On minimally circular-imperfect graphs

A circular-perfect graph is a graph of which each induced subgraph has the same circular chromatic number as its circular clique number. In this paper, (1) we prove a lower bound on the order of minimally circular-imperfect graphs, and characterize those that attain the bound; (2) we prove that if G is a claw-free minimally circular-imperfect graph such that ω_c(G-x)>ω(G-x) for some x∈V(G), then G=K_(2k+1)/2+x for an integer k; and (3) we also characterize all minimally circular-imperfect line graphs.     

Matching properties in connected domination critical graphs

A dominating set of vertices S of a graph G is connected if the subgraph G[S] is connected. Let γ_c(G) denote the size of any smallest connected dominating set in G. A graph G is k-γ-connected-critical if γ_c(G)=k, but if any edge is added to G, then γ_c(G+e)?k-1. This is a variation on the earlier concept of criticality of edge addition with respect to ordinary domination where a graph G was defined to be k-critical if the domination number of G is k, but if any edge is added to G, the domination number falls to k-1.A graph G is factor-critical if G-v has a perfect matching for every vertex v∈V(G), bicritical if G-u-v has a perfect matching for every pair of distinct vertices u,v∈V(G) or, more generally, k-factor-critical if, for every set S⊆V(G) with |S|=k, the graph G-S contains a perfect matching. In two previous papers [N. Ananchuen, M.D. Plummer, Matching properties in domination critical graphs, Discrete Math. 277 (2004) 1-13; N. Ananchuen, M.D. Plummer, 3-factor-criticality in domination critical graphs, Discrete Math. 2007, to appear [3].] on ordinary (i.e., not necessarily connected) domination, the first and third authors showed that under certain assumptions regarding connectivity and minimum degree, a critical graph G with (ordinary) domination number 3 will be factor-critical (if |V(G)| is odd), bicritical (if |V(G)| is even) or 3-factor-critical (again if |V(G)| is odd). Analogous theorems for connected domination are presented here. Although domination and connected domination are similar in some ways, we will point out some interesting differences between our new results for the case of connected domination and the results in [N. Ananchuen, M.D. Plummer, Matching properties in domination critical graphs, Discrete Math. 277 (2004) 1-13; N. Ananchuen, M.D. Plummer, 3-factor-criticality in domination critical graphs, Discrete Math. 2007, to appear [3].].     

3-Factor-criticality in domination critical graphs

A graph G is said to be k-γ-critical if the size of any minimum dominating set of vertices is k, but if any edge is added to G the resulting graph can be dominated with k-1 vertices. The structure of k-γ-critical graphs remains far from completely understood when k?3.A graph G is factor-critical if G-v has a perfect matching for every vertex v∈V(G) and is bicritical if G-u-v has a perfect matching for every pair of distinct vertices u,v∈V(G). More generally, a graph is said to be k-factor-critical if G-S has a perfect matching for every set S of k vertices in G. In three previous papers [N. Ananchuen, M.D. Plummer, Some results related to the toughness of 3-domination-critical graphs, Discrete Math. 272 (2003) 5-15; N. Ananchuen, M.D. Plummer, Matching properties in domination critical graphs, Discrete Math. 277 (2004) 1-13; N. Ananchuen, M.D. Plummer, Some results related to the toughness of 3-domination-critical graphs. II. Utilitas Math. 70 (2006) 11-32], we explored the toughness of 3-γ-critical graphs and some of their matching properties. In particular, we obtained some properties which are sufficient for a 3-γ-critical graph to be factor-critical and, respectively, bicritical. In the present work, we obtain similar results for k-factor-critical graphs when k=3.     

On the spanning connectivity of graphs

A k-containerC(u,v) of G between u and v is a set of k internally disjoint paths between u and v. A k-container C(u,v) of G is a k^*-container if it contains all vertices of G. A graph G is k^*-connected if there exists a k^*-container between any two distinct vertices. The spanning connectivity of G, κ^*(G), is defined to be the largest integer k such that G is w^*-connected for all 1?w?k if G is a 1^*-connected graph. In this paper, we prove that κ^*(G)?2δ(G)-n(G)+2 if (n(G)/2)+1?δ(G)?n(G)-2. Furthermore, we prove that κ^*(G-T)?2δ(G)-n(G)+2-|T| if T is a vertex subset with |T|?2δ(G)-n(G)-1.     

