PARTITION A GRAPH WITH SMALL DIAMETER INTO TWO INDUCED MATCHINGS

§1　IntroductionGraphs considered in this paper are finite and simple.For a graph G,its vertex setandedge set are denoted by V(G) and E(G) ,respectively.If vertices u and v are connected inG,the distance between u and v,denoted by d G(u,v) ,is the length ofa shortest(u,v) -pathin G.The diameter of a connected graph G is the maximum distance between two verticesof G.For X V(G) ,the neighbor set NG(X) of X is defined byNG(X) ={ y∈V(G) \X:there is x∈X such thatxy∈E(G) } .NG({ x} )…     

On graphs containing a given graph as center

We examine the problem of embedding a graph H as the center of a supergraph G, and we consider what properties one can restrict G to have. Letting A(H) denote the smallest difference ∣V(G)∣ - ∣V(H)∣ over graphs G having center isomorphic to H it is demonstrated that A(H) ≤ 4 for all H, and for 0 ≤ i ≤ 4 we characterize the class of trees T with A(T) = i. for n ≥ 2 and any graph H, we demonstrate a graph G with point and edge connectivity equal to n, with chromatic number X(G) = n + X(H), and whose center is isomorphic to H. Finally, if ∣V(H)∣ ≥ 9 and k ≥ ∣V(H)∣ + 1, then for n sufficiently large (with n even when k is odd) we can construct a k-regular graph on n vertices whose center is isomorphic to H.     

Covering a graph with cycles passing through given edges

We propose a conjecture: for each integer k ≥ 2, there exists N(k) such that if G is a graph of order n ≥ N(k) and d(x) + d(y) ≥ n + 2k - 2 for each pair of non-adjacent vertices x and y of G, then for any k independent edges e₁, …, e_k of G, there exist k vertex-disjoint cycles C₁, …, C_k in G such that e_i ∈ E(C_i) for all i ∈ {1, …, k} and V(C₁ ∪ ···∪ C_k) = V(G). If this conjecture is true, the condition on the degrees of G is sharp. We prove this conjecture for the case k = 2 in the paper. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Graph Theory 26: 105–109, 1997     

Steiner Numbers in Graphs

Abstract

The Steiner distance d(S) of a set S of vertices in a connected graph G is the minimum size of a connected subgraph of G that contains S. The Steiner number s(G) of a connected graph G of order p is the smallest positive integer m for which there exists a set S of m vertices of G such that d(S) = p—1. A smallest set S of vertices of a connected graph G of order p for which d(S) = p—1 is called a Steiner spanning set of G. It is shown that every connected graph has a unique Steiner spanning set. If G is a connected graph of order p and k is an integer with 0 ≤ k ≤ p—1, then the kth Steiner number sk(G) of G is the smallest positive integer m for which there exists a set S of m vertices of G such that d(S) = k. The sequence s_o(G),s₁ (G),…,8_p-1(G) is called the Steiner sequence of G. Steiner sequences for trees are characterized.     

Partition conditions and vertex-connectivity of graphs

It was proved ([5], [6]) that ifG is ann-vertex-connected graph then for any vertex sequencev ₁, ...,v _n ≠V(G) and for any sequence of positive integersk ₁, ...,k _n such thatk ₁+...+k _n =|V(G)|, there exists ann-partition ofV(G) such that this partition separates the verticesv ₁, ...,v(n), and the class of the partition containingv _i induces a connected subgraph consisting ofk _i vertices, fori=1, 2, ...,n. Now fix the integersk ₁, ...,k _n . In this paper we study what can we say about the vertex-connectivity ofG if there exists such a partition ofV(G) for any sequence of verticesv ₁, ...,v _n ≠V(G). We find some interesting cases when the existence of such partitions implies then-vertex-connectivity ofG, in the other cases we give sharp lower bounds for the vertex-connectivity ofG.     

Sharp bounds for the number of 3‐independent partitions and the chromaticity of bipartite graphs

Given a graph G and an integer k ≥ 1, let α(G, k) denote the number of k‐independent partitions of G. Let ??^?s(p,q) (resp., ??₂^?s(p,q)) denote the family of connected (resp., 2‐connected) graphs which are obtained from the complete bipartite graph K_p,q by deleting a set of s edges, where p ≥ q ≥ 2. This paper first gives a sharp upper bound for α(G,3), where G ∈ ?? ^?s(p,q) and 0 ≤ s ≤ (p ? 1)(q ? 1) (resp., G ∈ ?? ₂^?s(p,q) and 0 ≤ s ≤ p + q ? 4). These bounds are then used to show that if G ∈ ?? ^?s(p,q) (resp., G ∈ ?? ₂^?s (p,q)), then the chromatic equivalence class of G is a subset of the union of the sets ??^?s_i(p+i,q?i) where max and s_i = s ? i(p?q+i) (resp., a subset of ??₂^?s(p,q), where either 0 ≤ s ≤ q ? 1, or s ≤ 2q ? 3 and p ≥ q + 4). By applying these results, we show finally that any 2‐connected graph obtained from K_p,q by deleting a set of edges that forms a matching of size at most q ? 1 or that induces a star is chromatically unique. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Graph Theory 37: 48–77, 2001     

