Applied Mathematical Sciences, Vol. 8, 2014, no.

98, 4867 - 4875

HIKARI Ltd, www.m-hikari.com
http://dx.doi.org/10.12988/ams.2014.46396

Forcing Weakly Convexity Number of a Graph

Kezza P. Noguerra1
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology
Tibanga Highway, Iligan City, Philippines
Sergio R. Canoy, Jr., Helen M. Rara and Elgie T. Liwagon
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology
Tibanga Highway, Iligan City, Philippines
c 2014 Kezza P. Noguerra, Sergio R. Canoy, Jr, Helen M. Rara and Elgie T.
Copyright
Liwagon. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution
License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract
In this paper, we introduce the concepts of forcing weakly convexity
and forcing weakly convexity number of a graph. We also determine the
forcing weakly convexity numbers of some special graphs and graphs
under some binary operation such as the join, corona and composition
of two graphs.

Mathematics Subject Classification: 05C12

Keywords: weakly convex set, forcing weakly convex subset, weakly convexity number, forcing weakly convexity number

Introduction

Let G = (V (G), E(G)) be a simple connected graph. Let u, v V (G). Then

the distance dG (u, v) between u and v, is the length of the shortest u-v path in
G. A u-v path of length dG (u, v) is called u-v geodesic. The diameter diam(G)
1

This research is partially funded by DOST-ASTHRDP.

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Kezza P. Noguerra et al.

of G is maxu,vV (G) dG (u, v). The set of all u-v geodesics is denoted by gu,v . If G
is disconnected, then diam(G) = +. The path Pn will be denoted by P (v1 , vn )
or [v1 , v2 , . . . , vn ] (called a v1 -vn path). A subset C of V (G) is called a weakly
convex set of G if for every two vertices u, v C, there exists P (u, v) gu,v
whose elements belong to C or equivalently, if for every two vertices u, v C,
dhCi (u, v) = dG (u, v). The weakly convexity number of G, denoted by wcon(G),
is the maximum cardinality of a weakly convex proper subset of G. A weakly
convex set of G of cardinality wcon(G) is called a maximum weakly convex set
of G. These concepts are introduced and studied in [1] and [2].
Let C be the maximum weakly convex set of a connected graph G. A subset
S of C is called a forcing weakly subset of C if C is the unique maximum
weakly convex set of G containing S. The forcing weakly convexity number of
C, denoted by f wcon(C), is the minimum cardinality of a forcing weakly subset
of C and the forcing weakly convexity number of G, denoted by f wcon(G), is
the minimum forcing weakly convexity number among all maximum weakly
convex sets of G. That is,
f wcon(G) = min{f wcon(C) : C is a maximum weakly convex set of G}.
Example 1.1 Consider the graph G in Figure 1. The sets S1 = {v2 , v3 , v4 , v5 , v6 },
S2 = {v1 , v3 , v4 , v5 , v6 }, S3 = {v1 , v2 , v3 , v5 , v6 }, S4 = {v1 , v2 , v3 , v4 , v6 }, and
S5 = {v1 , v2 , v3 , v4 , v5 }, are the only maximum weakly convex sets of G.
Note that T1 = {v2 , v4 , v5 , v6 }, T2 = {v1 , v4 , v5 , v6 }, T3 = {v1 , v2 , v5 , v6 },
T4 = {v1 , v2 , v4 , v6 }, and T5 = {v1 , v2 , v4 , v5 } are the minimum forcing weakly
subsets of S1 , S2 , S3 , S4 , and S5 , respectively. Hence,
f wcon(G) = f wcon(Si ) = |Ti | = 4, for i = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
v.....1..

