Bounding the Clique‐Width of H‐Free Chordal Graphs

A graph is H‐free if it has no induced subgraph isomorphic to H. Brandstädt, Engelfriet, Le, and Lozin proved that the class of chordal graphs with independence number at most 3 has unbounded clique‐width. Brandstädt, Le, and Mosca erroneously claimed that the gem and co‐gem are the only two 1‐vertex P₄‐extensions H for which the class of H‐free chordal graphs has bounded clique‐width. In fact we prove that bull‐free chordal and co‐chair‐free chordal graphs have clique‐width at most 3 and 4, respectively. In particular, we find four new classes of H‐free chordal graphs of bounded clique‐width. Our main result, obtained by combining new and known results, provides a classification of all but two stubborn cases, that is, with two potential exceptions we determine all graphs H for which the class of H‐free chordal graphs has bounded clique‐width. We illustrate the usefulness of this classification for classifying other types of graph classes by proving that the class of ‐free graphs has bounded clique‐width via a reduction to K₄‐free chordal graphs. Finally, we give a complete classification of the (un)boundedness of clique‐width of H‐free weakly chordal graphs.     

What is the furthest graph from a hereditary property?

For a graph property P, the edit distance of a graph G from P, denoted E_P(G), is the minimum number of edge modifications (additions or deletions) one needs to apply to G to turn it into a graph satisfying P. What is the furthest graph on n vertices from P and what is the largest possible edit distance from P? Denote this maximal distance by ed(n,P). This question is motivated by algorithmic edge‐modification problems, in which one wishes to find or approximate the value of E_P(G) given an input graph G. A monotone graph property is closed under removal of edges and vertices. Trivially, for any monotone property, the largest edit distance is attained by a complete graph. We show that this is a simple instance of a much broader phenomenon. A hereditary graph property is closed under removal of vertices. We prove that for any hereditary graph property P, a random graph with an edge density that depends on P essentially achieves the maximal distance from P, that is: ed(n,P) = E_P(G(n,p(P))) + o(n²) with high probability. The proofs combine several tools, including strengthened versions of the Szemerédi regularity lemma, properties of random graphs and probabilistic arguments. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Random Struct. Alg., 2008     

Between clique-width and linear clique-width of bipartite graphs

We consider hereditary classes of bipartite graphs where clique-width is bounded, but linear clique-width is not. Our goal is identifying classes that are critical with respect to linear clique-width. We discover four such classes and conjecture that this list is complete, i.e. a hereditary class of bipartite graphs of bounded clique-width that excludes a graph from each of the four critical classes has bounded linear clique-width.     

Unique factorization of compositive hereditary graph properties

A graph property is any class of graphs that is closed under isomorphisms. A graph property P is hereditary if it is closed under taking subgraphs; it is compositive if for any graphs G1, G2 ∈ P there exists a graph G ∈ P containing both G1 and G2 as subgraphs. Let H be any given graph on vertices v1, . . . , vn, n ≥ 2. A graph property P is H-factorizable over the class of graph properties P if there exist P 1 , . . . , P n ∈ P such that P consists of all graphs whose vertex sets can be partitioned into n parts, possibly empty, satisfying: 1. for each i, the graph induced by the i-th non-empty partition part is in P i , and 2. for each i and j with i = j, there is no edge between the i-th and j-th parts if vi and vj are non-adjacent vertices in H. If a graph property P is H-factorizable over P and we know the graph properties P 1 , . . . , P n , then we write P = H [ P 1 , . . . , P n ]. In such a case, the presentation H[ P 1 , . . . , P n ] is called a factorization of P over P. This concept generalizes graph homomorphisms and (P 1 , . . . , P n )-colorings. In this paper, we investigate all H-factorizations of a graph property P over the class of all hered- itary compositive graph properties for finite graphs H. It is shown that in many cases there is exactly one such factorization.     

Subgraph statistics in subcritical graph classes

Let H be a fixed graph and a subcritical graph class. In this paper we show that the number of occurrences of H (as a subgraph) in a graph in of order n, chosen uniformly at random, follows a normal limiting distribution with linear expectation and variance. The main ingredient in our proof is the analytic framework developed by Drmota, Gittenberger and Morgenbesser to deal with infinite systems of functional equations [Drmota, Gittenberger, and Morgenbesser, Submitted]. As a case study, we obtain explicit expressions for the number of triangles and cycles of length 4 in the family of series‐parallel graphs. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Random Struct. Alg., 51, 631–673, 2017     

Average widths of anisotropic Besov-Wiener classes

This paper concerns the problem of average σ-K width and average σ-L width of some anisotropic Besov-Wiener classes Srp q θb(Rd) and Srp q θB(Rd) in Lq(Rd) (1≤q≤p＜∞). The weak asymptotic behavior is established for the corresponding quantities.     