3‐Coloring graphs embedded in surfaces

In this article, we show that there exists an integer k(Σ) ≥ 5 such that, if G is a graph embedded in a surface Σ without i‐circuits, 4 ≤ i ≤ k(Σ), then G is 3‐colorable. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Graph Theory 33: 140–143, 2000     

Set domination in graphs

Let G = (V, E) be a connected graph. A set D ? V is a set-dominating set (sd-set) if for every set T ? V ? D, there exists a nonempty set S ? D such that the subgraph 〈S ∪ T〉 induced by S ∪ T is connected. The set-domination number γ_s(G) of G is the minimum cardinality of a sd-set. In this paper we develop properties of this new parameter and relate it to some other known domination parameters.     

Claw‐decompositions and tutte‐orientations

We conjecture that, for each tree T, there exists a natural number k_T such that the following holds: If G is a k_T‐edge‐connected graph such that |E(T)| divides |E(G)|, then the edges of G can be divided into parts, each of which is isomorphic to T. We prove that for T = K_1,3 (the claw), this holds if and only if there exists a (smallest) natural number k_t such that every k_t‐edge‐connected graph has an orientation for which the indegree of each vertex equals its outdegree modulo 3. Tutte's 3‐flow conjecture says that k_t = 4. We prove the weaker statement that every 4$\lceil$ log n$\rceil$ ‐edge‐connected graph with n vertices has an edge‐decomposition into claws provided its number of edges is divisible by 3. We also prove that every triangulation of a surface has an edge‐decomposition into claws. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 52: 135–146, 2006     

Edge‐face chromatic number and edge chromatic number of simple plane graphs

Given a simple plane graph G, an edge‐face k‐coloring of G is a function ? : E(G) ∪ F(G) → {1,…,k} such that, for any two adjacent or incident elements a, b ∈ E(G) ∪ F(G), ?(a) ≠ ?(b). Let χ_e(G), χ_ef(G), and Δ(G) denote the edge chromatic number, the edge‐face chromatic number, and the maximum degree of G, respectively. In this paper, we prove that χ_ef(G) = χ_e(G) = Δ(G) for any 2‐connected simple plane graph G with Δ (G) ≥ 24. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory     

Edge-disjoint paths and cycles in n-edge-connected graphs

We consider finite undirected loopless graphs G in which multiple edges are possible. For integers k,l ≥ 0 let g(k, l) be the minimal n ≥ 0 with the following property: If G is an n-edge-connected graph, s₁, ?,s_k, t₁, ?,t_k are vertices of G, and f₁, ?,f_l, g₁, ?,g_l, are pairwise distinct edges of G, then for each i = 1, ?, k there exists a path P_i in G, connecting s_i and t_i and for each i = 1, ?,l there exists a cycle C_i in G containing f_i and g_i such that P₁, ?,P_k, C₁, ?, C_l are pairwise edge-disjoint. We give upper and lower bounds for g(k, l).     

Partitions of a graph into paths with prescribed endvertices and lengths

For a graph G, let σ₂(G) denote the minimum degree sum of a pair of nonadjacent vertices. We conjecture that if |V(G)| = n = Σ^k_{i = 1} a_i and σ₂(G) ≥ n + k − 1, then for any k vertices v₁, v₂,…, v_k in G, there exist vertex‐disjoint paths P₁, P₂,…, P_k such that |V(P_i)| = a_i and v_i is an endvertex of P_i for 1 ≤ i ≤ k. In this paper, we verify the conjecture for the cases where almost all a_i ≤ 5, and the cases where k ≤ 3. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Graph Theory 34: 163–169, 2000     

On the dimension of trees

It is proved that for trees (and forests) G one has dimG?3 log⁺₂∣G∣(where dim G, the dimension of G, is the minimum k such that G is embeddable into a product of k complete graphs; ∣G∣ is the size of G). Moreover, if m(G) is the quotient of G obtained by identifying the points with coinciding neighbour sets, one has, for forests G, log⁺₂ ∣m(G)∣ ? 1 ? dimG ? 3 log⁺₂m(G>) + 1. Also, for the bipartite dimension bid G (arising from embeddings into P^k₃) one has bid G ? 8 log⁺₂ ∣G ∣.     

