GRAPH THEORY

In the domain of mathematics and computer science, graph theory is the study of graphs that
concerns with the relationship among edges and vertices. It is a popular subject having its
applications in computer science, information technology, biosciences, mathematics, and
linguistics to name a few. Without further ado, let us start with defining a graph.

What is a Graph?
A graph is a pictorial representation of a set of objects where some pairs of objects are
connected by links. The interconnected objects are represented by points termed as vertices,
and the links that connect the vertices are called edges.

Formally, a graph is a pair of sets (V, E), where V is the set of vertices and E is the set of
edges, connecting the pairs of vertices. Take a look at the following graph −

In the above graph,

V = {a, b, c, d, e}

E = {ab, ac, bd, cd, de}

Applications of Graph Theory

Graph theory has its applications in diverse fields of engineering −

 Electrical Engineering − The concepts of graph theory is used extensively in

designing circuit connections. The types or organization of connections are named as
topologies. Some examples for topologies are star, bridge, series, and parallel
topologies.
 Computer Science − Graph theory is used for the study of algorithms. For example,
o Kruskal's Algorithm
o Prim's Algorithm
o Dijkstra's Algorithm
 Computer Network − The relationships among interconnected computers in the
network follows the principles of graph theory.
  Science − The molecular structure and chemical structure of a substance, the DNA
structure of an organism, etc., are represented by graphs.
 Linguistics − The parsing tree of a language and grammar of a language uses graphs.
 General − Routes between the cities can be represented using graphs. Depicting
hierarchical ordered information such as family tree can be used as a special type of
graph called tree.

FUNDAMENTALS
A graph is a diagram of points and lines connected to the points. It has at least one line
joining a set of two vertices with no vertex connecting itself. The concept of graphs in graph
theory stands up on some basic terms such as point, line, vertex, edge, degree of vertices,
properties of graphs, etc. Here, in this chapter, we will cover these fundamentals of graph
theory.

Point
A point is a particular position in a one-dimensional, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional
space. For better understanding, a point can be denoted by an alphabet. It can be represented
with a dot.

Example

Here, the dot is a point named ‘a’.

Line
A Line is a connection between two points. It can be represented with a solid line.

Example

Here, ‘a’ and ‘b’ are the points. The link between these two points is called a line.

Vertex
A vertex is a point where multiple lines meet. It is also called a node. Similar to points, a
vertex is also denoted by an alphabet.
Example

Here, the vertex is named with an alphabet ‘a’.

Edge
An edge is the mathematical term for a line that connects two vertices. Many edges can be
formed from a single vertex. Without a vertex, an edge cannot be formed. There must be a
starting vertex and an ending vertex for an edge.

Example

Here, ‘a’ and ‘b’ are the two vertices and the link between them is called an edge.

Graph
A graph ‘G’ is defined as G = (V, E) Where V is a set of all vertices and E is a set of all edges
in the graph.

Example 1

In the above example, ab, ac, cd, and bd are the edges of the graph. Similarly, a, b, c, and d
are the vertices of the graph.
Example 2

In this graph, there are four vertices a, b, c, and d, and four edges ab, ac, ad, and cd.

Loop
In a graph, if an edge is drawn from vertex to itself, it is called a loop.

Example 1

In the above graph, V is a vertex for which it has an edge (V, V) forming a loop.

Example 2

In this graph, there are two loops which are formed at vertex a, and vertex b.

Degree of Vertex
It is the number of vertices adjacent to a vertex V.

Notation − deg(V).

In a simple graph with n number of vertices, the degree of any vertices is −

deg(v) ≤ n – 1 ∀ v ∈ G
A vertex can form an edge with all other vertices except by itself. So the degree of a vertex
will be up to the number of vertices in the graph minus 1. This 1 is for the self-vertex as it
cannot form a loop by itself. If there is a loop at any of the vertices, then it is not a Simple
Graph.

Degree of vertex can be considered under two cases of graphs −

 Undirected Graph
 Directed Graph

Degree of Vertex in an Undirected Graph

An undirected graph has no directed edges. Consider the following examples.

Example 1

Take a look at the following graph −

In the above Undirected Graph,

 deg(a) = 2, as there are 2 edges meeting at vertex ‘a’.

 deg(b) = 3, as there are 3 edges meeting at vertex ‘b’.

 deg(c) = 1, as there is 1 edge formed at vertex ‘c’

So ‘c’ is a pendent vertex.

 deg(d) = 2, as there are 2 edges meeting at vertex ‘d’.

  deg(e) = 0, as there are 0 edges formed at vertex ‘e’.

So ‘e’ is an isolated vertex.

Example 2

Take a look at the following graph −

In the above graph,

deg(a) = 2, deg(b) = 2, deg(c) = 2, deg(d) = 2, and deg(e) = 0.

The vertex ‘e’ is an isolated vertex. The graph does not have any pendent vertex.

