Geodetic and Steiner geodetic sets in 3-Steiner distance hereditary graphs

Let G be a connected graph and S⊆V(G). Then the Steiner distance of S, denoted by d_G(S), is the smallest number of edges in a connected subgraph of G containing S. Such a subgraph is necessarily a tree called a Steiner tree for S. The Steiner interval for a set S of vertices in a graph, denoted by I(S) is the union of all vertices that belong to some Steiner tree for S. If S={u,v}, then I(S) is the interval I[u,v] between u and v. A connected graph G is 3-Steiner distance hereditary (3-SDH) if, for every connected induced subgraph H of order at least 3 and every set S of three vertices of H, d_H(S)=d_G(S). The eccentricity of a vertex v in a connected graph G is defined as e(v)=max{d(v,x)|x∈V(G)}. A vertex v in a graph G is a contour vertex if for every vertex u adjacent with v, e(u)?e(v). The closure of a set S of vertices, denoted by I[S], is defined to be the union of intervals between pairs of vertices of S taken over all pairs of vertices in S. A set of vertices of a graph G is a geodetic set if its closure is the vertex set of G. The smallest cardinality of a geodetic set of G is called the geodetic number of G and is denoted by g(G). A set S of vertices of a connected graph G is a Steiner geodetic set for G if I(S)=V(G). The smallest cardinality of a Steiner geodetic set of G is called the Steiner geodetic number of G and is denoted by sg(G). We show that the contour vertices of 3-SDH and HHD-free graphs are geodetic sets. For 3-SDH graphs we also show that g(G)?sg(G). An efficient algorithm for finding Steiner intervals in 3-SDH graphs is developed.     

Steiner intervals and Steiner geodetic numbers in distance-hereditary graphs

A Steiner tree for a set S of vertices in a connected graph G is a connected subgraph of G with a smallest number of edges that contains S. The Steiner interval I(S) of S is the union of all the vertices of G that belong to some Steiner tree for S. If S={u,v}, then I(S)=I[u,v] is called the interval between u and v and consists of all vertices that lie on some shortest u-v path in G. The smallest cardinality of a set S of vertices such that ?_u,v∈SI[u,v]=V(G) is called the geodetic number and is denoted by g(G). The smallest cardinality of a set S of vertices of G such that I(S)=V(G) is called the Steiner geodetic number of G and is denoted by sg(G). We show that for distance-hereditary graphs g(G)?sg(G) but that g(G)/sg(G) can be arbitrarily large if G is not distance hereditary. An efficient algorithm for finding the Steiner interval for a set of vertices in a distance-hereditary graph is described and it is shown how contour vertices can be used in developing an efficient algorithm for finding the Steiner geodetic number of a distance-hereditary graph.     

Radio number for trees

Let G be a connected graph with diameter diam(G). The radio number for G, denoted by rn(G), is the smallest integer k such that there exists a function f:V(G)→{0,1,2,…,k} with the following satisfied for all vertices u and v: |f(u)-f(v)|?diam(G)-d_G(u,v)+1, where d_G(u,v) is the distance between u and v. We prove a lower bound for the radio number of trees, and characterize the trees achieving this bound. Moreover, we prove another lower bound for the radio number of spiders (trees with at most one vertex of degree more than two) and characterize the spiders achieving this bound. Our results generalize the radio number for paths obtained by Liu and Zhu.     

Graph Equation for Line Graphs and m-Step Graphs

Given a graph G, the m-step graph of G, denoted by S _m (G), has the same vertex set as G and an edge between two distinct vertices u and v if there is a walk of length m from u to v. The line graph of G, denoted by L(G), is a graph such that the vertex set of L(G) is the edge set of G and two vertices u and v of L(G) are adjacent if the edges corresponding to u and v share a common end vertex in G. We characterize connected graphs G such that S _m (G) and L(G) are isomorphic.     

