S-Packing Colorings of Cubic Graphs

Given a non-decreasing sequence $S=(s\_1,s\_2, \ldots, s\_k)$ of positive integers, an {\em $S$-packing coloring} of a graph $G$ is a mapping $c$ from $V(G)$ to $\{s\_1,s\_2, \ldots, s\_k\}$ such that any two vertices with color $s\_i$ are at mutual distance greater than $s\_i$, $1\le i\le k$. This paper studies $S$-packing colorings of (sub)cubic graphs. We prove that subcubic graphs are $(1,2,2,2,2,2,2)$-packing colorable and $(1,1,2,2,3)$-packing colorable. For subdivisions of subcubic graphs we derive sharper bounds, and we provide an example of a cubic graph of order $38$ which is not $(1,2,\ldots,12)$-packing colorable

Graph multicoloring reduction methods and application to McDiarmid-Reed's Conjecture

A $(a,b)$-coloring of a graph $G$ associates to each vertex a set of $b$ colors from a set of $a$ colors in such a way that the color-sets of adjacent vertices are disjoints. We define general reduction tools for $(a,b)$-coloring of graphs for $2\le a/b\le 3$. In particular, we prove necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a $(a,b)$-coloring of a path with prescribed color-sets on its end-vertices. Other more complex $(a,b)$-colorability reductions are presented. The utility of these tools is exemplified on finite triangle-free induced subgraphs of the triangular lattice. Computations on millions of such graphs generated randomly show that our tools allow to find (in linear time) a $(9,4)$-coloring for each of them. Although there remain few graphs for which our tools are not sufficient for finding a $(9,4)$-coloring, we believe that pursuing our method can lead to a solution of the conjecture of McDiarmid-Reed.Comment: 27 page

A characterization of b-chromatic and partial Grundy numbers by induced subgraphs

Gy{\'a}rf{\'a}s et al. and Zaker have proven that the Grundy number of a graph $G$ satisfies $\Gamma(G)\ge t$ if and only if $G$ contains an induced subgraph called a $t$-atom.The family of $t$-atoms has bounded order and contains a finite number of graphs.In this article, we introduce equivalents of $t$-atoms for b-coloring and partial Grundy coloring.This concept is used to prove that determining if $\varphi(G)\ge t$ and $\partial\Gamma(G)\ge t$ (under conditions for the b-coloring), for a graph $G$, is in XP with parameter $t$.We illustrate the utility of the concept of $t$-atoms by giving results on b-critical vertices and edges, on b-perfect graphs and on graphs of girth at least $7$

Subdivision into i-packings and S-packing chromatic number of some lattices

An $i$-packing in a graph $G$ is a set of vertices at pairwise distance greater than $i$. For a nondecreasing sequence of integers $S=(s\_{1},s\_{2},\ldots)$, the $S$-packing chromatic number of a graph $G$ is the least integer $k$ such that there exists a coloring of $G$ into $k$ colors where each set of vertices colored $i$, $i=1,\ldots, k$, is an $s\_i$-packing. This paper describes various subdivisions of an $i$-packing into $j$-packings (j\textgreater{}i) for the hexagonal, square and triangular lattices. These results allow us to bound the $S$-packing chromatic number for these graphs, with more precise bounds and exact values for sequences $S=(s\_{i}, i\in\mathbb{N}^{*})$, $s\_{i}=d+ \lfloor (i-1)/n \rfloor$

Extended core and choosability of a graph

A graph $G$ is $(a,b)$-choosable if for any color list of size $a$ associated with each vertices, one can choose a subset of $b$ colors such that adjacent vertices are colored with disjoint color sets. This paper shows an equivalence between the $(a,b)$-choosability of a graph and the $(a,b)$-choosability of one of its subgraphs called the extended core. As an application, this result allows to prove the $(5,2)$-choosability and $(7,3)$-colorability of triangle-free induced subgraphs of the triangular lattice.Comment: 10 page

Vectorial solutions to list multicoloring problems on graphs

For a graph $G$ with a given list assignment $L$ on the vertices, we give an algebraical description of the set of all weights $w$ such that $G$ is $(L,w)$-colorable, called permissible weights. Moreover, for a graph $G$ with a given list $L$ and a given permissible weight $w$, we describe the set of all $(L,w)$-colorings of $G$. By the way, we solve the {\sl channel assignment problem}. Furthermore, we describe the set of solutions to the {\sl on call problem}: when $w$ is not a permissible weight, we find all the nearest permissible weights $w'$. Finally, we give a solution to the non-recoloring problem keeping a given subcoloring.Comment: 10 page

Choosability of a weighted path and free-choosability of a cycle

A graph $G$ with a list of colors $L(v)$ and weight $w(v)$ for each vertex $v$ is $(L,w)$-colorable if one can choose a subset of $w(v)$ colors from $L(v)$ for each vertex $v$, such that adjacent vertices receive disjoint color sets. In this paper, we give necessary and sufficient conditions for a weighted path to be $(L,w)$-colorable for some list assignments $L$. Furthermore, we solve the problem of the free-choosability of a cycle.Comment: 9 page

Approximation Algorithms for Multicoloring Planar Graphs and Powers of Square and Triangular Meshes

International audienceA multicoloring of a weighted graph G is an assignment of sets of colors to the vertices of G so that two adjacent vertices receive two disjoint sets of colors. A multicoloring problem on G is to find a multicoloring of G. In particular, we are interested in a minimum multicoloring that uses the least total number of colors. The main focus of this work is to obtain upper bounds on the weighted chromatic number of some classes of graphs in terms of the weighted clique number. We first propose an 11/6-approximation algorithm for multicoloring any weighted planar graph. We then study the multicoloring problem on powers of square and triangular meshes. Among other results, we show that the infinite triangular mesh is an induced subgraph of the fourth power of the infinite square mesh and we present 2-approximation algorithms for multicoloring a power square mesh and the second power of a triangular mesh, 3-approximation algorithms for multicoloring powers of semi-toroidal meshes and of triangular meshes and 4-approximation algorithm for multicoloring the power of a toroidal mesh. We also give similar algorithms for the Cartesian product of powers of paths and of cycles