Degree of Vertex in a Directed Graph

In a directed graph, each vertex has an indegree and an outdegree.

Indegree of a Graph

 Indegree of vertex V is the number of edges which are coming into the vertex V.

 Notation − deg−(V).

Outdegree of a Graph

 Outdegree of vertex V is the number of edges which are going out from the vertex V.

 Notation − deg+(V).

Consider the following examples.

Example 1

Take a look at the following directed graph. Vertex ‘a’ has two edges, ‘ad’ and ‘ab’, which
are going outwards. Hence its outdegree is 2. Similarly, there is an edge ‘ga’, coming towards
vertex ‘a’. Hence the indegree of ‘a’ is 1.
The indegree and outdegree of other vertices are shown in the following table −

Vertex Indegree Outdegree

a 1 2

b 2 0

c 2 1

d 1 1

e 1 1

f 1 1

g 0 2

Example 2

Take a look at the following directed graph. Vertex ‘a’ has an edge ‘ae’ going outwards from
vertex ‘a’. Hence its outdegree is 1. Similarly, the graph has an edge ‘ba’ coming towards
vertex ‘a’. Hence the indegree of ‘a’ is 1.
The indegree and outdegree of other vertices are shown in the following table −

Vertex Indegree Outdegree

a 1 1

b 0 2

c 2 0

d 1 1

e 1 1

Pendent Vertex
By using degree of a vertex, we have a two special types of vertices. A vertex with degree
one is called a pendent vertex.

Example

Here, in this example, vertex ‘a’ and vertex ‘b’ have a connected edge ‘ab’. So with respect to
the vertex ‘a’, there is only one edge towards vertex ‘b’ and similarly with respect to the
vertex ‘b’, there is only one edge towards vertex ‘a’. Finally, vertex ‘a’ and vertex ‘b’ has
degree as one which are also called as the pendent vertex.

Isolated Vertex
A vertex with degree zero is called an isolated vertex.
Example

Here, the vertex ‘a’ and vertex ‘b’ has a no connectivity between each other and also to any
other vertices. So the degree of both the vertices ‘a’ and ‘b’ are zero. These are also called as
isolated vertices.

Adjacency
Here are the norms of adjacency −

 In a graph, two vertices are said to be adjacent, if there is an edge between the two
vertices. Here, the adjacency of vertices is maintained by the single edge that is
connecting those two vertices.

 In a graph, two edges are said to be adjacent, if there is a common vertex between the
two edges. Here, the adjacency of edges is maintained by the single vertex that is
connecting two edges.

Example 1

In the above graph −

 ‘a’ and ‘b’ are the adjacent vertices, as there is a common edge ‘ab’ between them.

 ‘a’ and ‘d’ are the adjacent vertices, as there is a common edge ‘ad’ between them.

 ab’ and ‘be’ are the adjacent edges, as there is a common vertex ‘b’ between them.

 be’ and ‘de’ are the adjacent edges, as there is a common vertex ‘e’ between them.
Example 2

In the above graph −

 a’ and ‘d’ are the adjacent vertices, as there is a common edge ‘ad’ between them.

 ‘c’ and ‘b’ are the adjacent vertices, as there is a common edge ‘cb’ between them.

 ‘ad’ and ‘cd’ are the adjacent edges, as there is a common vertex ‘d’ between them.

 ac’ and ‘cd’ are the adjacent edges, as there is a common vertex ‘c’ between them.

Parallel Edges
In a graph, if a pair of vertices is connected by more than one edge, then those edges are
called parallel edges.

In the above graph, ‘a’ and ‘b’ are the two vertices which are connected by two edges ‘ab’
and ‘ab’ between them. So it is called as a parallel edge.

Multi Graph
A graph having parallel edges is known as a Multigraph.
Example 1

In the above graph, there are five edges ‘ab’, ‘ac’, ‘cd’, ‘cd’, and ‘bd’. Since ‘c’ and ‘d’ have
two parallel edges between them, it a Multigraph.

Example 2

In the above graph, the vertices ‘b’ and ‘c’ have two edges. The vertices ‘e’ and ‘d’ also have
two edges between them. Hence it is a Multigraph.

Degree Sequence of a Graph

If the degrees of all vertices in a graph are arranged in descending or ascending order, then
the sequence obtained is known as the degree sequence of the graph.

Example 1

Vertex A b c d e
Connecting to b,c a,d a,d c,b,e d

Degree 2 2 2 3 1

In the above graph, for the vertices {d, a, b, c, e}, the degree sequence is {3, 2, 2, 2, 1}.

Example 2

Vertex A b c d e f

Connecting to b,e a,c b,d c,e a,d -

Degree 2 2 2 2 2 0

In the above graph, for the vertices {a, b, c, d, e, f}, the degree sequence is {2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 0}.

BASIC PROPERTIES OF GRAPH

Graphs come with various properties which are used for characterization of graphs depending
on their structures. These properties are defined in specific terms pertaining to the domain of
graph theory. In this chapter, we will discuss a few basic properties that are common in all
graphs.

