CS-850: Advanced

Theory of Computation
(Spring 2020)

Lecture 3
Adnan Rashid

Adnan Rashid Advanced Theory of Computation 1

 Deterministic Finite
Automaton (DFA)
Input Tape

String

Output

“Accept”
or
“Reject”

Finite Automaton/
Finite State Machine
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 Deterministic Finite
Automaton (DFA)
a, b

q5
a, b
b a a b
q0 a q1 b q2 b q3 a q4
initial final
state (accepting)
state transition state
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 Deterministic Finite
Automaton (DFA)
Alphabet  = {a , b } a, b

q5
a, b
b a a b
q0 a q1 b q2 b q3 a q4

For every state, there is a transition

for every symbol in the alphabet
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 DFA: Initial Configuration

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 DFA: Scanning the Input

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 DFA: Scanning forward…

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 DFA: Scanning forward…

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 DFA: Input finished

Last state determines the outcome

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 DFA: A Rejection Case

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 DFA: Scanning forward…

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 DFA: Scanning forward…

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 DFA: Input finished

Last state determines the outcome

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 DFA: Empty Tape

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 DFA: Another Rejection
Case

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 DFA: Accepted Language
This automaton accepts only one string
Language Accepted: L = abba 

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 DFA: String
Acceptance/Rejection
To accept a string:
all the input string is scanned and the
last state is accepting

To reject a string:
all the input string is scanned and the
last state is non-accepting
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 Activity
Write the language of the following DFA

L = ab, abba

Accept Accept
state state
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 DFA: Empty Tape

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 DFA: Empty Tape

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 DFA: Example 1

L = , ab, abba 

Accept Accept Accept

state state state
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 DFA: Example 2

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 Example 2
(Initial Configuration)

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 Example 2 (Scanning …)

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 Example 2 (Scanning …)

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 Example 2
(Input Finished)

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 Example 3: A Rejection
Case

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 Example 3: Scanning …

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 Example 3: Scanning …

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 Example 3: Input Finished

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 Example 3: Language
Accepted

L = {a b : n  0 }
n

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 Example 4

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 Formal Definition of DFA
M = (Q, , , q0 , F )
Q : set of states
 : input alphabet  
 : transition function
q0 : initial state

F : set of accepting states

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 DFA Example

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 Set of States Q

Q = q0 , q1, q2 , q3 , q4 , q5

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 Input Alphabet 

 = a, b

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 Initial State q0

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 Set of Accepting
States F
F Q
F = q4 

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 Transition Function 

 :Q → Q

Describes the result of a transition

from state q with symbol x
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 Transition Function

 (q0 , a ) = q1

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 Transition Function

 (q2 , b ) = q3

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 Transition Table for 

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 Activity
Write the formal definition of the following DFA

1
a b
1
0 0 0 0
1
c d
1
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 Activity
M = (Q, , , q0 , F )
Q = a, b, c, d 
 = 0,1
Initial state = a
F = d 

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 Activity
M = (Q, , , q0 , F )
symbols
 1 0
a b c
states

b a d
c d a
d c b
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 Extended Transition
Function
 :Q   → Q
* *

 (q ,w ) = q 
*

Describes the resulting state after

scanning string w from state q

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 Example

 (q0 , ab ) = q2
*

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 Example

 (q1, bba ) = q4
*

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 Example: Special Case

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 Walk of Transitions
Generally,  (q ,w ) = q 
*
implies that

there is a walk of transitions

w =  1 2  k

states may be repeated

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 Language Accepted by
DFA
Language accepted by DFA M:

It is denoted as L (M ) and contains all

the strings accepted by M

We also say that M recognizes L (M )

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 Language Accepted by
DFA
For a DFA M = (Q, , , q0 , F )

Language accepted by DFA M:


L(M ) = w   :  (q0 ,w )  F
* *


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 Language Rejected by DFA

Language rejected by DFA M:


L(M ) = w   :  (q0 ,w )  F
* *


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 Example 1

 = {a , b }

L(M ) = { }
Empty language

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 Example 2

 = {a , b }

L( M ) =  *
All strings

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 Activity
Write down the Language accepted by the
following automaton

 = {a , b }

L(M ) = { }
Language of the empty string
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 Example 3

 = {a , b }

L(M ) = { all strings with prefix ab}

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 Activity
Write down the Language accepted by the
following automaton

L (M ) = {all binary strings containing substring 001 }

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 Example 4

L (M ) = {all binary strings without substring 001 }

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 Example 5


L(M ) = awa : w  a , b 
*

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 Regular Languages

Definition:

A language L is regular if there is a DFA M

that accepts it ( L(M ) = L)

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 Regular Languages:
Examples
▪ abba
▪  , ab, abba
▪ {a b : n  0}
n

▪ awa : w  a ,b *

▪ {all strings in {a,b}* with prefix ab}

▪ {all binary strings without substring 001 }

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 Regular Languages:
Examples
▪ {x : x  {1} and x is even}
*

▪ { }
▪ { }
▪ {a , b } *

There exist DFAs that accept these languages

(As seen in the previous slides)

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 Non-regular Languages

There exist languages which are not Regular.

L= {a b : n  0}
n n

ADDITION = {x + y = z : x = 1 , y = 1 , z = 1 , n + m = k}
n m k

There are no DFAs that accept these languages

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 Designing a DFA for a
Regular Language
L (M ) = {all binary strings containing substring 001}
▪ Strings in the language
• 0010
• 001
• 1001
• 1111111001111
▪ Strings not in the language
• 11
• 0000
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 DFA for a Regular
Language
▪ Four possibilities for the pattern of string
• Have not seen any symbol of the pattern
• Have just seen a 0
• Have just seen a 00
• Have seen the entire pattern 001

▪ Assign states q, q0 , q00, q001 to each of these

possibilities

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 DFA for a Regular
Language
Substring 001

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 DFA for a Regular
Language
▪ q reading a 1 then stay in q Substring 001
▪ q reading a 0 then move to q0

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 DFA for a Regular
Language
▪ q0 reading a 1 then return to q Substring 001
▪ q0 reading a 0 then move to q00

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 DFA for a Regular
Language
▪ q00 reading a 1 then move to q001 Substring 001
▪ q00 reading a 0 then stay at q00

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 DFA for a Regular
Language
▪ q001 reading a 1 then stay at q001 Substring 001
▪ q001 reading a 0 then stay at q001

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 Thank you!

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