem

In the early 1980s, Mills, Robbins and Rumsey conjectured, and in 1996 Zeilberger proved a simple product formula for the number of n×n alternating sign matrices with a 1 at the top of the ith column. We give an alternative proof of this formula using our operator formula for the number of monotone triangles with prescribed bottom row. In addition, we provide the enumeration of certain 0-1-(−1) matrices generalizing alternating sign matrices.     

Refined enumerations of alternating sign matrices: monotone (<Emphasis Type="Italic">d</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">m</Emphasis>)-trapezoids with prescribed top and bottom row

Monotone triangles are plane integer arrays of triangular shape with certain monotonicity conditions along rows and diagonals. Their significance is mainly due to the fact that they correspond to n×n alternating sign matrices when prescribing (1,2,…,n) as bottom row of the array. We define monotone (d,m)-trapezoids as monotone triangles with m rows where the d−1 top rows are removed. (These objects are also equivalent to certain partial alternating sign matrices.) It is known that the number of monotone triangles with bottom row (k ₁,…,k _n ) is given by a polynomial α(n;k ₁,…,k _n ) in the k _i ’s. The main purpose of this paper is to show that the number of monotone (d,m)-trapezoids with prescribed top and bottom row appears as a coefficient in the expansion of a specialisation of α(n;k ₁,…,k _n ) with respect to a certain polynomial basis. This settles a generalisation of a recent conjecture of Romik et al. (Adv. Math. 222:2004–2035, 2009). Among other things, the result is used to express the number of monotone triangles with bottom row (1,2,…,i−1,i+1,…,j−1,j+1,…,n) (which is, by the standard bijection, also the number of n×n alternating sign matrices with given top two rows) in terms of the number of n×n alternating sign matrices with prescribed top and bottom row, and, by a formula of Stroganov for the latter numbers, to provide an explicit formula for the first numbers. (A formula of this type was first derived by Karklinsky and Romik using the relation of alternating sign matrices to the six-vertex model.)     

Linear relations of refined enumerations of alternating sign matrices

In recent papers we have studied refined enumerations of alternating sign matrices with respect to a fixed set of top and bottom rows. The present paper is a first step towards extending these considerations to alternating sign matrices where in addition some left and right columns are fixed. The main result is a simple linear relation between the number of n×n alternating sign matrices where the top row as well as the left and the right column is fixed and the number of n×n alternating sign matrices where the two top rows and the bottom row are fixed. This may be seen as a first indication for the fact that the refined enumerations of alternating sign matrices with respect to a fixed set of top and bottom rows as well as left and right columns can possibly be reduced to the refined enumerations where only some top and bottom rows are fixed. For the latter numbers we provide a system of linear equations that conjecturally determines them uniquely.     

On the weighted enumeration of alternating sign matrices and descending plane partitions

We prove a conjecture of Mills, Robbins and Rumsey [Alternating sign matrices and descending plane partitions, J. Combin. Theory Ser. A 34 (3) (1983) 340-359] that, for any n, k, m and p, the number of n×n alternating sign matrices (ASMs) for which the 1 of the first row is in column k+1 and there are exactly m −1?s and m+p inversions is equal to the number of descending plane partitions (DPPs) for which each part is at most n and there are exactly k parts equal to n, m special parts and p nonspecial parts. The proof involves expressing the associated generating functions for ASMs and DPPs with fixed n as determinants of n×n matrices, and using elementary transformations to show that these determinants are equal. The determinants themselves are obtained by standard methods: for ASMs this involves using the Izergin-Korepin formula for the partition function of the six-vertex model with domain-wall boundary conditions, together with a bijection between ASMs and configurations of this model, and for DPPs it involves using the Lindström-Gessel-Viennot theorem, together with a bijection between DPPs and certain sets of nonintersecting lattice paths.     