Factorizations and characterizations of induced‐hereditary and compositive properties

An Erratum has been published for this article in Journal of Graph Theory 50:261, 2005 . A graph property (i.e., a set of graphs) is hereditary (respectively, induced‐hereditary) if it is closed under taking subgraphs (resp., induced‐subgraphs), while the property is additive if it is closed under disjoint unions. If and are properties, the product consists of all graphs G for which there is a partition of the vertex set of G into (possibly empty) subsets A and B with G[A] and G[B] . A property is reducible if it is the product of two other properties, and irreducible otherwise. We show that very few reducible induced‐hereditary properties have a unique factorization into irreducibles, and we describe them completely. On the other hand, we give a new and simpler proof that additive hereditary properties have a unique factorization into irreducible additive hereditary properties [J. Graph Theory 33 (2000), 44–53]. We also introduce analogs of additive induced‐hereditary properties, and characterize them in the style of Scheinerman [Discrete Math. 55 (1985), 185–193]. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 49: 11–27, 2005     

A characterization of some graph classes using excluded minors

In this article we present a structural characterization of graphs without K ₅ and the octahedron as a minor. We introduce semiplanar graphs as arbitrary sums of planar graphs, and give their characterization in terms of excluded minors. Some other excluded minor theorems for 3-connected minors are shown. Communicated by Attila Pethő     

Bounding the crossing number of a graph in terms of the crossing number of a minor with small maximum degree

We show that if G has a minor M with maximum degree at most 4, then the crossing number of G in a surface Σ is at least one fourth the crossing number of M in Σ. We use this result to show that every graph embedded on the torus with representativity r ≥ 6 has Klein bottle crossing number at least ⌊2r/3⌋²/64. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Graph Theory 36: 168–173, 2001     

Excluding a bipartite circle graph from line graphs

We prove that, for a fixed bipartite circle graph H, all line graphs with sufficiently large rank‐width (or clique‐width) must have a pivot‐minor isomorphic to H. To prove this, we introduce graphic delta‐matroids. Graphic delta‐matroids are minors of delta‐matroids of line graphs and they generalize graphic and cographic matroids. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 60: 183–203, 2009     

The rotational dimension of a graph

Given a connected graph G = (N, E) with node weights s∈? and nonnegative edge lengths, we study the following embedding problem related to an eigenvalue optimization problem over the second smallest eigenvalue of the (scaled) Laplacian of G: Find v_i∈?^|N|, i∈N so that distances between adjacent nodes do not exceed prescribed edge lengths, the weighted barycenter of all points is at the origin, and is maximized. In the case of a two‐dimensional optimal solution this corresponds to the equilibrium position of a quickly rotating net consisting of weighted mass points that are linked by massless cables of given lengths. We define the rotational dimension of G to be the minimal dimension k so that for all choices of lengths and weights an optimal solution can be found in ?^k and show that this is a minor monotone graph parameter. We give forbidden minor characterizations up to rotational dimension 2 and prove that the rotational dimension is always bounded above by the tree‐width of G plus one. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 66:283‐302, 2011     

The complexity of the matching‐cut problem for planar graphs and other graph classes

The Matching‐Cut problem is the problem to decide whether a graph has an edge cut that is also a matching. Previously this problem was studied under the name of the Decomposable Graph Recognition problem, and proved to be ‐complete when restricted to graphs with maximum degree four. In this paper it is shown that the problem remains ‐complete for planar graphs with maximum degree four, answering a question by Patrignani and Pizzonia. It is also shown that the problem is ‐complete for planar graphs with girth five. The reduction is from planar graph 3‐colorability and differs from earlier reductions. In addition, for certain graph classes polynomial time algorithms to find matching‐cuts are described. These classes include claw‐free graphs, co‐graphs, and graphs with fixed bounded tree‐width or clique‐width. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 62: 109–126, 2009     

Bounding the diameter of a distance-transitive graph

A graph Γ is distance-transitive if for all vertices u, v, x, y such that d(u, v) = d(x, y) there is an automorphism h of Γ such that uh = x, vh = y. We show how to find a bound for the diameter of a bipartite distance-transitive graph given a bound for the order |G_α| of the stabilizer of a vertex.     

Forbidden ordered subgraph vs. forbidden subgraph characterizations of graph classes

We show that the minimum set of unordered graphs that must be forbidden to get the same graph class characterized by forbidding a single ordered graph is infinite. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Graph Theory 30: 71–76, 1999     

Bounding graph diameters of solvable groups

We define a graph associated with a group G by letting nontrivial degrees be the vertices, and placing an edge between distinct degrees if they are not relatively prime. Using results in the literature, it is not difficult to show that when G is solvable and the graph is connected, its diameter is at most 4. Recent results suggest that this bound might be obtained. We show that in fact this diameter is at most 3, which is best possible.     

Bounding the number of circuits of a graph

Letc(G) denote the number of circuits of a graphG. In this paper, we characterize those minor-closed classesG of graphs for which there is a polynomial functionp(.) such thatc(G)p(|E(G)|) for all graphsG inG.     

Bounding Betti numbers of bipartite graph ideals

We prove a conjectured lower bound of Nagel and Reiner on Betti numbers of edge ideals of bipartite graphs.     

On torsionfree classes which are not precover classes

In the class of all exact torsion theories the torsionfree classes are cover (pre-cover) classes if and only if the classes of torsionfree relatively injective modules or relatively exact modules are cover (precover) classes, and this happens exactly if and only if the torsion theory is of finite type. Using the transfinite induction in the second half of the paper a new construction of a torsionfree relatively injective cover of an arbitrary module with respect to Goldie’s torsion theory of finite type is presented. This research has been partially supported by the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic, grant #GAČR 201/06/0510 and also by the institutional grant MSM 0021620839.