Graph factorization

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1-factorization of Desargues graph: each color class is a 1-factor. Desargues graph 3color edge.svg
1-factorization of Desargues graph: each color class is a 1-factor.
Petersen graph can be partitioned into a 1-factor (red) and a 2-factor (blue). However, the graph is not 1-factorable. Petersen-graph-factors.svg
Petersen graph can be partitioned into a 1-factor (red) and a 2-factor (blue). However, the graph is not 1-factorable.

In graph theory, a factor of a graph G is a spanning subgraph, i.e., a subgraph that has the same vertex set as G. A k-factor of a graph is a spanning k-regular subgraph, and a k-factorization partitions the edges of the graph into disjoint k-factors. A graph G is said to be k-factorable if it admits a k-factorization. In particular, a 1-factor is a perfect matching, and a 1-factorization of a k-regular graph is a proper edge coloring with k colors. A 2-factor is a collection of cycles that spans all vertices of the graph.

Contents

1-factorization

If a graph is 1-factorable (i.e., has a 1-factorization), then it has to be a regular graph. However, not all regular graphs are 1-factorable. A k-regular graph is 1-factorable if it has chromatic index k; examples of such graphs include:

However, there are also k-regular graphs that have chromatic index k + 1, and these graphs are not 1-factorable; examples of such graphs include:

Complete graphs

1-factorization of K8 in which each 1-factor consists of an edge from the center to a vertex of a heptagon together with all possible perpendicular edges Complete-edge-coloring.svg
1-factorization of K8 in which each 1-factor consists of an edge from the center to a vertex of a heptagon together with all possible perpendicular edges

A 1-factorization of a complete graph corresponds to pairings in a round-robin tournament. The 1-factorization of complete graphs is a special case of Baranyai's theorem concerning the 1-factorization of complete hypergraphs.

One method for constructing a 1-factorization of a complete graph on an even number of vertices involves placing all but one of the vertices on a circle, forming a regular polygon, with the remaining vertex at the center of the circle. With this arrangement of vertices, one way of constructing a 1-factor of the graph is to choose an edge e from the center to a single polygon vertex together with all possible edges that lie on lines perpendicular to e. The 1-factors that can be constructed in this way form a 1-factorization of the graph.

The number of distinct 1-factorizations of K2, K4, K6, K8, ... is 1, 1, 6, 6240, 1225566720, 252282619805368320, 98758655816833727741338583040, ... OEIS:  A000438 .

1-factorization conjecture

Let G be a k-regular graph with 2n nodes. If k is sufficiently large, it is known that G has to be 1-factorable:

The 1-factorization conjecture [3] is a long-standing conjecture that states that k  n is sufficient. In precise terms, the conjecture is:

The overfull conjecture implies the 1-factorization conjecture.

Perfect 1-factorization

A perfect pair from a 1-factorization is a pair of 1-factors whose union induces a Hamiltonian cycle.

A perfect 1-factorization (P1F) of a graph is a 1-factorization having the property that every pair of 1-factors is a perfect pair. A perfect 1-factorization should not be confused with a perfect matching (also called a 1-factor).

In 1964, Anton Kotzig conjectured that every complete graph K2n where n ≥ 2 has a perfect 1-factorization. So far, it is known that the following graphs have a perfect 1-factorization: [4]

If the complete graph Kn + 1 has a perfect 1-factorization, then the complete bipartite graph Kn,n also has a perfect 1-factorization. [5]

2-factorization

If a graph is 2-factorable, then it has to be 2k-regular for some integer k. Julius Petersen showed in 1891 that this necessary condition is also sufficient: any 2k-regular graph is 2-factorable. [6]

If a connected graph is 2k-regular and has an even number of edges it may also be k-factored, by choosing each of the two factors to be an alternating subset of the edges of an Euler tour. [7] This applies only to connected graphs; disconnected counterexamples include disjoint unions of odd cycles, or of copies of K2k+1.

The Oberwolfach problem concerns the existence of 2-factorizations of complete graphs into isomorphic subgraphs. It asks for which subgraphs this is possible. This is known when the subgraph is connected (in which case it is a Hamiltonian cycle and this special case is the problem of Hamiltonian decomposition) but the general case remains unsolved.

Related Research Articles

In graph theory, a perfect matching in a graph is a matching that covers every vertex of the graph. More formally, given a graph G = (V, E), a perfect matching in G is a subset M of edge set E, such that every vertex in the vertex set V is adjacent to exactly one edge in M.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petersen graph</span> Cubic graph with 10 vertices and 15 edges

In the mathematical field of graph theory, the Petersen graph is an undirected graph with 10 vertices and 15 edges. It is a small graph that serves as a useful example and counterexample for many problems in graph theory. The Petersen graph is named after Julius Petersen, who in 1898 constructed it to be the smallest bridgeless cubic graph with no three-edge-coloring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bipartite graph</span> Graph divided into two independent sets

In the mathematical field of graph theory, a bipartite graph is a graph whose vertices can be divided into two disjoint and independent sets and , that is, every edge connects a vertex in to one in . Vertex sets and are usually called the parts of the graph. Equivalently, a bipartite graph is a graph that does not contain any odd-length cycles.

This is a glossary of graph theory. Graph theory is the study of graphs, systems of nodes or vertices connected in pairs by lines or edges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outerplanar graph</span> Non-crossing graph with vertices on outer face

In graph theory, an outerplanar graph is a graph that has a planar drawing for which all vertices belong to the outer face of the drawing.