(3,k)-Factor-Critical Graphs and Toughness

 A graph is (r,k)-factor-critical if the removal of any set of k vertices results in a graph with an r-factor (i.e. an r-regular spanning subgraph). Let t(G) denote the toughness of graph G. In this paper, we show that if t(G)≥4, then G is (3,k)-factor-critical for every non-negative integer k such that n+k even, k<2 t(G)−2 and k≤n−7. Revised: September 21, 1998     

Some results related to the toughness of 3-domination critical graphs

A graph G is said to be k-γ-critical if the size of any minimum dominating set of vertices is k, but if any edge is added to G the resulting graph can be dominated with k−1 vertices. The structure of k-γ-critical graphs remains far from completely understood, even in the special case when the domination number γ=3. In a 1983 paper, Sumner and Blitch proved a theorem which may regarded as a result related to the toughness of 3-γ-critical graphs which says that if S is any vertex cutset of such a graph, then G−S has at most |S|+1 components. In the present paper, we improve and extend this result considerably.     

A k-Tree Containing Specified Vertices

A k-tree is a tree with maximum degree at most k. In this paper, we give sufficient conditions for a graph to have a k-tree containing specified vertices. Let k be an integer with k > 3. Let G be a graph of order n and let ${S \subseteq V(G)}A k-tree is a tree with maximum degree at most k. In this paper, we give sufficient conditions for a graph to have a k-tree containing specified vertices. Let k be an integer with k > 3. Let G be a graph of order n and let S í V(G){S \subseteq V(G)} with κ(S) ≥ 1. Suppose that for every l > κ(S), there exists an integer t such that 1 ￡ t ￡ (k-1)l+2 - ?\fracl-1k ?{1 \le t \leq (k-1)l+2 - \lfloor \frac{l-1}{k} \rfloor} and the degree sum of any t independent vertices of S is at least n + tl − kl − 1. Then G has a k-tree containing S. We also show some new results on a spanning k-tree as corollaries of the above theorem.     

On the Colin de Verdière number of graphs

Let μ(G) and ω(G) be the Colin de Verdière and clique numbers of a graph G, respectively. It is well-known that μ(G)?ω(G)-1 for all graphs. Our main results include μ(G)?ω(G) for all chordal graphs; μ(G)?tw(G)+1 for all graphs (where tw is the tree-width), and a characterization of those split (⊆ chordal) graphs for which μ(G)=ω(G). The bound μ(G)?tw(G)+1 improves a result of Colin de Verdière by a factor of 2.     

On equality in an upper bound for the restrained and total domination numbers of a graph

Let G=(V,E) be a graph. A set S⊆V is a restrained dominating set (RDS) if every vertex not in S is adjacent to a vertex in S and to a vertex in V?S. The restrained domination number of G, denoted by γ_r(G), is the minimum cardinality of an RDS of G. A set S⊆V is a total dominating set (TDS) if every vertex in V is adjacent to a vertex in S. The total domination number of a graph G without isolated vertices, denoted by γ_t(G), is the minimum cardinality of a TDS of G.Let δ and Δ denote the minimum and maximum degrees, respectively, in G. If G is a graph of order n with δ?2, then it is shown that γ_r(G)?n-Δ, and we characterize the connected graphs with δ?2 achieving this bound that have no 3-cycle as well as those connected graphs with δ?2 that have neither a 3-cycle nor a 5-cycle. Cockayne et al. [Total domination in graphs, Networks 10 (1980) 211-219] showed that if G is a connected graph of order n?3 and Δ?n-2, then γ_t(G)?n-Δ. We further characterize the connected graphs G of order n?3 with Δ?n-2 that have no 3-cycle and achieve γ_t(G)=n-Δ.     

Sets in Abelian groups with distinct sums of pairs

A subset S={s₁,…,sk} of an Abelian group G is called an St-set of size k if all sums of t different elements in S are distinct. Let s(G) denote the cardinality of the largest S₂-set in G. Let v(k) denote the order of the smallest Abelian group for which s(G)?k. In this article, bounds for s(G) are developed and v(k) is determined for k?15 by computing s(G) for Abelian groups of order up to 183 using exhaustive backtrack search with isomorph rejection.     