Distance between Two Vertices

It is number of edges in a shortest path between Vertex U and Vertex V. If there are multiple
paths connecting two vertices, then the shortest path is considered as the distance between the
two vertices.

Notation − d(U,V)

There can be any number of paths present from one vertex to other. Among those, you need
to choose only the shortest one.
Example

Take a look at the following graph −

Here, the distance from vertex ‘d’ to vertex ‘e’ or simply ‘de’ is 1 as there is one edge
between them. There are many paths from vertex ‘d’ to vertex ‘e’ −

 da, ab, be
 df, fg, ge
 de (It is considered for distance between the vertices)
 df, fc, ca, ab, be
 da, ac, cf, fg, ge

Eccentricity of a Vertex
The maximum distance between a vertex to all other vertices is considered as the eccentricity
of vertex.

Notation − e(V)

The distance from a particular vertex to all other vertices in the graph is taken and among
those distances, the eccentricity is the highest of distances.

Example

In the above graph, the eccentricity of ‘a’ is 3.

The distance from ‘a’ to ‘b’ is 1 (‘ab’),

from ‘a’ to ‘c’ is 1 (‘ac’),

from ‘a’ to ‘d’ is 1 (‘ad’),

from ‘a’ to ‘e’ is 2 (‘ab’-‘be’) or (‘ad’-‘de’),

from ‘a’ to ‘f’ is 2 (‘ac’-‘cf’) or (‘ad’-‘df’),

from ‘a’ to ‘g’ is 3 (‘ac’-‘cf’-‘fg’) or (‘ad’-‘df’-‘fg’).

So the eccentricity is 3, which is a maximum from vertex ‘a’ from the distance between ‘ag’
which is maximum.

In other words,

e(b) = 3

e(c) = 3

e(d) = 2

e(e) = 3

e(f) = 3

e(g) = 3

Radius of a Connected Graph

The minimum eccentricity from all the vertices is considered as the radius of the Graph G.
The minimum among all the maximum distances between a vertex to all other vertices is
considered as the radius of the Graph G.

Notation − r(G)

From all the eccentricities of the vertices in a graph, the radius of the connected graph is the
minimum of all those eccentricities.

Example − In the above graph r(G) = 2, which is the minimum eccentricity for ‘d’.

Diameter of a Graph
The maximum eccentricity from all the vertices is considered as the diameter of the Graph G.
The maximum among all the distances between a vertex to all other vertices is considered as
the diameter of the Graph G.

Notation − d(G)

From all the eccentricities of the vertices in a graph, the diameter of the connected graph is
the maximum of all those eccentricities.

Example − In the above graph, d(G) = 3; which is the maximum eccentricity.

Central Point
If the eccentricity of a graph is equal to its radius, then it is known as the central point of the
graph. If

e(V) = r(V),

then ‘V’ is the central point of the Graph ’G’.

Example − In the example graph, ‘d’ is the central point of the graph.

e(d) = r(d) = 2

Centre
The set of all central points of ‘G’ is called the centre of the Graph.

Example − In the example graph, {‘d’} is the centre of the Graph.

Circumference
The number of edges in the longest cycle of ‘G’ is called as the circumference of ‘G’.

Example − In the example graph, the circumference is 6, which we derived from the longest
cycle a-c-f-g-e-b-a or a-c-f-d-e-b-a.

Girth
The number of edges in the shortest cycle of ‘G’ is called its Girth.

Notation − g(G).

Example − In the example graph, the Girth of the graph is 4, which we derived from the
shortest cycle a-c-f-d-a or d-f-g-e-d or a-b-e-d-a.

Sum of Degrees of Vertices Theorem

If G = (V, E) be a non-directed graph with vertices V = {V1, V2,…Vn} then

n ∑ i=1 deg(Vi) = 2|E|

Corollary 1

If G = (V, E) be a directed graph with vertices V = {V1, V2,…Vn}, then

n ∑ i=1 deg+(Vi) = |E| = n ∑ i=1 deg−(Vi)

Corollary 2

In any non-directed graph, the number of vertices with Odd degree is Even.
Corollary 3

In a non-directed graph, if the degree of each vertex is k, then

k|V| = 2|E|

Corollary 4

In a non-directed graph, if the degree of each vertex is at least k, then

k|V| ≤ 2|E|

Corollary 5

In a non-directed graph, if the degree of each vertex is at most k, then

k|V| ≥ 2|E|

TYPES OF GRAPH
There are various types of graphs depending upon the number of vertices, number of edges,
interconnectivity, and their overall structure. We will discuss only a certain few important
types of graphs in this chapter.

Null Graph
A graph having no edges is called a Null Graph.

Example

In the above graph, there are three vertices named ‘a’, ‘b’, and ‘c’, but there are no edges
among them. Hence it is a Null Graph.