v4

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v2

v6

Figure 1: A graph G with f wcon(G) = 4

Forcing Weakly Convexity Number of Some

Special Graphs

Lemma 2.1 Let G be a connected graph of order n 2. Then

4869

Forcing weakly convex number of a graph

(i) f wcon(G) = 0 if and only if G has a unique maximum weakly convex set,
and
(ii) f wcon(G) = 1 if and only if there exist at least two maximum weakly
convex sets of G and a vertex x which is contained in a unique maximum
weakly convex set of G.
The next result follows from Lemma 2.1.
Corollary 2.2 For any integer n 2, f wcon(Pn ) = 1.
Remark 2.3 [2] For any positive integer n 3, wcon(Cn ) =
con(Cn ) =

n+1
2

and

l m
n
2

Theorem 2.4 For any positive integer n 3,

(

f wcon(Cn ) =

2
3

, if n is odd
, if n is even

Let Cn = [x1 , x2 , . . . , xn , x1 ] be a cycle of order n 3. By Remark 2.3,

wcon(Cn ) = d n+1
Consider the maximum weakly convex set
e.
2
S = {x1 , x2 , . . . , xd n+1 e } of Cn and let D = (V (Cn ) \ S) {x1 , xd n+1 e }. Note
2
2
that every maximum weakly convex set S 0 of Cn is of the same form as S. By
Lemma 2.1, f wcon(Cn ) > 1. Let T 0 = {x1 , xd n+1 e }. We consider the following
2
cases:
Case 1: Suppose n is even.
Then dhSi (x1 , xd n+1 e ) = dhDi (x1 , xd n+1 e ). Note that D is also a maximum
2
2
weakly convex set in G with |S| = |D|. Since T 0 is a subset of both S and
D, T 0 is not a forcing weakly subset of S. Take T = {x1 , xk , xd n+1 e } where
2
1 < k < d n+1
e.
Then
S
is
the
only
maximum
weakly
convex
set
containing
T .
2

0
Hence, f wcon(S) = |T | = 3. Since f wcon(S) = f wcon(S ) for all maximum
weakly convex sets S 0 of Cn , f wcon(Cn ) = f wcon(S) = 3.
Case 2: Assume n is odd.
Then dhSi (x1 , xd n+1 e ) < dhDi (x1 , xd n+1 e ). Hence, T 0 is a minimum forcing
2
2
weakly subset of S. Therefore, f wcon(G) = f wcon(S) = 2.

Note that every forcing weakly set is a subset of a maximum weakly convex
set of G. Thus, we have the following remark.
Remark 2.5 If G is a connected graph of order n
f wcon(G) = n 1, then wcon(G) = n 1.

2 and

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Kezza P. Noguerra et al.

Theorem 2.6 [2] Let G be a connected graph of order n 2. Then

wcon(G) = n 1 if and only if there exists v V (G) such that hNG (v)i is complete or for all x, y NG (v), x 6= y, xy
/ E(G), there exists
w V (G)\{v} with x, y NG (w).
We remark that if G is a connected graph of order n such that wcon(G) =
n 1, then the maximum weakly convex sets in G are precisely the sets
V (G) \ {v}, where v is either an extreme vertex or a vertex that satisfies the
condition in Theorem 2.6. We now characterize all connected graphs G with
f wcon(G) = |V (G)| 1.
Theorem 2.7 Let G be a connected graph of order n 2. Then f wcon(G) =
n 1 if and only if for each v V (G), either v is an extreme vertex or v
satisfies the property that for all x, y NG (v) with x 6= y and xy
/ E(G), there
exists w V (G) \ {v} such that x, y NG (w).
Proof : Suppose f wcon(G) = n 1. From Remark 2.5, wcon(G) = n 1.
Suppose that there exists v V (G) that is neither an extreme vertex nor
satisfies the given property. Then V (G) \ {v} is not a weakly convex set of G by
Theorem 2.6. Let w V (G) \ {v} such that C = V (G) \ {w} is weakly convex
in G. Consider the set S = V (G) \ {v, w}. Then S C. Since V (G) \ {v} is
not a weakly convex set of G, it follows that C is the only maximum weakly
convex set of G containing S. Thus, S is a forcing weakly convex subset of
C. This implies that f wcon(G) f wcon(C) |S| = n 2, contrary to our
assumption that f wcon(G) = n 1. Therefore for each v V (G)), either v
is an extreme vertex or v satisfies the property that for all x, y NG (v) with
x 6= y and xy
/ E(G), there exists w V (G) \ {v} such that x, y NG (w).
For the converse, suppose that for each v V (G)), either v is an extreme
vertex or v satisfies the property that for all x, y NG (v) with x =
6 y and
xy
/ E(G), there exists w V (G) \ {v} such that x, y NG (w). Then
V (G) \ {v} is weakly convex in G for each v V (G). This implies that
f wcon(C) = n 1 for each maximum weakly convex proper subset C of G.
Accordingly, f wcon(G) = n 1.

