Graph Theory

Connectivity, Coloring, Matching

Arjun Suresh1

1 GATE Overflow

GO Classroom, August 2018

Thanks to Subarna/Sukanya Das for wonderful figures

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Table of Contents

1 Graph

2 Graph Connectivity

3 Graph Coloring

4 Matching

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Table of Contents

1 Graph

2 Graph Connectivity

3 Graph Coloring

4 Matching

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Graph

Graph
G = (V , E ) is a graph and consists of a set of objects called vertices and
edges such that each edge ek is associated with an unordered pair of
vertices (vi , vj )

Figure: Graph

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Graph Types

Directed Graph
A graph G = (V , E ) is a directed graph if each edge ek is associated with
an ORDERED pair of vertices (vi , vj )

Figure: Directed Graph

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Graph Types

Simple Graph
A graph that has neither self loops nor parallel edges

Figure: Simple Graphs

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Graph Types
Finite Graph
By default the number of edges or vertices in a graph can be infinite. A
graph with a finite number of vertices and edges is called a finite graph

Figure: Finite Graph

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Graph Types

Null graph
A graph without any edges

Figure: Null Graph

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Incidence and Degree
Incidence
If a vertex vi is an end vertex of an edge ek , we say vi and ek are incident
with each other

Figure: Here V1 and e1 are incident with each other

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Incidence and Degree

Degree
The number of edges incident on a vertex vi with self loops counted twice
is called the degree of vertex vi

Figure: Degree of vertex V1 is 5

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Incidence and Degree

Isolated vertex
A vertex having no incident edges (zero degree)

Figure: Isolated Vertex(Degree of V1 vertex is 0)

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Incidence and Degree

Pendant vertex
A vertex of degree one

Figure: Pendant Vertex(Degree of vertex V1 is 1)

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Subgraphs
Subgraphs
A graph H is said to be a subgraph of a graph G (H ⊂ G ) if all vertices
and edges of H are in G and all edges of H have the same end vertices in
H as in G

Every graph is its own subgraph

A single vertex in a graph is its subgraph
A single edge of a graph with the end vertices is its subgraph

Figure: Subgraph

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Complete Graph
Complete Graph
A graph in which every vertex is connected to every other vertex is called a
complete graph

Also known as a clique

A complete graph of n vertices contain n(n − 1)/2 edges

Figure: Complete Graph

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Walks, Paths and Circuits

Walk
An alternating sequence of vertices and edges beginning and ending with
vertices such that each edge is incident on the preceding and succeeding
vertices is called a walk. A vertex can repeat in a walk but not any edge.

Figure: Walk : V6 →V4 →V2 →V3 →V4 →V1

Length of the Walk : 5

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Walks, Paths and Circuits
Open and Closed Walk
A walk with same start and end vertices is called an closed walk. A walk
that is not closed is open walk.

Figure: Open walk : Figure: Closed walk :

(V6 →V2 →V3 →V4 →V5 →V6 →V7 ) (V7 →V4 →V3 →V2 →V7 )

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Walks, Paths and Circuits

Path
An open walk with no repeating vertices

Figure: Path : V1 →V2 →V3 →V4 →V5 →V6 →V7

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Walks, Paths and Circuits

Circuit
A closed walk in which no vertex appears more than once

Figure: Circuit : V1 →V2 →V3 →V4 →V5 →V1

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Euler Graph

Euler line and Euler Graph

A closed walk containing all edges of a graph is called an Euler line and a
graph containing an Euler line is called an Euler graph

Theorem
A given connected graph G is Euler if and only if all vertices of G are of
even degree. i.e.,

A given connected graph G is Euler if all its vertices are of even degree
If all vertices of a graph G are of even degree then G is an Euler graph

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Euler Graph

Figure: Euler Line : V1 →V2 →V3 →V6 →V5 →V2 →V4 →V5 →V3 →V1
Euler Graph

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Hamiltonian Paths and Circuits

Hamiltonian Circuit
A closed walk that traverses every vertex exactly once except the starting
and ending vertex. Or a circuit including every vertex of a graph. A
Hamiltonian circuit in a graph of n vertices is of length n.

Hamiltonian Path
A path obtained by removing any edge from a Hamiltonian circuit. The
length of a Hamiltonian path in a graph of n vertices is n − 1

A graph containing a Hamiltonian circuit always has a Hamiltonian

path but the reverse is not always true. i.e., some graphs have
Hamiltonian path but not any Hamiltonian circuit.
Unlike for Euler graph, there is no known necessary and sufficient
condition for a graph to have a Hamiltonian circuit

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Hamiltonian Paths and Circuits

Figure: Hamiltonian Circuit : Figure: Hamiltonian Path :

(V1 →V8 →V5 →V2 →V3 (V1 →V8 →V5 →V2 →V3
→V6 →V7 →V4 →V1 ) →V6 →V7 →V4 )

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Hamiltonian Circuits

Theorem
In a complete graph of n vertices (n is odd and n ≥ 3) there are (n − 1)/2
edge-disjoint Hamiltonian circuits