Trivial Graph
A graph with only one vertex is called a Trivial Graph.
Example

In the above shown graph, there is only one vertex ‘a’ with no other edges. Hence it is a
Trivial graph.

Non-Directed Graph
A non-directed graph contains edges but the edges are not directed ones.

Example

In this graph, ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, ‘d’, ‘e’, ‘f’, ‘g’ are the vertices, and ‘ab’, ‘bc’, ‘cd’, ‘da’, ‘ag’, ‘gf’,
‘ef’ are the edges of the graph. Since it is a non-directed graph, the edges ‘ab’ and ‘ba’ are
same. Similarly other edges also considered in the same way.

Directed Graph
In a directed graph, each edge has a direction.
Example

In the above graph, we have seven vertices ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, ‘d’, ‘e’, ‘f’, and ‘g’, and eight edges
‘ab’, ‘cb’, ‘dc’, ‘ad’, ‘ec’, ‘fe’, ‘gf’, and ‘ga’. As it is a directed graph, each edge bears an
arrow mark that shows its direction. Note that in a directed graph, ‘ab’ is different from ‘ba’.

Simple Graph
A graph with no loops and no parallel edges is called a simple graph.

 The maximum number of edges possible in a single graph with ‘n’ vertices is nC2
where nC2 = n(n – 1)/2.

 The number of simple graphs possible with ‘n’ vertices = 2nc2 = 2n(n-1)/2.

Example

In the following graph, there are 3 vertices with 3 edges which is maximum excluding the
parallel edges and loops. This can be proved by using the above formulae.
The maximum number of edges with n=3 vertices −
n
C2 = n(n–1)/2
= 3(3–1)/2
= 6/2
= 3 edges

The maximum number of simple graphs with n=3 vertices −

2nC2 = 2n(n-1)/2
= 23(3-1)/2
= 23
= 8

These 8 graphs are as shown below −

Connected Graph
A graph G is said to be connected if there exists a path between every pair of vertices.
There should be at least one edge for every vertex in the graph. So that we can say that it is
connected to some other vertex at the other side of the edge.

Example

In the following graph, each vertex has its own edge connected to other edge. Hence it is a
connected graph.
Disconnected Graph
A graph G is disconnected, if it does not contain at least two connected vertices.

Example 1

The following graph is an example of a Disconnected Graph, where there are two
components, one with ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, ‘d’ vertices and another with ‘e’, ’f’, ‘g’, ‘h’ vertices.

The two components are independent and not connected to each other. Hence it is called
disconnected graph.
Example 2

In this example, there are two independent components, a-b-f-e and c-d, which are not
connected to each other. Hence this is a disconnected graph.

Regular Graph
A graph G is said to be regular, if all its vertices have the same degree. In a graph, if the
degree of each vertex is ‘k’, then the graph is called a ‘k-regular graph’.

Example

In the following graphs, all the vertices have the same degree. So these graphs are called
regular graphs.

In both the graphs, all the vertices have degree 2. They are called 2-Regular Graphs.

Complete Graph
A simple graph with ‘n’ mutual vertices is called a complete graph and it is denoted by ‘Kn’.
In the graph, a vertex should have edges with all other vertices, then it called a complete
graph.
In other words, if a vertex is connected to all other vertices in a graph, then it is called a
complete graph.

Example

In the following graphs, each vertex in the graph is connected with all the remaining vertices
in the graph except by itself.

In graph I,

a b c

a Not Connected Connected Connected

b Connected Not Connected Connected

c Connected Connected Not Connected

In graph II,

p q r s

p Not Connected Connected Connected Connected

q Connected Not Connected Connected Connected

r Connected Connected Not Connected Connected

s Connected Connected Connected Not Connected

Cycle Graph
A simple graph with ‘n’ vertices (n >= 3) and ‘n’ edges is called a cycle graph if all its edges
form a cycle of length ‘n’.

If the degree of each vertex in the graph is two, then it is called a Cycle Graph.
Notation − Cn

Example

Take a look at the following graphs −

 Graph I has 3 vertices with 3 edges which is forming a cycle ‘ab-bc-ca’.

 Graph II has 4 vertices with 4 edges which is forming a cycle ‘pq-qs-sr-rp’.

 Graph III has 5 vertices with 5 edges which is forming a cycle ‘ik-km-ml-lj-ji’.

Hence all the given graphs are cycle graphs.

Wheel Graph
A wheel graph is obtained from a cycle graph Cn-1 by adding a new vertex. That new vertex is
called a Hub which is connected to all the vertices of Cn.

Notation − Wn

No. of edges in Wn = No. of edges from hub to all other vertices +

No. of edges from all other nodes in cycle graph
without a hub.
= (n–1) + (n–1)
= 2(n–1)

Example

Take a look at the following graphs. They are all wheel graphs.
In graph I, it is obtained from C3 by adding an vertex at the middle named as ‘d’. It is denoted
as W4.

