On generalized Kneser hypergraph colorings

In 2002, the second author presented a lower bound for the chromatic numbers of hypergraphs , “generalized r-uniform Kneser hypergraphs with intersection multiplicities s.” It generalized previous lower bounds by K?í? (1992/2000) for the case s=(1,…,1) without intersection multiplicities, and by Sarkaria (1990) for . Here we discuss subtleties and difficulties that arise for intersection multiplicities si>1:

(1)

In the presence of intersection multiplicities, there are two different versions of a “Kneser hypergraph,” depending on whether one admits hypergraph edges that are multisets rather than sets. We show that the chromatic numbers are substantially different for the two concepts of hypergraphs. The lower bounds of Sarkaria (1990) and Ziegler (2002) apply only to the multiset version.

(2)

The reductions to the case of prime r in the proofs by Sarkaria and by Ziegler work only if the intersection multiplicities are strictly smaller than the largest prime factor of r. Currently we have no valid proof for the lower bound result in the other cases.

We also show that all uniform hypergraphs without multiset edges can be represented as generalized Kneser hypergraphs.     

On the diameter of generalized Kneser graphs

Let r, k be positive integers, s(<r), a nonnegative integer, and n=2r-s+k. The set of r-subsets of [n]={1,2,…,n} is denoted by [n]^r. The generalized Kneser graph K(n,r,s) is the graph whose vertex-set is [n]^r where two r-subsets A and B are joined by an edge if |A∩B|?s. This note determines the diameter of generalized Kneser graphs. More precisely, the diameter of K(n,r,s) is equal to , which generalizes a result of Valencia-Pabon and Vera [On the diameter of Kneser graphs, Discrete Math. 305 (2005) 383-385].     

Local coloring of Kneser graphs

A local coloring of a graph G is a function c:V(G)→N having the property that for each set S⊆V(G) with 2≤|S|≤3, there exist vertices u,v∈S such that |c(u)−c(v)|≥m_S, where m_S is the number of edges of the induced subgraph 〈S〉. The maximum color assigned by a local coloring c to a vertex of G is called the value of c and is denoted by χ_?(c). The local chromatic number of G is χ_?(G)=min{χ_?(c)}, where the minimum is taken over all local colorings c of G. The local coloring of graphs was introduced by Chartrand et al. [G. Chartrand, E. Salehi, P. Zhang, On local colorings of graphs, Congressus Numerantium 163 (2003) 207-221]. In this paper the local coloring of Kneser graphs is studied and the local chromatic number of the Kneser graph K(n,k) for some values of n and k is determined.     

On the Multichromatic Number of s‐Stable Kneser Graphs

For positive integers n and s, a subset [n] is s‐stable if for distinct . The s‐stable r‐uniform Kneser hypergraph is the r‐uniform hypergraph that has the collection of all s‐stable k‐element subsets of [n] as vertex set and whose edges are formed by the r‐tuples of disjoint s‐stable k‐element subsets of [n]. Meunier ( 21 ) conjectured that for positive integers with , and , the chromatic number of s‐stable r ‐uniform Kneser hypergraphs is equal to . It is a generalized version of the conjecture proposed by Alon et al. ( 1 ). Alon et al. ( 1 ) confirmed Meunier's conjecture for with arbitrary positive integer q. Lin et al. ( 17 ) studied the kth chromatic number of the Mycielskian of the ordinary Kneser graphs for . They conjectured that for . The case was proved by Mycielski ( 22 ). Lin et al. ( 17 ) confirmed their conjecture for , or when n is a multiple of k or . In this paper, we investigate the multichromatic number of the usual s ‐stable Kneser graphs . With the help of Fan's (1952) combinatorial lemma, we show that Meunier's conjecture is true for r is a power of 2 and s is a multiple of r, and Lin‐Liu‐Zhu's conjecture is true for .     

Multichromatic numbers,star chromatic numbers and Kneser graphs

We investigate the relation between the multichromatic number (discussed by Stahl and by Hilton, Rado and Scott) and the star chromatic number (introduced by Vince) of a graph. Denoting these by χ* and η*, the work of the above authors shows that χ*(G) = η*(G) if G is bipartite, an odd cycle or a complete graph. We show that χ*(G) ≤ η*(G) for any finite simple graph G. We consider the Kneser graphs , for which χ* = m/n and η*(G)/χ*(G) is unbounded above. We investigate particular classes of these graphs and show that η* = 3 and η* = 4; (n ≥ 1), and η* = m - 2; (m ≥ 4). © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Graph Theory 26: 137–145, 1997     