An improvement of fraisse's sufficient condition for hamiltonian graphs

Let G be a k-connected graph of order n. For an independent set c, let d(S) be the number of vertices adjacent to at least one vertex of S and > let i(S) be the number of vertices adjacent to at least |S| vertices of S. We prove that if there exists some s, 1 ≤ s ≤ k, such that Σ_xiEX d(X\{X_i}) > s(n?1) – k[s/2] – i(X)[(s?1)/2] holds for every independetn set X ={x₀, x₁ ?x_s} of s + 1 vertices, then G is hamiltonian. Several known results, including Fraisse's sufficient condition for hamiltonian graphs, are dervied as corollaries.     

Packing k‐edge trees in graphs of restricted vertex degrees

Let denote the set of graphs with each vertex of degree at least r and at most s, v(G) the number of vertices, and τ_k (G) the maximum number of disjoint k‐edge trees in G. In this paper we show that

• (a1) if G ∈ and s ≥ 4, then τ₂(G) ≥ v(G)/(s + 1),
• (a2) if G ∈ and G has no 5‐vertex components, then τ₂(G) ≥ v(G)4,
• (a3) if G ∈ and G has no k‐vertex component, where k ≥ 2 and s ≥ 3, then τ_k(G) ≥ (v(G) ‐k)/(sk ‐ k + 1), and
• (a4) the above bounds are attained for infinitely many connected graphs.

Our proofs provide polynomial time algorithms for finding the corresponding packings in a graph. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 55: 306–324, 2007     

Maximal σ‐polynomials of connected 3‐chromatic graphs

In the set of graphs of order n and chromatic number k the following partial order relation is defined. One says that a graph G is less than a graph H if c_i(G) ≤ c_i(H) holds for every i, k ≤ i ≤ n and at least one inequality is strict, where c_i(G) denotes the number of i‐color partitions of G. In this paper the first ? n/2 ? levels of the diagram of the partially ordered set of connected 3‐chromatic graphs of order n are described. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 43: 210–222, 2003     

Two Paths Joining Given Vertices in 2k-Edge-Connected Graphs

Let k≥2 be an integer and G = (V(G), E(G)) be a k-edge-connected graph. For X⊆V(G), e(X) denotes the number of edges between X and V(G) − X. Let {s_i, t_i}⊆X_i⊆V(G) (i=1,2) and X₁∩X₂=∅. We here prove that if k is even and e(X_i)≤2k−1 (i=1,2), then there exist paths P₁ and P₂ such that P_i joins s_i and t_i, V(P_i)⊆X_i (i=1,2) and G − E(P₁∪P₂) is (k−2)-edge-connected (for odd k, if e(X₁)≤2k−2 and e(X₂)≤2k−1, then the same result holds [10]), and we give a generalization of this result and some other results about paths not containing given edges.     

A characterization of panconnected graphs satisfying a local ore-type condition

It is well known that a graph G of order p ≥ 3 is Hamilton-connected if d(u) + d(v) ≥ p + 1 for each pair of nonadjacent vertices u and v. In this paper we consider connected graphs G of order at least 3 for which d(u) + d(v) ≥ |N(u) ∪ N(v) ∪ N(w)| + 1 for any path uwv with uv ∉ E(G), where N(x) denote the neighborhood of a vertex x. We prove that a graph G satisfying this condition has the following properties: (a) For each pair of nonadjacent vertices x, y of G and for each integer k, d(x, y) ≤ k ≤ |V(G)| − 1, there is an x − y path of length k. (b) For each edge xy of G and for each integer k (excepting maybe one k η {3,4}) there is a cycle of length k containing xy. Consequently G is panconnected (and also edge pancyclic) if and only if each edge of G belongs to a triangle and a quadrangle. Our results imply some results of Williamson, Faudree, and Schelp. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Small cycles and 2-factor passing through any given vertices in graphs

The theory of vertex-disjoint cycles and 2-factor of graphs has important applications in computer science and network communication. For a graph G, let σ ₂(G):=min?{d(u)+d(v)|uv ? E(G),u≠v}. In the paper, the main results of this paper are as follows:

1. Let k≥2 be an integer and G be a graph of order n≥3k, if σ ₂(G)≥n+2k?2, then for any set of k distinct vertices v ₁,…,v _k , G has k vertex-disjoint cycles C ₁,C ₂,…,C _k of length at most four such that v _i ∈V(C _i ) for all 1≤i≤k.
2. Let k≥1 be an integer and G be a graph of order n≥3k, if σ ₂(G)≥n+2k?2, then for any set of k distinct vertices v ₁,…,v _k , G has k vertex-disjoint cycles C ₁,C ₂,…,C _k such that:
   1. v _i ∈V(C _i ) for all 1≤i≤k.
   2. V(C ₁)∪???∪V(C _k )=V(G), and
   3. |C _i |≤4, 1≤i≤k?1.

Moreover, the condition on σ ₂(G)≥n+2k?2 is sharp.