Number of edges in W4 = 2(n-1) = 2(3) = 6

In graph II, it is obtained from C4 by adding a vertex at the middle named as ‘t’. It is denoted
as W5.

Number of edges in W5 = 2(n-1) = 2(4) = 8

In graph III, it is obtained from C6 by adding a vertex at the middle named as ‘o’. It is
denoted as W7.

Number of edges in W4 = 2(n-1) = 2(6) = 12

Cyclic Graph
A graph with at least one cycle is called a cyclic graph.

Example

In the above example graph, we have two cycles a-b-c-d-a and c-f-g-e-c. Hence it is called a
cyclic graph.
Acyclic Graph
A graph with no cycles is called an acyclic graph.

Example

In the above example graph, we do not have any cycles. Hence it is a non-cyclic graph.

Bipartite Graph
A simple graph G = (V, E) with vertex partition V = {V1, V2} is called a bipartite graph if
every edge of E joins a vertex in V1 to a vertex in V2.

In general, a Bipertite graph has two sets of vertices, let us say, V1 and V2, and if an edge is
drawn, it should connect any vertex in set V1 to any vertex in set V2.

Example

In this graph, you can observe two sets of vertices − V1 and V2. Here, two edges named ‘ae’
and ‘bd’ are connecting the vertices of two sets V1 and V2.

Complete Bipartite Graph

A bipartite graph ‘G’, G = (V, E) with partition V = {V1, V2} is said to be a complete
bipartite graph if every vertex in V1 is connected to every vertex of V2.

In general, a complete bipartite graph connects each vertex from set V1 to each vertex from
set V2.

Example

The following graph is a complete bipartite graph because it has edges connecting each
vertex from set V1 to each vertex from set V2.

If |V1| = m and |V2| = n, then the complete bipartite graph is denoted by Km, n.

 Km,n has (m+n) vertices and (mn) edges.

 Km,n is a regular graph if m=n.

In general, a complete bipartite graph is not a complete graph.

Km,n is a complete graph if m=n=1.

The maximum number of edges in a bipartite graph with n vertices is

n2 4

If n=10, k5, 5= ⌊ n2 4 ⌋ = ⌊ 102 4 ⌋ = 25

Similarly K6, 4=24

K7, 3=21

K8, 2=16
K9, 1=9

If n=9, k5, 4 = ⌊ n2 4 ⌋ = ⌊ 92 4 ⌋ = 20

Similarly K6, 3=18

K7, 2=14

K8, 1=8

‘G’ is a bipartite graph if ‘G’ has no cycles of odd length. A special case of bipartite graph is
a star graph.

Star Graph
A complete bipartite graph of the form K1, n-1 is a star graph with n-vertices. A star graph is a
complete bipartite graph if a single vertex belongs to one set and all the remaining vertices
belong to the other set.

Example

In the above graphs, out of ‘n’ vertices, all the ‘n–1’ vertices are connected to a single vertex.
Hence it is in the form of K1, n-1 which are star graphs.

Complement of a Graph
Let 'G−' be a simple graph with some vertices as that of ‘G’ and an edge {U, V} is present in
'G−', if the edge is not present in G. It means, two vertices are adjacent in 'G−' if the two
vertices are not adjacent in G.

If the edges that exist in graph I are absent in another graph II, and if both graph I and graph
II are combined together to form a complete graph, then graph I and graph II are called
complements of each other.

Example

In the following example, graph-I has two edges ‘cd’ and ‘bd’. Its complement graph-II has
four edges.
Note that the edges in graph-I are not present in graph-II and vice versa. Hence, the
combination of both the graphs gives a complete graph of ‘n’ vertices.

Note − A combination of two complementary graphs gives a complete graph.

If ‘G’ is any simple graph, then

|E(G)| + |E('G-')| = |E(Kn)|, where n = number of vertices in the graph.

Example

Let ‘G’ be a simple graph with nine vertices and twelve edges, find the number of edges in
'G-'.

You have, |E(G)| + |E('G-')| = |E(Kn)|

12 + |E('G-')| =

9(9-1) / 2 = 9C2

12 + |E('G-')| = 36

|E('G-')| = 24

‘G’ is a simple graph with 40 edges and its complement 'G−' has 38 edges. Find the number
of vertices in the graph G or 'G−'.

Let the number of vertices in the graph be ‘n’.

We have, |E(G)| + |E('G-')| = |E(Kn)|

40 + 38 = n(n-1) 2

156 = n(n-1)

13(12) = n(n-1)
n = 13

Isomorphic Graphs
Two graphs G1 and G2 are said to be isomorphic if −

 Their number of components (vertices and edges) are same.

 Their edge connectivity is retained.

Note − In short, out of the two isomorphic graphs, one is a tweaked version of the other. An
unlabelled graph also can be thought of as an isomorphic graph.