A note on the weakly convex and convex domination numbers of a torus

The distanced_G(u,v) between two vertices u and v in a connected graph G is the length of the shortest (u,v) path in G. A (u,v) path of length d_G(u,v) is called a (u,v)-geodesic. A set X⊆V is called weakly convex in G if for every two vertices a,b∈X, exists an (a,b)-geodesic, all of whose vertices belong to X. A set X is convex in G if for all a,b∈X all vertices from every (a,b)-geodesic belong to X. The weakly convex domination number of a graph G is the minimum cardinality of a weakly convex dominating set of G, while the convex domination number of a graph G is the minimum cardinality of a convex dominating set of G. In this paper we consider weakly convex and convex domination numbers of tori.     

Geodesic-pancyclic graphs

A shortest path connecting two vertices u and v is called a u-v geodesic. The distance between u and v in a graph G, denoted by d_G(u,v), is the number of edges in a u-v geodesic. A graph G with n vertices is panconnected if, for each pair of vertices u,v∈V(G) and for each integer k with d_G(u,v)?k?n-1, there is a path of length k in G that connects u and v. A graph G with n vertices is geodesic-pancyclic if, for each pair of vertices u,v∈V(G), every u-v geodesic lies on every cycle of length k satisfying max{2d_G(u,v),3}?k?n. In this paper, we study sufficient conditions of geodesic-pancyclic graphs. In particular, we show that most of the known sufficient conditions of panconnected graphs can be applied to geodesic-pancyclic graphs.     

On the maximal eccentric connectivity indices of graphs

For a connected simple graph G, the eccentricity ec(v) of a vertex v in G is the distance from v to a vertex farthest from v, and d(v) denotes the degree of a vertex v. The eccentric connectivity index of G, denoted by ξc(G), is defined as v∈V(G)d(v)ec(v). In this paper, we will determine the graphs with maximal eccentric connectivity index among the connected graphs with n vertices and m edges(n ≤ m ≤ n + 4), and propose a conjecture on the graphs with maximal eccentric connectivity index among the connected graphs with n vertices and m edges(m ≥ n + 5).     

A sufficient condition for pancyclability of graphs

Let G be a graph of order n and S be a vertex set of q vertices. We call G,S-pancyclable, if for every integer i with 3≤i≤q there exists a cycle C in G such that |V(C)∩S|=i. For any two nonadjacent vertices u,v of S, we say that u,v are of distance two in S, denoted by d_S(u,v)=2, if there is a path P in G connecting u and v such that |V(P)∩S|≤3. In this paper, we will prove that if G is 2-connected and for all pairs of vertices u,v of S with d_S(u,v)=2, , then there is a cycle in G containing all the vertices of S. Furthermore, if for all pairs of vertices u,v of S with d_S(u,v)=2, , then G is S-pancyclable unless the subgraph induced by S is in a class of special graphs. This generalizes a result of Fan [G. Fan, New sufficient conditions for cycles in graphs, J. Combin. Theory B 37 (1984) 221-227] for the case when S=V(G).     

d-strong Edge Colorings of Graphs

For a proper edge coloring of a graph G the palette S(v) of a vertex v is the set of the colors of the incident edges. If S(u) ≠ S(v) then the two vertices u and v of G are distinguished by the coloring. A d-strong edge coloring of G is a proper edge coloring that distinguishes all pairs of vertices u and v with distance 1 ≤ d (u, v) ≤ d. The d-strong chromatic index ${\chi_{d}^{\prime}(G)}$ of G is the minimum number of colors of a d-strong edge coloring of G. Such colorings generalize strong edge colorings and adjacent strong edge colorings as well. We prove some general bounds for ${\chi_{d}^{\prime}(G)}$ , determine ${\chi_{d}^{\prime}(G)}$ completely for paths and give exact values for cycles disproving a general conjecture of Zhang et al. (Acta Math Sinica Chin Ser 49:703–708 2006)).     

