Total domination versus paired domination

A dominating set of a graph G is a vertex subset that any vertex of G either belongs to or is adjacent to. A total dominating set is a dominating set whose induced subgraph does not contain isolated vertices. The minimal size of a total dominating set, the total domination number, is denoted by gamma_t . The maximal size of an inclusionwise minimal total dominating set, the upper total domination number, is denoted by Gamma_t . A paired dominating set is a dominating set whose induced subgraph has a perfect matching. The minimal size of a paired dominating set, the paired domination number, is denoted by gamma_p . The maximal size of an inclusionwise minimal paired dominating set, the upper paired domination number, is denoted by Gamma_p . In this paper we prove several results on the ratio of these four parameters: For each r ge 2 we prove the sharp bound gamma_p/gamma_t le 2 - 2/r for K_{1,r} -free graphs. As a consequence, we obtain the sharp bound gamma_p/gamma_t le 2 - 2/(Delta+1) , where Delta is the maximum degree. We also show for each r ge 2 that {C_5,T_r} -free graphs fulfill the sharp bound gamma_p/gamma_t le 2 - 2/r , where T_r is obtained from K_{1,r} by subdividing each edge exactly once. We show that all of these bounds also hold for the ratio Gamma_p / Gamma_t . Further, we prove that a graph hereditarily has an induced paired dominating set iff gamma_p le Gamma_t holds for any induced subgraph. We also give a finite forbidden subgraph characterization for this condition. We exactly determine the maximal value of the ratio gamma_p / Gamma_t taken over the induced subgraphs of a graph. As a consequence, we prove for each r ge 3 the sharp bound gamma_p/Gamma_t le 2 - 2/r for graphs that do not contain the corona of K_{1,r} as subgraph. In particular, we obtain the sharp bound gamma_p/Gamma_t le 2 - 2/Delta

Total domination versus paired domination

A dominating set of a graph G is a vertex subset that any vertex of G either belongs to or is adjacent to. A total dominating set is a dominating set whose induced subgraph does not contain isolated vertices. The minimal size of a total dominating set, the total domination number, is denoted by gamma_t . The maximal size of an inclusionwise minimal total dominating set, the upper total domination number, is denoted by Gamma_t . A paired dominating set is a dominating set whose induced subgraph has a perfect matching. The minimal size of a paired dominating set, the paired domination number, is denoted by gamma_p . The maximal size of an inclusionwise minimal paired dominating set, the upper paired domination number, is denoted by Gamma_p . In this paper we prove several results on the ratio of these four parameters: For each r ge 2 we prove the sharp bound gamma_p/gamma_t le 2 - 2/r for K_{1,r} -free graphs. As a consequence, we obtain the sharp bound gamma_p/gamma_t le 2 - 2/(Delta+1) , where Delta is the maximum degree. We also show for each r ge 2 that {C_5,T_r} -free graphs fulfill the sharp bound gamma_p/gamma_t le 2 - 2/r , where T_r is obtained from K_{1,r} by subdividing each edge exactly once. We show that all of these bounds also hold for the ratio Gamma_p / Gamma_t . Further, we prove that a graph hereditarily has an induced paired dominating set iff gamma_p le Gamma_t holds for any induced subgraph. We also give a finite forbidden subgraph characterization for this condition. We exactly determine the maximal value of the ratio gamma_p / Gamma_t taken over the induced subgraphs of a graph. As a consequence, we prove for each r ge 3 the sharp bound gamma_p/Gamma_t le 2 - 2/r for graphs that do not contain the corona of K_{1,r} as subgraph. In particular, we obtain the sharp bound gamma_p/Gamma_t le 2 - 2/Delta

Three-arc graphs: characterization and domination

An arc of a graph is an oriented edge and a 3-arc is a 4-tuple $(v,u,x,y)$ of vertices such that both $(v,u,x)$ and $(u,x,y)$ are paths of length two. The 3-arc graph of a graph $G$ is defined to have vertices the arcs of $G$ such that two arcs $uv, xy$ are adjacent if and only if $(v,u,x,y)$ is a 3-arc of $G$. In this paper we give a characterization of 3-arc graphs and obtain sharp upper bounds on the domination number of the 3-arc graph of a graph $G$ in terms that of $G$

Upper paired domination versus upper domination

A paired dominating set $P$ is a dominating set with the additional property that $P$ has a perfect matching. While the maximum cardainality of a minimal dominating set in a graph $G$ is called the upper domination number of $G$, denoted by $\Gamma(G)$, the maximum cardinality of a minimal paired dominating set in $G$ is called the upper paired domination number of $G$, denoted by $\Gamma_{pr}(G)$. By Henning and Pradhan (2019), we know that $\Gamma_{pr}(G)\leq 2\Gamma(G)$ for any graph $G$ without isolated vertices. We focus on the graphs satisfying the equality $\Gamma_{pr}(G)= 2\Gamma(G)$. We give characterizations for two special graph classes: bipartite and unicyclic graphs with $\Gamma_{pr}(G)= 2\Gamma(G)$ by using the results of Ulatowski (2015). Besides, we study the graphs with $\Gamma_{pr}(G)= 2\Gamma(G)$ and a restricted girth. In this context, we provide two characterizations: one for graphs with $\Gamma_{pr}(G)= 2\Gamma(G)$ and girth at least 6 and the other for $C_3$-free cactus graphs with $\Gamma_{pr}(G)= 2\Gamma(G)$. We also pose the characterization of the general case of $C_3$-free graphs with $\Gamma_{pr}(G)= 2\Gamma(G)$ as an open question