In graph theory, an undirected graph H is called a minor of the graph G if H can be formed from G by deleting edges, vertices and by contracting edges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Complete bipartite graph</span> Bipartite graph where each node of 1st set is linked to all nodes of 2nd set

In the mathematical field of graph theory, a complete bipartite graph or biclique is a special kind of bipartite graph where every vertex of the first set is connected to every vertex of the second set.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perfect graph</span> Graph with tight clique-coloring relation

In graph theory, a perfect graph is a graph in which the chromatic number equals the size of the maximum clique, both in the graph itself and in every induced subgraph. In all graphs, the chromatic number is greater than or equal to the size of the maximum clique, but they can be far apart. A graph is perfect when these numbers are equal, and remain equal after the deletion of arbitrary subsets of vertices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perfect graph theorem</span> An undirected graph is perfect if and only if its complement graph is also perfect

In graph theory, the perfect graph theorem of László Lovász states that an undirected graph is perfect if and only if its complement graph is also perfect. This result had been conjectured by Berge, and it is sometimes called the weak perfect graph theorem to distinguish it from the strong perfect graph theorem characterizing perfect graphs by their forbidden induced subgraphs.

In the mathematical discipline of graph theory, the line graph of an undirected graph G is another graph L(G) that represents the adjacencies between edges of G. L(G) is constructed in the following way: for each edge in G, make a vertex in L(G); for every two edges in G that have a vertex in common, make an edge between their corresponding vertices in L(G).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edge coloring</span> Problem of coloring a graphs edges such that meeting edges do not match

In graph theory, a proper edge coloring of a graph is an assignment of "colors" to the edges of the graph so that no two incident edges have the same color. For example, the figure to the right shows an edge coloring of a graph by the colors red, blue, and green. Edge colorings are one of several different types of graph coloring. The edge-coloring problem asks whether it is possible to color the edges of a given graph using at most k different colors, for a given value of k, or with the fewest possible colors. The minimum required number of colors for the edges of a given graph is called the chromatic index of the graph. For example, the edges of the graph in the illustration can be colored by three colors but cannot be colored by two colors, so the graph shown has chromatic index three.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tutte theorem</span> Characterization of graphs with perfect matchings

In the mathematical discipline of graph theory the Tutte theorem, named after William Thomas Tutte, is a characterization of finite undirected graphs with perfect matchings. It is a generalization of Hall's marriage theorem from bipartite to arbitrary graphs. It is a special case of the Tutte–Berge formula.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hypercube graph</span> Graphs formed by a hypercubes edges and vertices

In graph theory, the hypercube graphQn is the graph formed from the vertices and edges of an n-dimensional hypercube. For instance, the cube graph Q3 is the graph formed by the 8 vertices and 12 edges of a three-dimensional cube. Qn has 2n vertices, 2n – 1n edges, and is a regular graph with n edges touching each vertex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Factor-critical graph</span> Graph of n vertices with a perfect matching for every subgraph of n-1 vertices

In graph theory, a mathematical discipline, a factor-critical graph is a graph with n vertices in which every subgraph of n − 1 vertices has a perfect matching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Odd graph</span> Family of symmetric graphs which generalize the Petersen graph

In the mathematical field of graph theory, the odd graphs are a family of symmetric graphs defined from certain set systems. They include and generalize the Petersen graph.

In graph theory, an area of mathematics, an equitable coloring is an assignment of colors to the vertices of an undirected graph, in such a way that

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herschel graph</span> Bipartite non-Hamiltonian polyhedral graph

In graph theory, a branch of mathematics, the Herschel graph is a bipartite undirected graph with 11 vertices and 18 edges. It is a polyhedral graph, and is the smallest polyhedral graph that does not have a Hamiltonian cycle, a cycle passing through all its vertices. It is named after British astronomer Alexander Stewart Herschel, because of Herschel's studies of Hamiltonian cycles in polyhedral graphs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petersen's theorem</span>

In the mathematical discipline of graph theory, Petersen's theorem, named after Julius Petersen, is one of the earliest results in graph theory and can be stated as follows:

Petersen's Theorem. Every cubic, bridgeless graph contains a perfect matching.

In the mathematical discipline of graph theory, a rainbow matching in an edge-colored graph is a matching in which all the edges have distinct colors.

In the mathematical discipline of graph theory, the 2-factor theorem, discovered by Julius Petersen, is one of the earliest works in graph theory. It can be stated as follows:

Let G be a regular graph whose degree is an even number, 2k. Then the edges of G can be partitioned into k edge-disjoint 2-factors.

References

  1. Harary (1969), Theorem 9.2, p. 85. Diestel (2005), Corollary 2.1.3, p. 37.
  2. Harary (1969), Theorem 9.1, p. 85.
  3. Chetwynd & Hilton (1985). Niessen (1994). Perkovic & Reed (1997). West.
  4. Wallis, W. D. (1997), "16. Perfect Factorizations", One-factorizations, Mathematics and Its Applications, vol. 390 (1 ed.), Springer US, p. 125, doi:10.1007/978-1-4757-2564-3_16, ISBN   978-0-7923-4323-3
  5. Bryant, Darryn; Maenhaut, Barbara M.; Wanless, Ian M. (May 2002), "A Family of Perfect Factorisations of Complete Bipartite Graphs", Journal of Combinatorial Theory, A, 98 (2): 328–342, doi: 10.1006/jcta.2001.3240 , ISSN   0097-3165
  6. Petersen (1891), §9, p. 200. Harary (1969), Theorem 9.9, p. 90. See Diestel (2005), Corollary 2.1.5, p. 39 for a proof.
  7. Petersen (1891), §6, p. 198.

Bibliography

Further reading