Matching Properties in Total Domination Vertex Critical Graphs

A vertex subset S of a graph G = (V,E) is a total dominating set if every vertex of G is adjacent to some vertex in S. The total domination number of G, denoted by γ _t (G), is the minimum cardinality of a total dominating set of G. A graph G with no isolated vertex is said to be total domination vertex critical if for any vertex v of G that is not adjacent to a vertex of degree one, γ _t (G?v) < γ _t (G). A total domination vertex critical graph G is called k-γ _t -critical if γ _t (G) = k. In this paper we first show that every 3-γ _t -critical graph G of even order has a perfect matching if it is K _1,5-free. Secondly, we show that every 3-γ _t -critical graph G of odd order is factor-critical if it is K _1,5-free. Finally, we show that G has a perfect matching if G is a K _1,4-free 4-γ _t (G)-critical graph of even order and G is factor-critical if G is a K _1,4-free 4-γ _t (G)-critical graph of odd order.     

A note on acyclic domination number in graphs of diameter two

A subset S of the vertex set of a graph G is called acyclic if the subgraph it induces in G contains no cycles. S is called an acyclic dominating set of G if it is both acyclic and dominating. The minimum cardinality of an acyclic dominating set, denoted by γ_a(G), is called the acyclic domination number of G. Hedetniemi et al. [Acyclic domination, Discrete Math. 222 (2000) 151-165] introduced the concept of acyclic domination and posed the following open problem: if δ(G) is the minimum degree of G, is γ_a(G)?δ(G) for any graph whose diameter is two? In this paper, we provide a negative answer to this question by showing that for any positive k, there is a graph G with diameter two such that γ_a(G)-δ(G)?k.     

On the chromaticity of complete multipartite graphs with certain edges added

Let P(G,λ) be the chromatic polynomial of a graph G. A graph G is chromatically unique if for any graph H, P(H,λ)=P(G,λ) implies H is isomorphic to G. For integers k≥0, t≥2, denote by K((t−1)×p,p+k) the complete t-partite graph that has t−1 partite sets of size p and one partite set of size p+k. Let K(s,t,p,k) be the set of graphs obtained from K((t−1)×p,p+k) by adding a set S of s edges to the partite set of size p+k such that 〈S〉 is bipartite. If s=1, denote the only graph in K(s,t,p,k) by K⁺((t−1)×p,p+k). In this paper, we shall prove that for k=0,1 and p+k≥s+2, each graph G∈K(s,t,p,k) is chromatically unique if and only if 〈S〉 is a chromatically unique graph that has no cut-vertex. As a direct consequence, the graph K⁺((t−1)×p,p+k) is chromatically unique for k=0,1 and p+k≥3.     

Extra edge connectivity and isoperimetric edge connectivity

An edge set S of a connected graph G is a k-extra edge cut, if G-S is no longer connected, and each component of G-S has at least k vertices. The cardinality of a minimum k-extra edge cut, denoted by λ_k(G), is the k-extra edge connectivity of G. The kth isoperimetric edge connectivity γ_k(G) is defined as , where ω(U) is the number of edges with one end in U and the other end in . Write β_k(G)=min{ω(U):U⊂V(G),|U|=k}. A graph G with is said to be γ_k-optimal.In this paper, we first prove that λ_k(G)=γ_k(G) if G is a regular graph with girth g?k/2. Then, we show that except for K_3,3 and K₄, a 3-regular vertex/edge transitive graph is γ_k-optimal if and only if its girth is at least k+2. Finally, we prove that a connected d-regular edge-transitive graph with d?6e_k(G)/k is γ_k-optimal, where e_k(G) is the maximum number of edges in a subgraph of G with order k.     

Sufficient conditions for restricted-edge-connectivity to be optimal

For a connected graph G=(V,E), an edge set S⊂E is a k-restricted-edge-cut if G-S is disconnected and every component of G-S has at least k vertices. The cardinality of a minimum k-restricted-edge-cut is the k-restricted-edge-connectivity of G, denoted by λ_k(G). In this paper, we study sufficient conditions for λ_k(G) to be optimal, especially when k=2 and 3.     

