DOI: 10.1002/jgt.23089 ISSN: 0364-9024

Finding triangle‐free 2‐factors in general graphs

David Hartvigsen
  • Geometry and Topology
  • Discrete Mathematics and Combinatorics

Abstract

A 2‐factor in a graph is a subset of edges such that every node of is incident with exactly two edges of . Many results are known concerning 2‐factors including a polynomial‐time algorithm for finding 2‐factors and a characterization of those graphs that have a 2‐factor. The problem of finding a 2‐factor in a graph is a relaxation of the NP‐hard problem of finding a Hamilton cycle. A stronger relaxation is the problem of finding a triangle‐free 2‐factor, that is, a 2‐factor whose edges induce no cycle of length 3. In this paper, we present a polynomial‐time algorithm for the problem of finding a triangle‐free 2‐factor as well as a characterization of the graphs that have such a 2‐factor and related min–max and augmenting path theorems.

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