The asymptotic number of integer stochastic matrices

Let Hⁿ_r be the number of n × n matrices, with nonnegative integer elements, all of whose row and column sums are equal to some prescribed integer r. Similarly, let Aⁿ_r be the number of n × n (0.1) matrices with common row and column sum r. An asymptotic formula for Hⁿ_r is stated and proved, the method of proof being essentially elementary. A simple modification of the proof yields an analogous asymptotic formula for Aⁿ_r. The latter agrees with a result of O'Neil, obtained by a completely different method.     

Properties of (0, 1)-matrices without certain configurations

We generalize results of Ryser on (0, 1)-matrices without triangles, 3 × 3 submatrices with row and column sums 2. The extremal case of matrices without triangles was previously studied by the author. Let the row intersection of row i and row j (i ≠ j) of some matrix, when regarded as a vector, have a 1 in a given column if both row i and row j do not 0 otherwise. For matrices satisfying some conditions on forbidden configurations and column sums ? 2, we find that the number of linearly independent row intersections is equal to the number of distinct columns. The extremal matrices with m rows and $\text{(}\text{m}\text{2}\text{)}$ distinct columns have a unique SDR of pairs of rows with 1's. A triangle bordered with a column of 0's and its (0, 1)-complement are also considered as forbidden configurations. Similar results are obtained and the extremal matrices are closely related to the extremal matrices without triangles.     

Properties of (0, 1)-matrices with no triangles

We study (0, 1)-matrices which contain no triangles (submatrices of order 3 with row and column sums 2) previously studied by Ryser. Let the row intersection of row i and row j of some matrix, when regarded as a vector, have a 1 in a given column if both row i and row j do and a zero otherwise. For matrices with no triangles, columns sums ?2, we find that the number of linearly independent row intersections is equal to the number of distinct columns. We then study the extremal (0, 1)-matrices with no triangles, column sums ?2, distinct columns, i.e., those of size mx(^m₂). The number of columns of column sum l is m ? l + 1 and they form a (l ? 1)-tree. The ((^m₂)) columns have a unique SDR of pairs of rows with 1's. Also, these matrices have a fascinating inductive buildup. We finish with an algorithm for constructing these matrices.     

Alternating-Sign Matrices and Domino Tilings (Part I)

We introduce a family of planar regions, called Aztec diamonds, and study tilings of these regions by dominoes. Our main result is that the Aztec diamond of order n has exactly 2 ^n(n+1)/2 domino tilings. In this, the first half of a two-part paper, we give two proofs of this formula. The first proof exploits a connection between domino tilings and the alternating-sign matrices of Mills, Robbins, and Rumsey. In particular, a domino tiling of an Aztec diamond corresponds to a compatible pair of alternating-sign matrices. The second proof of our formula uses monotone triangles, which constitute another form taken by alternating-sign matrices; by assigning each monotone triangle a suitable weight, we can count domino tilings of an Aztec diamond.     

Symplectic Shifted Tableaux and Deformations of Weyl's Denominator Formula for sp(2n)

A determinantal expansion due to Okada is used to derive both a deformation of Weyl's denominator formula for the Lie algebra sp(2n) of the symplectic group and a further generalisation involving a product of the deformed denominator with a deformation of flagged characters of sp(2n). In each case the relevant expansion is expressed in terms of certain shifted sp(2n)-standard tableaux. It is then re-expressed, first in terms of monotone patterns and then in terms of alternating sign matrices.     

Alternating sign matrices and descending plane partitions

An alternating sign matrix is a square matrix such that (i) all entries are 1, ?1, or 0, (ii) every row and column has sum 1, and (iii) in every row and column the nonzero entries alternate in sign. Striking numerical evidence of a connection between these matrices and the descending plane partitions introduced by Andrews (Invent. Math.53 (1979), 193–225) have been discovered, but attempts to prove the existence of such a connection have been unsuccessful. This evidence, however, did suggest a method of proving the Andrews conjecture on descending plane partitions, which in turn suggested a method of proving the Macdonald conjecture on cyclically symmetric plane partitions (Invent. Math.66 (1982), 73–87). In this paper is a discussion of alternating sign matrices and descending plane partitions, and several conjectures and theorems about them are presented.     