Corollary 2.8 For every positive integer n 2, f wcon(Kn ) = n 1.

A Realization Problem

Remark 3.1 For any connected graph G of order n,

0 f wcon(G) wcon(G) n 1.
Theorem 3.2 Given positive integers a and b with 1 a b, there exists a
connected graph G such that f wcon(G) = a and wcon(G) = b.

4871

Forcing weakly convex number of a graph

Proof : Consider the following cases:

Case 1: Suppose a = b.
Let G = Ka+1 be the complete graph of order a + 1. By Theorem 2.6 and
Corollary 2.8, f wcon(G) = a = wcon(G).
Case 2: Suppose 1 = a < b.
Let G = Pb+1 = [x1 , x2 , . . . , xb+1 ] be the path of order b + 1. Note that
S1 = {x2 , x3 , . . . , xb+1 } and S2 = {x1 , x2 , . . . , xb } are the only maximum weakly
convex sets in G. Hence, wcon(G) = |S1 | = |S2 | = b. By Corollary 2.2,
f wcon(G) = 1 = a.
Case 3: Suppose 1 < a < b.
Let H1 and H2 be, respectively, the star K1,a and the path Pba+1 given in
Figure 2 and let G be the graph obtained by gluing H1 and H2 at vertex y1 .
x......a.
x

.........
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a1
....
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1
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2 ..........
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..............

..
.

............
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..............

x1

H1

y2
y3
..
.

y1

.............
..
...
..
..
.............

yba
yba+1
H2

x......a.
x

........
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...
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...
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...
a1
.
...............
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....... ..
....... ..
.............
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.....
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................... .... 1
2
3
..
..
2 .....
..
...
...
..............

..
.

. . . ...................................................................
y yba yba+1

x1

Figure 2: A graph G obtained by gluing H1 and H2 at vertex y1

Note that the maximum weakly convex sets of G are Si = V (G) \ {xi }
for i = 1, 2, . . . , a and S = V (G) \ {yba+1 }. Hence, wcon(G) = |S1 | =
a + (b a + 1) 1 = b. Without loss of generality, consider T = {x1 , x2 , . . . , xa }
and T1 = {x2 , x3 , . . . , xa , yba+1 }. Note that S is the only maximum weakly
convex set containing T and S1 is the only maximum weakly convex set
containing T1 . Also, any subset T with |T | < a is contained in at least two
maximum weakly convex sets. Thus, f wcon(G) = |T | = |T1 | = a.

Corollary 3.3 Given a positive integer n, there exists a connected graph G
such that wcon(G) f wcon(G) = n, that is, the difference wcon f wcon can
be made arbitrarily large.
Proof : Let n be a positive integer. Set a = 2 and b = n + 2. Then, by
Theorem 3.2, there exists a connected graph G such that f wcon(G) = a and
wcon(G) = b. Thus, wcon(G) f wcon(G) = b a = n.


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Kezza P. Noguerra et al.

Corollary 3.4 For every pair of positive integers a and b with 1 a < b, the
smallest possible order of a connected graph G such that f wcon(G ) = a and
wcon(G ) = b is b + 1.
Proof : Let G be a connected graph with the smallest possible order n such
that f wcon(G ) = a and wcon(G ) = b. Note that such a graph exists by
Theorem 3.2. By Remark 3.1, n b + 1. Consider the graph G constructed
in the proof of Theorem 3.2 (see Figure 2). As pointed out, f wcon(G) = a
and wcon(G) = b. Moreover, |V (G)| = a + (b a + 1) = b + 1. Therefore, by
assumption, n = b + 1.