On the computation of the hull number of a graph

Let G be a graph. If u,v∈V(G), a u-vshortest path of G is a path linking u and v with minimum number of edges. The closed interval I[u,v] consists of all vertices lying in some u-v shortest path of G. For S⊆V(G), the set I[S] is the union of all sets I[u,v] for u,v∈S. We say that S is a convex set if I[S]=S. The convex hull of S, denoted I_h[S], is the smallest convex set containing S. A set S is a hull set of G if I_h[S]=V(G). The cardinality of a minimum hull set of G is the hull number of G, denoted by hn(G). In this work we prove that deciding whether hn(G)≤k is NP-complete.We also present polynomial-time algorithms for computing hn(G) when G is a unit interval graph, a cograph or a split graph.     

On geodetic sets formed by boundary vertices

Let G be a finite simple connected graph. A vertex v is a boundary vertex of G if there exists a vertex u such that no neighbor of v is further away from u than v. We obtain a number of properties involving different types of boundary vertices: peripheral, contour and eccentric vertices. Before showing that one of the main results in [G. Chartrand, D. Erwin, G.L. Johns, P. Zhang, Boundary vertices in graphs, Discrete Math. 263 (2003) 25-34] does not hold for one of the cases, we establish a realization theorem that not only corrects the mentioned wrong statement but also improves it.Given S⊆V(G), its geodetic closure I[S] is the set of all vertices lying on some shortest path joining two vertices of S. We prove that the boundary vertex set ∂(G) of any graph G is geodetic, that is, I[∂(G)]=V(G). A vertex v belongs to the contour Ct(G) of G if no neighbor of v has an eccentricity greater than v. We present some sufficient conditions to guarantee the geodeticity of either the contour Ct(G) or its geodetic closure I[Ct(G)].     

An efficient condition for a graph to be Hamiltonian

Let G=(V,E) be a 2-connected simple graph and let d_G(u,v) denote the distance between two vertices u,v in G. In this paper, it is proved: if the inequality d_G(u)+d_G(v)?|V(G)|-1 holds for each pair of vertices u and v with d_G(u,v)=2, then G is Hamiltonian, unless G belongs to an exceptional class of graphs. The latter class is described in this paper. Our result implies the theorem of Ore [Note on Hamilton circuits, Amer. Math. Monthly 67 (1960) 55]. However, it is not included in the theorem of Fan [New sufficient conditions for cycles in graph, J. Combin. Theory Ser. B 37 (1984) 221-227].     

Convexity in oriented graphs

For vertices u and v in an oriented graph D, the closed interval I[u,v] consists of u and v together with all vertices lying in a u−v geodesic or v−u geodesic in D. For S⊆V(D), I[S] is the union of all closed intervals I[u,v] with u,v∈S. A set S is convex if I[S]=S. The convexity number con(D) is the maximum cardinality of a proper convex set of V(D). The nontrivial connected oriented graphs of order n with convexity number n−1 are characterized. It is shown that there is no connected oriented graph of order at least 4 with convexity number 2 and that every pair k, n of integers with 1⩽k⩽n−1 and k≠2 is realizable as the convexity number and order, respectively, of some connected oriented graph. For a nontrivial connected graph G, the lower orientable convexity number con⁻(G) is the minimum convexity number among all orientations of G and the upper orientable convexity number con⁺(G) is the maximum such convexity number. It is shown that con⁺(G)=n−1 for every graph G of order n⩾2. The lower orientable convexity numbers of some well-known graphs are determined, with special attention given to outerplanar graphs.     

Nordhaus-Gaddum results for the convex domination number of a graph

The distance d _G (u, v) between two vertices u and v in a connected graph G is the length of the shortest uv-path in G. A uv-path of length d _G (u, v) is called a uv-geodesic. A set X is convex in G if vertices from all ab-geodesics belong to X for any two vertices a, b ?? X. The convex domination number ??_con(G) of a graph G equals the minimum cardinality of a convex dominating set. In the paper, Nordhaus-Gaddum-type results for the convex domination number are studied.     

Degree Distance of Unicyclic Graphs with Given Matching Number

Let G be a connected graph with vertex set V(G). The degree distance of G is defined as ${D'(G) = \sum_{\{u, v\}\subseteq V(G)} (d_G(u) + d_G (v))\, d(u,v)}$ , where d _G (u) is the degree of vertex u, d(u, v) denotes the distance between u and v, and the summation goes over all pairs of vertices in G. In this paper, we characterize n-vertex unicyclic graphs with given matching number and minimal degree distance.     