The number of graphs and a random graph with a given degree sequence

We consider the set of all graphs on n labeled vertices with prescribed degrees D = (d₁,…,d_n). For a wide class of tame degree sequences D we obtain a computationally efficient asymptotic formula approximating the number of graphs within a relative error which approaches 0 as n grows. As a corollary, we prove that the structure of a random graph with a given tame degree sequence D is well described by a certain maximum entropy matrix computed from D. We also establish an asymptotic formula for the number of bipartite graphs with prescribed degrees of vertices, or, equivalently, for the number of 0‐1 matrices with prescribed row and column sums. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Random Struct. Alg., 2013     

On Euclidean distance matrices

If A is a real symmetric matrix and P is an orthogonal projection onto a hyperplane, then we derive a formula for the Moore-Penrose inverse of PAP. As an application, we obtain a formula for the Moore-Penrose inverse of an Euclidean distance matrix (EDM) which generalizes formulae for the inverse of a EDM in the literature. To an invertible spherical EDM, we associate a Laplacian matrix (which we define as a positive semidefinite n × n matrix of rank n − 1 and with zero row sums) and prove some properties. Known results for distance matrices of trees are derived as special cases. In particular, we obtain a formula due to Graham and Lovász for the inverse of the distance matrix of a tree. It is shown that if D is a nonsingular EDM and L is the associated Laplacian, then D⁻¹ − L is nonsingular and has a nonnegative inverse. Finally, infinitely divisible matrices are constructed using EDMs.     

Alternating Sign Matrices and Some Deformations of Weyl's Denominator Formulas

An alternating sign matrix is a square matrix whose entries are 1, 0, or –1, and which satisfies certain conditions. Permutation matrices are alternating sign matrices. In this paper, we use the (generalized) Littlewood's formulas to expand the products and 2 as sums indexed by sets of alternating sign matrices invariant under a 180° rotation. If we put t = 1, these expansion formulas reduce to the Weyl's denominator formulas for the root systems of type B _n and C _n. A similar deformation of the denominator formula for type D _n is also given.     

Extremal problems on triangle areas in two and three dimensions

The study of extremal problems on triangle areas was initiated in a series of papers by Erd?s and Purdy in the early 1970s. In this paper we present new results on such problems, concerning the number of triangles of the same area that are spanned by finite point sets in the plane and in 3-space, and the number of distinct areas determined by the triangles.In the plane, our main result is an O(n44/19)=O(n^2.3158) upper bound on the number of unit-area triangles spanned by n points, which is the first breakthrough improving the classical bound of O(n7/3) from 1992. We also make progress in a number of important special cases. We show that: (i) For points in convex position, there exist n-element point sets that span Ω(nlogn) triangles of unit area. (ii) The number of triangles of minimum (nonzero) area determined by n points is at most ; there exist n-element point sets (for arbitrarily large n) that span (6/π²−o(1))n² minimum-area triangles. (iii) The number of acute triangles of minimum area determined by n points is O(n); this is asymptotically tight. (iv) For n points in convex position, the number of triangles of minimum area is O(n); this is asymptotically tight. (v) If no three points are allowed to be collinear, there are n-element point sets that span Ω(nlogn) minimum-area triangles (in contrast to (ii), where collinearities are allowed and a quadratic lower bound holds).In 3-space we prove an O(n17/7β(n))=O(n^2.4286) upper bound on the number of unit-area triangles spanned by n points, where β(n) is an extremely slowly growing function related to the inverse Ackermann function. The best previous bound, O(n8/3), is an old result of Erd?s and Purdy from 1971. We further show, for point sets in 3-space: (i) The number of minimum nonzero area triangles is at most n²+O(n), and this is worst-case optimal, up to a constant factor. (ii) There are n-element point sets that span Ω(n4/3) triangles of maximum area, all incident to a common point. In any n-element point set, the maximum number of maximum-area triangles incident to a common point is O(n4/3+ε), for any ε>0. (iii) Every set of n points, not all on a line, determines at least Ω(n2/3/β(n)) triangles of distinct areas, which share a common side.     