Forcing Weakly Convexity Number of the

Join of Graphs

Let A and B be sets which are not necessarily disjoint. The disjoint union of

A and B, denoted by A B, is the set obtained by taking the union of A and

B treating each element in A as distinct from each element in B. The join of

two graphs G and H is the graph G + H with V (G + H) = V (G) V (H) and

E(G + H) = E(G) E(H) {uv : u V (G), v V (H)}.

Lemma 4.1 [2] Let G and H be graphs of orders m and n, respectively. Then,
wcon(G + H) = m + n 1.
Theorem 4.2 Let G and H be nontrivial graphs of orders m and n, respectively.
Then f wcon(G + H) = m + n 1.
Proof : Let v V (G + H). Suppose v is not an extreme vertex. Then there
exist distinct non-adjacent vertices x and y such that x, y NG+H (v). Note
that if x V (G) and y V (H), then xy E(G + H). Hence, x, y V (G) or
x, y V (H). Consider the following cases:
Case 1: v, x, y V (G)
If v, x, y V (G), then there exists z V (H) such that x, y NG+H (z).
Case 2: v V (G), x, y V (H)
Since G is nontrivial, there exists u V (G) such that x, y NG+H (u).
Case 3: v, x, y V (H)
This is similar to Case 1.
In either case, G + H satisfies the condition in Theorem 2.7. Therefore,
f wcon(G + H) = m + n 1.

Corollary 4.3 Let m 2 and n 2 be integers. Then,
f wcon(Km,n ) = m + n 1.

4873

Forcing weakly convex number of a graph

Theorem 4.4 Let G be a nontrivial graph of order m. Then

(

f wcon(K1 + G) =

m
m1

, if diam(G) 2
, if diam(G) 3

Proof : Let K1 = h{v}i. Suppose diam(G) 2. Let u V (K1 + G). If u is not

an extreme vertex, then there exist distinct non-adjacent vertices x and y of
V (K1 + G) such that x, y NK1 +G (u). We consider the following cases:
Case 1: Suppose u = v.
Then x, y V (G). Since xy
/ E(G) and diam(G) 2, there exists
z V (G) such that x, y NK1 +G (z).
Case 2: Assume u 6= v.
Then u V (G). If x = v, then y V (G) and xy E(K1 + G), a
contradiction. Similarly, a contradiction is obtained if y = v. Hence, x, y 6= v
and [x, v, y], [x, u, y] gx,y .
Thus, by Theorem 2.7, f wcon(K1 + G) = m.
Next, suppose diam(G) 3. Let x V (G) and let Tx = V (G) \ {x}. Then
Tx Sx . Since Sx is the only maximum weakly convex set of V (K1 + G)
containing Tx , Tx is a forcing weakly subset of Sx .
Let A be a proper subset of Tx and let y Tx \ A. Then A Sy . This
implies that A is not a forcing weakly subset of Sx . Therefore,
f wcon(K1 + G) = f wcon(Sx ) = |Tx | = m 1.
Corollary 4.5 Let n be a positive integer.
(i)
(

n
n1

, if 3 n 5
, if n 6

n
n1

, if 1 n 3
, if n 4

f wcon(Wn ) =
(ii)
f wcon(Fn ) =

(iii) If n 2, then f wcon(K1,n ) = n 1.

Forcing Weakly Convexity Number of the

Corona of Graphs

Let G and H be graphs of order m and n, respectively. The corona of two

graphs G and H is the graph G H obtained by taking one copy of G and m
copies of H, and then joining the ith vertex of G to every vertex of the ith
copy of H. For every v V (G), denote by H v the copy of H whose vertices
are attached one by one to the vertex v. Denote by v + H v the subgraph of
the corona G H corresponding the join h{v}i + H v .

