Dirac's theorem for random regular graphs

We prove a `resilience' version of Dirac's theorem in the setting of random regular graphs. More precisely, we show that, whenever $d$ is sufficiently large compared to $\varepsilon>0$, a.a.s. the following holds: let $G'$ be any subgraph of the random $n$-vertex $d$-regular graph $G_{n,d}$ with minimum degree at least $(1/2+\varepsilon)d$. Then $G'$ is Hamiltonian. This proves a conjecture of Ben-Shimon, Krivelevich and Sudakov. Our result is best possible: firstly, the condition that $d$ is large cannot be omitted, and secondly, the minimum degree bound cannot be improved.Comment: Final accepted version, to appear in Combinatorics, Probability & Computin

Determinant Sums for Undirected Hamiltonicity

We present a Monte Carlo algorithm for Hamiltonicity detection in an $n$-vertex undirected graph running in $O^*(1.657^{n})$ time. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first superpolynomial improvement on the worst case runtime for the problem since the $O^*(2^n)$ bound established for TSP almost fifty years ago (Bellman 1962, Held and Karp 1962). It answers in part the first open problem in Woeginger's 2003 survey on exact algorithms for NP-hard problems. For bipartite graphs, we improve the bound to $O^*(1.414^{n})$ time. Both the bipartite and the general algorithm can be implemented to use space polynomial in $n$. We combine several recently resurrected ideas to get the results. Our main technical contribution is a new reduction inspired by the algebraic sieving method for $k$-Path (Koutis ICALP 2008, Williams IPL 2009). We introduce the Labeled Cycle Cover Sum in which we are set to count weighted arc labeled cycle covers over a finite field of characteristic two. We reduce Hamiltonicity to Labeled Cycle Cover Sum and apply the determinant summation technique for Exact Set Covers (Bj\"orklund STACS 2010) to evaluate it.Comment: To appear at IEEE FOCS 201

On the trace of random walks on random graphs

We study graph-theoretic properties of the trace of a random walk on a random graph. We show that for any $\varepsilon>0$ there exists $C>1$ such that the trace of the simple random walk of length $(1+\varepsilon)n\ln{n}$ on the random graph $G\sim G(n,p)$ for $p>C\ln{n}/n$ is, with high probability, Hamiltonian and $\Theta(\ln{n})$-connected. In the special case $p=1$ (i.e. when $G=K_n$), we show a hitting time result according to which, with high probability, exactly one step after the last vertex has been visited, the trace becomes Hamiltonian, and one step after the last vertex has been visited for the $k$'th time, the trace becomes $2k$-connected.Comment: 32 pages, revised versio

Edge-dominating cycles, k-walks and Hamilton prisms in 2K22K_2-free graphs

We show that an edge-dominating cycle in a $2K_2$-free graph can be found in polynomial time; this implies that every 1/(k-1)-tough $2K_2$-free graph admits a k-walk, and it can be found in polynomial time. For this class of graphs, this proves a long-standing conjecture due to Jackson and Wormald (1990). Furthermore, we prove that for any \epsilon>0 every (1+\epsilon)-tough $2K_2$-free graph is prism-Hamiltonian and give an effective construction of a Hamiltonian cycle in the corresponding prism, along with few other similar results.Comment: LaTeX, 8 page

Generating random graphs in biased Maker-Breaker games

We present a general approach connecting biased Maker-Breaker games and problems about local resilience in random graphs. We utilize this approach to prove new results and also to derive some known results about biased Maker-Breaker games. In particular, we show that for $b=o\left(\sqrt{n}\right)$, Maker can build a pancyclic graph (that is, a graph that contains cycles of every possible length) while playing a $(1:b)$ game on $E(K_n)$. As another application, we show that for $b=\Theta\left(n/\ln n\right)$, playing a $(1:b)$ game on $E(K_n)$, Maker can build a graph which contains copies of all spanning trees having maximum degree $\Delta=O(1)$ with a bare path of linear length (a bare path in a tree $T$ is a path with all interior vertices of degree exactly two in $T$)