The dynamics of the line and path graph operators

For any integerk e 1 thek- path graph P_k (G) of a graph G has all length-k subpaths ofG as vertices, and two such vertices are adjacent whenever their union (as subgraphs ofG) forms a path or cycle withk + 1 edges. Fork = 1 we get the well-known line graphP ₁ (G) =L(G). Iteratedk-path graphs P^t _k(G) are defined as usual by P^t _k (G) := P_k(P ^t?1 _k(G)) ift < 1, and by P¹ _k(G): = P_k(G). A graph G isP _k -periodic if it is isomorphic to some iteratedk-path graph of itself; itP _k -converges if some iteratedk-path graph of G isP _k -periodic. A graph has infiniteP _k -depth if for any positive integert there is a graphH such that P^t _k(H) ?G. In this paperP _k -periodic if it is isomorphic to some iteratedk-path graph of itself; itP _k -converges if some iteratedk-path graph of G isP _k -periodic graphs,P _k -periodic if it is isomorphic to some iteratedk-path graph of itself; itP _k -converges if some iteratedk-path graph of G isP _k -convergent graphs, and graphs with infiniteP _k -periodic if it is isomorphic to some iteratedk-path graph of itself; itP _k -converges if some iteratedk-path graph of G isP _k -depth are characterized inside some subclasses of the class of locally finite graphs fork = 1, 2.     

Factors and vertex-deleted subgraphs

A relationship is considered between an f-factor of a graph and that of its vertex-deleted subgraphs. Katerinis [Some results on the existence of 2n-factors in terms of vertex-deleted subgraphs, Ars Combin. 16 (1983) 271-277] proved that for even integer k, if G-x has a k-factor for each x∈V(G), then G has a k-factor. Enomoto and Tokuda [Complete-factors and f-factors, Discrete Math. 220 (2000) 239-242] generalized Katerinis’ result to f-factors, and proved that if G-x has an f-factor for each x∈V(G), then G has an f-factor for an integer-valued function f defined on V(G) with even. In this paper, we consider a similar problem to that of Enomoto and Tokuda, where for several vertices x we do not have to know whether G-x has an f-factor. Let G be a graph, X be a set of vertices, and let f be an integer-valued function defined on V(G) with even, |V(G)-X|?2. We prove that if and if G-x has an f-factor for each x∈V(G)-X, then G has an f-factor. Moreover, if G excludes an isolated vertex, then we can replace the condition with . Furthermore the condition will be when |X|=1.     

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 toughness index of planar graphs

The toughness indexτ(G) of a graph G is defined to be the largest integer t such that for any S ? V(G) with |S| > t, c(G - S) < |S| - t, where c(G - S) denotes the number of components of G - S. In particular, 1-tough graphs are exactly those graphs for which τ(G) ≥ 0. In this paper, it is shown that if G is a planar graph, then τ(G) ≥ 2 if and only if G is 4-connected. This result suggests that there may be a polynomial-time algorithm for determining whether a planar graph is 1-tough, even though the problem for general graphs is NP-hard. The result can be restated as follows: a planar graph is 4-connected if and only if it remains 1-tough whenever two vertices are removed. Hence it establishes a weakened version of a conjecture, due to M. D. Plummer, that removing 2 vertices from a 4-connected planar graph yields a Hamiltonian graph.     

Degree sum and connectivity conditions for dominating cycles

For a graph G, let σ_k(G) be the minimum degree sum of an independent set of k vertices. Ore showed that if G is a graph of order n?3 with σ₂(G)?n then G is hamiltonian. Let κ(G) be the connectivity of a graph G. Bauer, Broersma, Li and Veldman proved that if G is a 2-connected graph on n vertices with σ₃(G)?n+κ(G), then G is hamiltonian. On the other hand, Bondy showed that if G is a 2-connected graph on n vertices with σ₃(G)?n+2, then each longest cycle of G is a dominating cycle. In this paper, we prove that if G is a 3-connected graph on n vertices with σ₄(G)?n+κ(G)+3, then G contains a longest cycle which is a dominating cycle.