Geodeticity of the contour of chordal graphs

A vertex v is a boundary vertex of a connected graph G if there exists a vertex u such that no neighbor of v is further away from u than v. Moreover, if no vertex in the whole graph V(G) is further away from u than v, then v is called an eccentric vertex of G. A vertex v belongs to the contour of G if no neighbor of v has an eccentricity greater than the eccentricity of v. Furthermore, if no vertex in the whole graph V(G) has an eccentricity greater than the eccentricity of v, then v is called a peripheral vertex of G. This paper is devoted to study these kinds of vertices for the family of chordal graphs. Our main contributions are, firstly, obtaining a realization theorem involving the cardinalities of the periphery, the contour, the eccentric subgraph and the boundary, and secondly, proving both that the contour of every chordal graph is geodetic and that this statement is not true for every perfect graph.     

The Chartrand-Schuster conjecture: Graphs with unique distance trees are regular

Let G be a finite connected graph with no cut vertex. A distance tree T is a spanning tree of G which further satisfies the condition that for some vertex v, d_G(v, u) = d_T(v, u) for all u, where d_G(v, u) denotes the distance of u from v in the graph G. The conjecture that if all distance trees of G are isomorphic to each other then G is a regular graph, is settled affirmatively. The conjecture was made by Chartrand and Schuster.     

Subpancyclicity of line graphs and degree sums along paths

A graph is called subpancyclic if it contains a cycle of length ? for each ? between 3 and the circumference of the graph. We show that if G is a connected graph on n?146 vertices such that d(u)+d(v)+d(x)+d(y)>(n+10/2) for all four vertices u,v,x,y of any path P=uvxy in G, then the line graph L(G) is subpancyclic, unless G is isomorphic to an exceptional graph. Moreover, we show that this result is best possible, even under the assumption that L(G) is hamiltonian. This improves earlier sufficient conditions by a multiplicative factor rather than an additive constant.     

Lower and upper orientable strong radius and strong diameter of complete k-partite graphs

For two vertices u and v in a strong digraph D, the strong distance sd(u,v) between u and v is the minimum size (the number of arcs) of a strong sub-digraph of D containing u and v. For a vertex v of D, the strong eccentricity se(v) is the strong distance between v and a vertex farthest from v. The strong radius srad(D) (resp. strong diameter sdiam(D)) is the minimum (resp. maximum) strong eccentricity among the vertices of D. The lower (resp. upper) orientable strong radius srad(G) (resp. SRAD(G)) of a graph G is the minimum (resp. maximum) strong radius over all strong orientations of G. The lower (resp. upper) orientable strong diameter sdiam(G) (resp. SDIAM(G)) of a graph G is the minimum (resp. maximum) strong diameter over all strong orientations of G. In this paper, we determine the lower orientable strong radius and diameter of complete k-partite graphs, and give the upper orientable strong diameter and the bounds on the upper orientable strong radius of complete k-partite graphs. We also find an error about the lower orientable strong diameter of complete bipartite graph K_m,n given in [Y.-L. Lai, F.-H. Chiang, C.-H. Lin, T.-C. Yu, Strong distance of complete bipartite graphs, The 19th Workshop on Combinatorial Mathematics and Computation Theory, 2002, pp. 12-16], and give a rigorous proof of a revised conclusion about sdiam(K_m,n).     

On the Existence of a Long Path Between Specified Vertices in a 2-Connected Graph

 Let G be a 2-connected graph with maximum degree Δ (G)≥d, and let x and y be distinct vertices of G. Let W be a subset of V(G)−{x, y} with cardinality at most d−1. Suppose that max{d _G(u), d _G(v)}≥d for every pair of vertices u and v in V(G)−({x, y}∪W) with d _G(u,v)=2. Then x and y are connected by a path of length at least d−|W|. Received: February 5, 1998 Revised: April 13, 1998