There exists a function ‘f’ from vertices of G1 to vertices of G2

[f: V(G1) ⇒ V(G2)], such that
Case (i): f is a bijection (both one-one and onto)
Case (ii): f preserves adjacency of vertices, i.e., if the edge {U, V} ∈
G1, then the
edge {f(U), f(V)} ∈ G2, then G1 ≡ G2.

Note

If G1 ≡ G2 then −

 |V(G1)| = |V(G2)|

 |E(G1)| = |E(G2)|

 Degree sequences of G1 and G2 are same.

 If the vertices {V1, V2, .. Vk} form a cycle of length K in G1, then the vertices {f(V1),
f(V2),… f(Vk)} should form a cycle of length K in G2.

All the above conditions are necessary for the graphs G1 and G2 to be isomorphic, but not
sufficient to prove that the graphs are isomorphic.

 (G1 ≡ G2) if and only if (G1− ≡ G2−) where G1 and G2 are simple graphs.

 (G1 ≡ G2) if the adjacency matrices of G1 and G2 are same.

 (G1 ≡ G2) if and only if the corresponding subgraphs of G1 and G2 (obtained by

deleting some vertices in G1 and their images in graph G2) are isomorphic.

Example

Which of the following graphs are isomorphic?

In the graph G3, vertex ‘w’ has only degree 3, whereas all the other graph vertices has degree
2. Hence G3 not isomorphic to G1 or G2.

Taking complements of G1 and G2, you have −

Here, (G1− ≡ G2−), hence (G1 ≡ G2

Connectivity
A graph is said to be connected if there is a path between every pair of vertex. From every
vertex to any other vertex, there should be some path to traverse. That is called the
connectivity of a graph. A graph with multiple disconnected vertices and edges is said to be
disconnected.

Example 1

In the following graph, it is possible to travel from one vertex to any other vertex. For
example, one can traverse from vertex ‘a’ to vertex ‘e’ using the path ‘a-b-e’.
Example 2

In the following example, traversing from vertex ‘a’ to vertex ‘f’ is not possible because there
is no path between them directly or indirectly. Hence it is a disconnected graph.

Cut Vertex
Let ‘G’ be a connected graph. A vertex V ∈ G is called a cut vertex of ‘G’, if ‘G-V’ (Delete
‘V’ from ‘G’) results in a disconnected graph. Removing a cut vertex from a graph breaks it
in to two or more graphs.

Note − Removing a cut vertex may render a graph disconnected.

A connected graph ‘G’ may have at most (n–2) cut vertices.

Example

In the following graph, vertices ‘e’ and ‘c’ are the cut vertices.
By removing ‘e’ or ‘c’, the graph will become a disconnected graph.

Without ‘g’, there is no path between vertex ‘c’ and vertex ‘h’ and many other. Hence it is a
disconnected graph with cut vertex as ‘e’. Similarly, ‘c’ is also a cut vertex for the above
graph.

Cut Edge (Bridge)

Let ‘G’ be a connected graph. An edge ‘e’ ∈ G is called a cut edge if ‘G-e’ results in a
disconnected graph.

If removing an edge in a graph results in to two or more graphs, then that edge is called a Cut
Edge.

Example

In the following graph, the cut edge is [(c, e)]

By removing the edge (c, e) from the graph, it becomes a disconnected graph.

In the above graph, removing the edge (c, e) breaks the graph into two which is nothing but a
disconnected graph. Hence, the edge (c, e) is a cut edge of the graph.
Note − Let ‘G’ be a connected graph with ‘n’ vertices, then

 a cut edge e ∈ G if and only if the edge ‘e’ is not a part of any cycle in G.

 the maximum number of cut edges possible is ‘n-1’.

 whenever cut edges exist, cut vertices also exist because at least one vertex of a cut
edge is a cut vertex.

 if a cut vertex exists, then a cut edge may or may not exist.

CUT SET OF A GRAPH

Let ‘G’= (V, E) be a connected graph. A subset E’ of E is called a cut set of G if deletion of
all the edges of E’ from G makes G disconnect.

If deleting a certain number of edges from a graph makes it disconnected, then those deleted
edges are called the cut set of the graph.

Example

Take a look at the following graph. Its cut set is E1 = {e1, e3, e5, e8}.

After removing the cut set E1 from the graph, it would appear as follows −
Similarly there are other cut sets that can disconnect the graph −

 E3 = {e9} – Smallest cut set of the graph.

 E4 = {e3, e4, e5}

EULER AND HAMILTONIAN PATH

Certain graph problems deal with finding a path between two vertices such that each edge is
traversed exactly once, or finding a path between two vertices while visiting each vertex
exactly once. These paths are better known as Euler path and Hamiltonian path
respectively.
The Euler path problem was first proposed in the 1700’s.

Euler paths and circuits :

 An Euler path is a path that uses every edge of a graph exactly once.
 An Euler circuit is a circuit that uses every edge of a graph exactly once.
 An Euler path starts and ends at different vertices.
 An Euler circuit starts and ends at the same vertex.