Enumeration of symmetry classes of alternating sign matrices and characters of classical groups

An alternating sign matrix is a square matrix with entries 1, 0 and −1 such that the sum of the entries in each row and each column is equal to 1 and the nonzero entries alternate in sign along each row and each column. To some of the symmetry classes of alternating sign matrices and their variations, G. Kuperberg associate square ice models with appropriate boundary conditions, and give determinant and Pfaffian formulae for the partition functions. In this paper, we utilize several determinant and Pfaffian identities to evaluate Kuperberg's determinants and Pfaffians, and express the round partition functions in terms of irreducible characters of classical groups. In particular, we settle a conjecture on the number of vertically and horizontally symmetric alternating sign matrices (VHSASMs). Dedicated to the memory of David Robbins.     

Transition matrices for well-conditioned Markov chains

Let T∈R^n×n be an irreducible stochastic matrix with stationary distribution vector π. Set A = I − T, and define the quantity , where A_j, j = 1, … , n, are the (n − 1) × (n − 1) principal submatrices of A obtained by deleting the jth row and column of A. Results of Cho and Meyer, and of Kirkland show that κ₃ provides a sensitive measure of the conditioning of π under perturbation of T. Moreover, it is known that .In this paper, we investigate the class of irreducible stochastic matrices T of order n such that , for such matrices correspond to Markov chains with desirable conditioning properties. We identify some restrictions on the zero-nonzero patterns of such matrices, and construct several infinite classes of matrices for which κ₃ is as small as possible.     

Partition and composition matrices

This paper introduces two matrix analogues for set partitions. A composition matrix on a finite set X is an upper triangular matrix whose entries partition X, and for which there are no rows or columns containing only empty sets. A partition matrix is a composition matrix in which an order is placed on where entries may appear relative to one-another.We show that partition matrices are in one-to-one correspondence with inversion tables. Non-decreasing inversion tables are shown to correspond to partition matrices with a row ordering relation. Partition matrices which are s-diagonal are classified in terms of inversion tables. Bidiagonal partition matrices are enumerated using the transfer-matrix method and are equinumerous with permutations which are sortable by two pop-stacks in parallel.We show that composition matrices on X are in one-to-one correspondence with (2+2)-free posets on X. Also, composition matrices whose rows satisfy a column-ordering relation are shown to be in one-to-one correspondence with parking functions. Finally, we show that pairs of ascent sequences and permutations are in one-to-one correspondence with (2+2)-free posets whose elements are the cycles of a permutation, and use this relation to give an expression for the number of (2+2)-free posets on {1,…,n}.     

Asymptotic enumeration of dense 0-1 matrices with specified line sums

Let s=(s₁,s₂,…,sm) and t=(t₁,t₂,…,tn) be vectors of non-negative integers with . Let B(s,t) be the number of m×n matrices over {0,1} with jth row sum equal to sj for 1?j?m and kth column sum equal to tk for 1?k?n. Equivalently, B(s,t) is the number of bipartite graphs with m vertices in one part with degrees given by s, and n vertices in the other part with degrees given by t. Most research on the asymptotics of B(s,t) has focused on the sparse case, where the best result is that of Greenhill, McKay and Wang (2006). In the case of dense matrices, the only precise result is for the case of equal row sums and equal column sums (Canfield and McKay, 2005). This paper extends the analytic methods used by the latter paper to the case where the row and column sums can vary within certain limits. Interestingly, the result can be expressed by the same formula which holds in the sparse case.