Theorem
A sufficient (not necessary) condition for a simple graph G with n vertices
to have a Hamiltonian circuit is that the degree of every vertex of G be at
least n/2

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Table of Contents

1 Graph

2 Graph Connectivity

3 Graph Coloring

4 Matching

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Havel-Hakimi Algorithm

Tells us if a given sequence of integers can form the degree sequence of a

graph.
Theorem
Let S = (d1 , . . . , dn ) be a finite list of nonnegative integers that is
nonincreasing. List S is graphic if and only if the finite list
S 0 = (d2 − 1, d3 − 1, . . . , dd1 +1 − 1, dd1 +2 , . . . , dn ) has non-negative
integers and is graphic.

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Havel-Hakimi Algorithm

S = h5, 5, 5, 3, 2, 2, 1i
S = h5, 5, 4, 3, 2, 2, 1i
Subtract 1 from the next 5
Subtract 1 from the next 5
numbers after removing the leading
numbers after removing the leading
5
5
S 0 = h4, 4, 2, 1, 1, 1i
S 0 = h4, 3, 2, 1, 1, 1i
(already in non decreasing order)
(already in non decreasing order)
Remove 4
Remove 4
S 0 = h3, 1, 0, 0, 1i
S 0 = h2, 1, 0, 0, 1i
Rearrange in non decreasing order
Rearrange in non decreasing order
S 0 = h3, 1, 1, 0, 0i
S 0 = h2, 1, 1, 0, 0i
Remove 3
Remove 2
S 0 = h0, 0, −1, 0i
S 0 = h0, 0, 0, 0i
Negative number came, hence, not
Hence, graphic.
graphic.
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Connected Component

Cut-Set
Every connected subgraph of a disconnected graph G is a component of G

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Tree
A tree is
A connected graph without a circuit
A connected graph of n vertices and n − 1 edges
A graph in which there is a unique path between any two vertices
A minimally connected graph (minimally connected - removal of any
one edge disconnects the graph)
A circuit-less graph with n − 1 edges

Figure: Tree

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Distance and Centers

The distance between two vertices vi and vj in a connected graph is

the length of the shortest path between them
Eccentricity of a vertex E (v ) is the distance of v with the vertex
farthest from it
A vertex with the minimal eccentricity in a graph G is called a center
of G - there can be multiple centers for a graph
A tree has either one or two centers

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Counting Trees

Number of labeled trees with n vertices (n ≥ 2) is nn−2

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Spanning Trees

Spanning Tree
A tree T is said to be a spanning tree of a connected graph G if T is a
subgraph of G and contains all vertices of G

An edge in a spanning tree T is called a branch of T

An edge of a graph which is not in a given spanning tree T is called a
chord of T
A circuit formed by adding a chord to any spanning tree is called a
fundamental circuit

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Spanning Trees

Figure: Connected Graph

Figure: Spanning Tree

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Spanning Trees

Spanning Tree
With respect to any spanning tree, a connected graph of n vertices and e
edges has n − 1 tree branches and e − n + 1 chords

Rank of a graph G is the number of branches in any spanning tree of

G
Nullity of a graph G (also referred to as cyclomatic number) is the
number of chords with respect to any spanning tree in G
Rank + Nullity = Number of edges

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Spanning Trees

Distance between two Spanning Tree

The distance between two spanning trees T1 and T2 of a graph G ,
d(T1 , T2 ) is the number of edges present in one but not in the other

We can generate a spanning tree T2 from another spanning tree T1

by adding a chord and removing an appropriate branch - cyclic
interchange
The minimum number of cyclic interchanges required to get a
spanning tree T2 from another spanning tree T1 is given by d(T1 , T2 )
max d(T1 , T2 ) ≤ min(µ, r ), µ − nullity, r − rank

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Spanning Trees

Central Tree
A spanning tree with the minimal distance with any other spanning tree is
called a central tree
i.e., for a central tree Tc ,

max d(Tc , Ti ) ≤ max d(T , Tj ), ∀ tree T of G

i j

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Cut-Sets and Cut-Vertices

Cut-Set
A cut-set is a set of edges in a connected graph G whose removal from G
leaves the graph disconnected, provided removal of no proper subset of
these edges disconnects G

Figure: Cut set :(By removal of e3 , e4 , e5 edges this graph will be disconnected)

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Cut-Sets and Cut-Vertices

Theorem 1
Every cut-set in a connected graph G must contain at least one branch
from EVERY spanning tree of G

Theorem 2 - Converse of Theorem 1

In a connected graph G every minimal set of edges containing at least one
branch of EVERY spanning tree is a cut-set

Theorem 3
Every cut-set has an even number of edges in common with every circuit

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Edge and Vertex Connectivity

Edge Connectivity
The number of edges in the smallest cut-set

Vertex Connectivity
The minimum number of vertices whose removal leaves the remaining
graph disconnected