The Konigsberg bridge problem’s graphical representation :

There are simple criteria for determining whether a multigraph has a Euler path or a Euler
circuit. For any multigraph to have a Euler circuit, all the degrees of the vertices must be
even.

Theorem – “A connected multigraph (and simple graph) with at least two vertices has a
Euler circuit if and only if each of its vertices has an even degree.”

Proof of the above statement is that every time a circuit passes through a vertex, it adds twice
to its degree. Since it is a circuit, it starts and ends at the same vertex, which makes it
contribute one degree when the circuit starts and one when it ends. In this way, every vertex
has an even degree.
Since the Koningsberg graph has vertices having odd degrees, a Euler circuit does not exist in
the graph.

Theorem – “A connected multigraph (and simple graph) has an Euler path but not an Euler
circuit if and only if it has exactly two vertices of odd degree.”

The proof is an extension of the proof given above. Since a path may start and end at
different vertices, the vertices where the path starts and ends are allowed to have odd degrees.

 Example – Which graphs shown below have an Euler path or Euler circuit?

 Solution – has two vertices of odd degree and and the rest of them have even
degree. So this graph has an Euler path but not an Euler circuit. The path starts and
ends at the vertices of odd degree. The path is- .
has four vertices all of even degree, so it has a Euler circuit. The circuit is –
.

Hamiltonian paths and circuits :

Hamilonian Path – A simple path in a graph that passes through every vertex exactly
once is called a Hamiltonian path.

Hamilonian Circuit – A simple circuit in a graph that passes through every vertex exactly
once is called a Hamiltonian circuit.

Unlike Euler paths and circuits, there is no simple necessary and sufficient criteria to
determine if there are any Hamiltonian paths or circuits in a graph. But there are certain
criteria which rule out the existence of a Hamiltonian circuit in a graph, such as- if there is a
vertex of degree one in a graph then it is impossible for it to have a Hamiltonian circuit.
There are certain theorems which give sufficient but not necessary conditions for the
existence of Hamiltonian graphs.

Dirac’s Theorem- “If is a simple graph with vertices with such that the
degree of every vertex in is at least , then has a Hamiltonian circuit.”

Ore’s Theorem- “If is a simple graph with vertices with such that
for every pair of non-adjacent vertices and in ,
then has a Hamiltonian circuit.”

As mentioned above that the above theorems are sufficient but not necessary conditions for
the existence of a Hamiltonian circuit in a graph, there are certain graphs which have a
Hamiltonian circuit but do not follow the conditions in the above-mentioned theorem. For
example, the cycle has a Hamiltonian circuit but does not follow the theorems.

Note: Kn is Hamiltonian circuit for

There are many practical problems which can be solved by finding the optimal Hamiltonian
circuit. One such problem is the Travelling Salesman Problem which asks for the shortest
route through a set of cities.

 Example 1- Does the following graph have a Hamiltonian Circuit?

  Solution- Yes, the above graph has a Hamiltonian circuit. The solution is –

 Example 2- Does the following graph have a Hamiltonian Circuit?

 Solution- No the above graph does not have a Hamiltonian circuit as there are two
vertices with degree one in the graph.

DIJKSTRA’S SHORTEST PATH ALGORITHM

Given a graph and a source vertex in the graph, find shortest paths from source to all vertices
in the given graph.

Dijkstra’s algorithm is very similar to Prim’s algorithm for minimum spanning tree. Like
Prim’s MST, we generate a SPT (shortest path tree) with given source as root. We maintain
two sets, one set contains vertices included in shortest path tree, other set includes vertices
not yet included in shortest path tree. At every step of the algorithm, we find a vertex which
is in the other set (set of not yet included) and has a minimum distance from the source.

Below are the detailed steps used in Dijkstra’s algorithm to find the shortest path from a
single source vertex to all other vertices in the given graph.
Algorithm
1) Create a set sptSet (shortest path tree set) that keeps track of vertices included in shortest
path tree, i.e., whose minimum distance from source is calculated and finalized. Initially, this
set is empty.
2) Assign a distance value to all vertices in the input graph. Initialize all distance values as
INFINITE. Assign distance value as 0 for the source vertex so that it is picked first.
3) While sptSet doesn’t include all vertices
….a) Pick a vertex u which is not there in sptSet and has minimum distance value.
….b) Include u to sptSet.
….c) Update distance value of all adjacent vertices of u. To update the distance values, iterate
through all adjacent vertices. For every adjacent vertex v, if sum of distance value of u (from
source) and weight of edge u-v, is less than the distance value of v, then update the distance
value of v.

Let us understand with the following example:

The set sptSet is initially empty and distances assigned to vertices are {0, INF, INF, INF,
INF, INF, INF, INF} where INF indicates infinite. Now pick the vertex with minimum
distance value. The vertex 0 is picked, include it in sptSet. So sptSet becomes {0}. After
including 0 to sptSet, update distance values of its adjacent vertices. Adjacent vertices of 0
are 1 and 7. The distance values of 1 and 7 are updated as 4 and 8. Following subgraph shows
vertices and their distance values, only the vertices with finite distance values are shown. The
vertices included in SPT are shown in green colour.