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Kezza P. Noguerra et al.

Corollary 5.1 [2] Let G be a connected graph of order m 2 and H be any

graph of order n. Then, wcon(G H) = m + mn 1.
In the proof of above corollary, the maximum weakly convex sets in G H
are precisely the sets V (G H) \ {x} where x V (H v ) for some v V (G).
Lemma 5.2 If T is a forcing weakly subset of S = V (G H) \ {x}, where
x V (H v ) for some v V (G), then V (H u ) T for every u V (G) \ {v} and
V (H v ) \ {x} T .
Proof : Suppose there exists u V (G) \ {v} such that V (H u ) * T . Pick
y V (H u ) with y
/ T . Then T V (G H) \ {y}. This is a contradiction since
T is a forcing weakly set. Thus, V (H u ) T for all u V (G) \ {v}. Similarly,
V (H v ) \ {x} T .

Theorem 5.3 Let G be a connected nontrivial graph of order m and H be any
graph of order n. Then f wcon(G H) = mn 1.
Proof : Let x V (H v ) for some v V (G). By the proof of Corollary 5.1,
Sx = V (G H) \ {x}h is a maximum weakly
convex set of V (G H). Let
i
u
v
Fx = [V (H ) \ {x}] uV (G)\{v} V (H ) Sx . Then clearly Fx is a forcing
weakly subset of Sx . By Lemma 5.2, Fx is the minimum forcing weakly subset
of Sx for all x V (H v ). Since every maximum weakly convex set of V (G H)
is of the same form as Sx , it follows that
f wcon(G H) = f wcon(Sx ) = |Fx | = mn 1.


Forcing Weakly Convexity Number of the

Composition of Graphs

The composition of two graphs G and H is the graph G[H] with vertexset V (G[H]) = V (G) V (H) and edge-set E(G[H]) satisfying the following
conditions: (x, u)(y, v) E(G[H]) if and only if either xy E(G) or x = y
and uv E(H).
Remark
[ 6.1 A subset C of V (G[H]) = V (G) V (H) can be written as
C=
({x} Tx ),where S V (G) and Tx V (H) for every x S.
xS

Theorem 6.2 Let G be a connected nontrivial graph of order m and let H be

any graph of order n. Then f wcon(G[H]) = mn 1.

Forcing weakly convex number of a graph

4875

Proof : Let (u, v) V (G[H]). Suppose (u, v) is not an extreme vertex. Then
there exist (x, a), (y, b) V (G[H]) such that (x, a)(y, b)
/ E(G[H]) and
(x, a), (y, b) NG[H] ((u, v)). Consider the following cases.
Case 1: Suppose x = y.
Then a 6= b. If x 6= u, then
[(x, a), (u, a), (y, b)], [(x, a), (u, b), (y, b)] g(x,a),(y,b) .
Suppose x = u. Since G is connected, there exists z V (G) such that
xz E(G). Hence, [(x, a), (z, a), (y, b)], [(x, a), (z, b), (y, b)] g(x,a),(y,b) .
Case 2: Suppose x 6= y.
Then x 6= u and y 6= u (otherwise, (x, a)(y, b) E(G[H])). Consider the
following subcases:
Subcase 1: Suppose a = b.
Pick any c V (H) \ {a}. Then,
[(x, a), (u, a), (y, b)], [(x, a)(u, c)(y, b)] g(x,a),(y,b) .
Subcase 2: Suppose a 6= b.
Then [(x, a), (u, a), (y, b)], [(x, a), (u, b), (y, b)] g(x,a),(y,b) .
Therefore, f wcon(G[H]) = mn 1 by Theorem 2.7.

References
[1] Lemanska, Magdalena. Weakly Convex and Convex Domination Numbers.
Opuscula Mathematica. 24(2004), 181-188.
[2] Leonida, Rene E. Weakly Convex and Weakly Connected Independent Dominations in the Corona of Graphs. International Mathematical Forum.
8(2013), 1515-1522.
Received: June 7, 2014