The edge and vertex connectivity of a tree is one

Separable Graph
A connected graph is said to be separable if its vertex connectivity is one

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Edge and Vertex Connectivity

The edge connectivity of a graph G cannot exceed the degree of the

vertex of G with the smallest degree
The vertex connectivity of a graph G cannot exceed its edge
connectivity
The maximum vertex connectivity
  one can achieve with a graph of n
2e
vertices and e edges is
n

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Table of Contents

1 Graph

2 Graph Connectivity

3 Graph Coloring

4 Matching

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Graph Coloring
Proper Coloring
Coloring all the vertices of a graph such that no adjacent vertices are of
same color is called proper coloring of a graph

A graph that requires minimum k different colors for proper coloring

is called k − chromatic graph
Minimum number of colors required for proper coloring of a graph is
called the chromatic number of the graph

Figure: Colouring of a Graph

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Chromatic Number

A graph consisting of only isolated vertices is 1−chromatic

A graph with one or more edges is at least 2−chromatic
A complete graph of n vertices is n−chromatic
( graph consisting of simply one circuit with n ≥ 3 is
A
2-chromatic if n is even
3-chromatic if n is odd

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Chromatic Number

Finding chromatic number of a graph is NP-hard - no polynomial

time algorithm known so far
Chromatic number of some specific types of graphs can be found
easily
Every tree with 2 or more vertices is 2− chromatic (every 2−
chromatic graph is not a tree)
A graph of at least one edge is 2− chromatic if and only if does not
have any circuit of odd length

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Chromatic Number

Figure: Chromatic Number: χ(G ) = 1

Figure: Chromatic Number: χ(G ) = 2

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Chromatic Number

Figure: Chromatic Number: χ(G ) = 6

Figure: Chromatic Number: χ(G ) = 2

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Chromatic Number

Figure: Chromatic Number: χ(C6 ) = 2

Figure: Chromatic Number: χ(C5 ) = 3

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Chromatic Partitioning
A proper coloring of a graph induces a partitioning of its vertices into
disjoint subsets
No two vertices in any of these partitions are adjacent

Figure: Set A = {V1 , V4 , V6 }

Set B = {V2 }
Set C = {V3 }
Set D = {V5 }
Chromatic Number: χ(G ) = 4

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Bipartite Graph

Bipartite Graph
A graph G is called a bipartite graph if the vertex set of G can be
decomposed into two disjoint subsets V1 and V2 such that every edge in G
joins a vertex in V1 with a vertex in V2 .

Every 2−chromatic graph is bipartite

Every bipartite graph except one with two or more isolated vertices
and no edges, is 2− chromatic

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Bipartite Graph

Figure: Set A = {V1 , V3 , V5 } Figure: Set A = {V1 , V2 , V3 }

Set B = {V2 , V4 } Set B = {V4 , V5 , V6 }

Figure: Set A = {V1 , V6 , V8 , V4 } Figure: Set A = {V1 , V4 }

Set B = {V2 , V3 , V5 , V7 } Set B = {V2 , V3 }

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Independent Set

Independent Set
A set of vertices in a graph is said to be independent set if no two vertices
in the set are adjacent

A maximal independent set is an independent set to which no vertex

can be added without losing the independence property
The number of vertices in the largest independent set of a graph is
called its independence number β(G ). If n is the number of vertices
and k the chromatic number
n
β(G ) ≥
k
The minimum number of maximal independent sets which collectively
include all the vertices of a graph, gives its chromatic number

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Table of Contents

1 Graph

2 Graph Connectivity

3 Graph Coloring

4 Matching

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Matching

Matching
A matching in a graph is a subset of its edges such that no two edges are
adjacent

A maximal matching is a matching to which no more edges can be

added
In a complete graph of 3 vertices each edge is a maximal matching
A maximal matching with the largest number of edges is called a
largest maximal matching
The number of edges in the largest maximal matching of a graph is
called its matching number

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Complete Matching

Complete Matching
A matching in a bipartite graph with vertex partition V1 and V2 is a
complete matching of vertices in V1 into those in V2 if there is an edge
incident on each vertex of V1

A complete matching if it exists is a largest maximal matching

A largest maximal matching need not be complete

Theorem
A complete matching of V1 into V2 in a bipartite graph exists if and only if
every subset of r vertices in V1 is collectively adjacent to r or more
vertices in V2 for all possible values of r .

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Complete Matching

Complete Matching
A matching in a bipartite graph with vertex partition V1 and V2 is a
complete matching of vertices in V1 into those in V2 if there is an edge
incident on each vertex of V1

A complete matching if it exists is a largest maximal matching

A largest maximal matching need not be complete

Theorem
A complete matching of V1 into V2 in a bipartite graph exists if and only if
every subset of r vertices in V1 is collectively adjacent to r or more
vertices in V2 for all possible values of r

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Complete Matching

Theorem
In a bipartite graph a complete matching of V1 into V2 exists if there is a
positive integer m such that

degree of every vertex in V1 ≥ m ≥ degree of every vertex in V2

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