Pick the vertex with minimum distance value and not already included in SPT (not in
sptSET). The vertex 1 is picked and added to sptSet. So sptSet now becomes {0, 1}. Update
the distance values of adjacent vertices of 1. The distance value of vertex 2 becomes 12.
Pick the vertex with minimum distance value and not already included in SPT (not in
sptSET). Vertex 7 is picked. So sptSet now becomes {0, 1, 7}. Update the distance values of
adjacent vertices of 7. The distance value of vertex 6 and 8 becomes finite (15 and 9
respectively).

Pick the vertex with minimum distance value and not already included in SPT (not in
sptSET). Vertex 6 is picked. So sptSet now becomes {0, 1, 7, 6}. Update the distance values
of adjacent vertices of 6. The distance value of vertex 5 and 8 are updated.

We repeat the above steps until sptSet does include all vertices of given graph. Finally, we get
the following Shortest Path Tree (SPT).

PLANAR GRAPH
A graph 'G' is said to be planar if it can be drawn on a plane or a sphere so that no two edges
cross each other at a non-vertex point.

Example
Regions
Every planar graph divides the plane into connected areas called regions.

Example

Degree of a bounded region r = deg(r) = Number of edges enclosing the regions r.

deg(1) = 3
deg(2) = 4
deg(3) = 4
deg(4) = 3
deg(5) = 8
Degree of an unbounded region r = deg(r) = Number of edges enclosing the regions r.

deg(R1) = 4
deg(R2) = 6

In planar graphs, the following properties hold good −

 1. In a planar graph with 'n' vertices, sum of degrees of all the vertices is

n ∑ i=1 deg(Vi) = 2|E|

 2. According to Sum of Degrees of Regions Theorem, in a planar graph with 'n'

regions, Sum of degrees of regions is −

n ∑ i=1 deg(ri) = 2|E|

Based on the above theorem, you can draw the following conclusions −

In a planar graph,

 If degree of each region is K, then the sum of degrees of regions is

K|R| = 2|E|

 If the degree of each region is at least K(≥ K), then

K|R| ≤ 2|E|

 If the degree of each region is at most K(≤ K), then

K|R| ≥ 2|E|

Note − Assume that all the regions have same degree.

3. According to Euler's Formulae on planar graphs,

  If a graph 'G' is a connected planar, then

|V| + |R| = |E| + 2

 If a planar graph with 'K' components then

|V| + |R|=|E| + (K+1)

Where, |V| is the number of vertices, |E| is the number of edges, and |R| is the number of
regions.

4. Edge Vertex Inequality

If 'G' is a connected planar graph with degree of each region at least 'K' then,

|E| ≤ k/k - 2{|v|-2}

You know, |V| + |R| = |E| + 2

       K.|R| ≤ 2|E|

      K(|E| - |V| + 2) ≤ 2|E|

      (K - 2)|E| ≤ K(|V| - 2)

      |E| ≤ k/k - 2{|v| - 2}

5. If 'G' is a simple connected planar graph, then

|E| ≤ 3|V| − 6
|R| ≤ 2|V| − 4

There exists at least one vertex V ∈ G, such that deg(V) ≤ 5

6. If 'G' is a simple connected planar graph (with at least 2 edges) and no triangles, then

|E| ≤ {2|V| – 4}

7. Kuratowski's Theorem

A graph 'G' is non-planar if and only if 'G' has a subgraph which is homeomorphic to K5 or
K3,3.

Graph Coloring
Graph coloring is the procedure of assignment of colors to each vertex of a graph G such that
no adjacent vertices get same color. The objective is to minimize the number of colors while
coloring a graph. The smallest number of colors required to color a graph G is called its
chromatic number of that graph. Graph coloring problem is a NP Complete problem.

Method to Color a Graph

The steps required to color a graph G with n number of vertices are as follows −

Step 1 − Arrange the vertices of the graph in some order.

Step 2 − Choose the first vertex and color it with the first color.

Step 3 − Choose the next vertex and color it with the lowest numbered color that has not
been colored on any vertices adjacent to it. If all the adjacent vertices are colored with this
color, assign a new color to it. Repeat this step until all the vertices are colored.

Example

in the above figure, at first vertex a is colored red. As the adjacent vertices of vertex a are again
adjacent, vertex b and vertex d are colored with different color, green and blue respectively. Then
vertex c is colored as red as no adjacent vertex of c is colored red. Hence, we could color the graph
by 3 colors. Hence, the chromatic number of the graph is 3.

Applications of Graph Coloring

Some applications of graph coloring include −

 Register Allocation
 Map Coloring
 Bipartite Graph Checking
 Mobile Radio Frequency Assignment
 Making time table, etc.