On the locating chromatic number of Kneser graphs

Let c be a proper k-coloring of a connected graph G and Π=(C₁,C₂,…,C_k) be an ordered partition of V(G) into the resulting color classes. For a vertex v of G, the color code of v with respect to Π is defined to be the ordered k-tuple c_Π(v):=(d(v,C₁),d(v,C₂),…,d(v,C_k)), where d(v,C_i)=min{d(v,x)|x∈C_i},1≤i≤k. If distinct vertices have distinct color codes, then c is called a locating coloring. The minimum number of colors needed in a locating coloring of G is the locating chromatic number of G, denoted by χ_L(G). In this paper, we study the locating chromatic number of Kneser graphs. First, among some other results, we show that χ_L(KG(n,2))=n−1 for all n≥5. Then, we prove that χ_L(KG(n,k))≤n−1, when n≥k². Moreover, we present some bounds for the locating chromatic number of odd graphs.     

Independence number of products of Kneser graphs

We study the independence number of a product of Kneser graph $K(n,k)$ with itself, where we consider all four standard graph products. The cases of the direct, the lexicographic and the strong product of Kneser graphs are not difficult (the formula for $\alpha (K(n,k)⊠K(n,k))$ is presented in this paper), while the case of the Cartesian product of Kneser graphs is much more involved. We establish a lower bound and an upper bound for the independence number of $K(n,2)\square K(n,2)$, which are asymptotically tending to $n^3∕3$ and $3n^3∕8$, respectively. The former is obtained by a construction, which differs from the standard diagonalization procedure, while for the upper bound the $\ell$-independence number of Kneser graphs can be applied. We also establish some constructions in odd graphs $K(2k+1,k)$, which give a lower bound for the 2-independence number of these graphs, and prove that two such constructions give the same lower bound as a previously known one. Finally, we consider the $s$-stable Kneser graphs $K{(ks+1,k)}_{s-stab}$, derive a formula for their $\ell$-independence number, and give the exact value of the independence number of the Cartesian square of $K{(ks+1,k)}_{s-stab}$.     

Hadwiger's Conjecture for the Complements of Kneser Graphs

Hadwiger's conjecture asserts that every graph with chromatic number t contains a complete minor of order t. Given integers , the Kneser graph is the graph with vertices the k‐subsets of an n‐set such that two vertices are adjacent if and only if the corresponding k‐subsets are disjoint. We prove that Hadwiger's conjecture is true for the complements of Kneser graphs.     

On nonexistence of Kneser solutions of third-order neutral delay differential equations

The aim of this paper is to complement existing oscillation results for third-order neutral delay differential equations by establishing sufficient conditions for nonexistence of so-called Kneser solutions. Combining newly obtained results with existing ones, we attain oscillation of all solutions of the studied equations.     

The equivariant topology of stable Kneser graphs

The stable Kneser graph SG_n,k, n?1, k?0, introduced by Schrijver (1978) [19], is a vertex critical graph with chromatic number k+2, its vertices are certain subsets of a set of cardinality m=2n+k. Björner and de Longueville (2003) [5] have shown that its box complex is homotopy equivalent to a sphere, Hom(K₂,SG_n,k)?Sk. The dihedral group D2m acts canonically on SG_n,k, the group C₂ with 2 elements acts on K₂. We almost determine the (C₂×D2m)-homotopy type of Hom(K₂,SG_n,k) and use this to prove the following results.The graphs SG_2s,4 are homotopy test graphs, i.e. for every graph H and r?0 such that Hom(SG_2s,4,H) is (r−1)-connected, the chromatic number χ(H) is at least r+6.If k∉{0,1,2,4,8} and n?N(k) then SG_n,k is not a homotopy test graph, i.e. there are a graph G and an r?1 such that Hom(SG_n,k,G) is (r−1)-connected and χ(G)<r+k+2.     

A new coloring theorem of Kneser graphs

In 1997, Johnson, Holroyd and Stahl conjectured that the circular chromatic number of the Kneser graphs KG(n,k) is equal to the chromatic number of these graphs. This was proved by Simonyi and Tardos (2006) [13] and independently by Meunier (2005) [10], if χ(KG(n,k)) is even. In this paper, we propose an alternative version of Kneser's coloring theorem to confirm the Johnson-Holroyd-Stahl conjecture.     

Non-cover generalized Mycielski, Kneser, and Schrijver graphs

A graph is said to be a cover graph if it is the underlying graph of the Hasse diagram of a finite partially ordered set. We prove that the generalized Mycielski graphs M_m(C_2t+1) of an odd cycle, Kneser graphs KG(n,k), and Schrijver graphs SG(n,k) are not cover graphs when m?0,t?1, k?1, and n?2k+2. These results have consequences in circular chromatic number.