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 A STUDY OF SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS

By
ALISON NORTHUP

A SENIOR RESEARCH PAPER PRESENTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS AND

COMPUTER SCIENCE OF STETSON UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF SCIENCE

STETSON UNIVERSITY
2002
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to thank all my mathematics professors here at Stetson: Hari Pulapaka, Margie Hale,

Gareth Williams, Dan Plant, and especially Erich Friedman for his patient support while advising me with

my schedule and with my senior research. I also want to thank Mrs. Bast and Ron Louchart for

encouraging me to enjoy mathematics throughout middle and high school. And, 1astly, I would like to

thank my parents for their constant support and encouragement throughout my life.

2
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 2

LIST OF FIGURES

ABSTRACT 5

CHAPTERS

1. GRAPH THEORY CONCEPTSS

1.1. GRAPHS 6
1.2. PROPERTIES OF GRAPHS 7

2. SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS 10
2.1. INTRODUCTION 10
2.2. THE BARBELL CLASS 10
2.3. VERTEX-TRANSITIVITY 12

3 CLASSIFICATIONS 14
3.1. THE 0-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS 14
3.2. THE 1-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS 14
3.3. THE 2-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS 14
3.4. THE SEMIREGULAR TREES 20

4. MORE ON SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS 24

4.1. SYMMETRY 24
4.2. ADDING EDGES 24
4.3 CONNECTIONS BETWEEN REGULARITY AND SEMIREGULARITY 28
4.4 ALGORITHM FOR DETERMINING SEMIREGULARITY 30

APPENDIX A 34

APPENDIX B separate) 40

REFERENCES 42-5

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 43 60

3
 LIST OF FIGURES

FIGURE

1. Graphs
2. Path
3. Subgraph
4. Complement
5. Connectedness
6. Regular Graphs
7. Cycles
8. Trees
9
9
9. Complete Graphs
10
10. Semiregular Graphs
11
11. The Barbell Graphs
12. Theorem 3.3 #1
15
15
13. Theorem 3.3 #2
16
14. Theorem 3.3 #3
16
15. Theorem 3.3 #4
16. Theorem 3.3 #5
16
16
17. Theorem 3.3 #6
17
18. 1-Semiregular Graphs
19. Sporadic Examples of 2-Semiregular Graphs 18
20. Theorem 3.5 #1
20
21. Theorem 3.5 #2
20
21
22. Theorem 3.5 #3
21
23. Theorem 3.5 #4
24. Theorem 3.5 #5
22
25. Theorem 3.5 #6 23
24
26. Non-Symmetric Semiregular Graph
25
27. Adding an Edge
28
28. 2-Semiregular to 2-Regualar
29
29. 3-Regular to 3-Semiregular
29
30. Theorem 4.4 #1
29
31. Theorem 4.4 #2
30
32. Theorem 4.4 #3
30
33. Theorem 4.4 # 4
34. Adjacency Matrix
31
35. Algorithm 4.5 #1
32
32
36. Algorithm 4.5 # 2
32
37. Algorithm 4.5 #3
32
38. Algorithm 4.5 #4
33
39. Algorithm 4.5 #5
 ABSTRACT

A STUDY OF SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS

3y

Alison Northup

May, 2002

Advisor: Erich Friedman

Department: Mathematics and Computer Science

Just as a regular graph is one in which each vertex is distance 1 away from exactly the same

number of vertices, we define a semiregular graph to be a graph in which each vertex is distance 2 away

from exactly the same number of vertices. Ifeach vertex of a semiregular graph is distance 2 away from n

vertices, we say that that graph is n-semiregular. We give examples of semiregular graphs, describe the

barbell class, and describe how the property of semiregularity reclates to other properties of graphs, such as

regularity, vertex-transitivity and symmetry. The classes of 0-semiregular graphs, 1-semiregular graphs, 2-

semiregular graphs and the semiregular trees are fully classified. In addition, an algorithm for determining

whether a graph is semiregular is presented.

5
 CHAPTER
GRAPH THEORY CONCEPTS

1.1. GRAPHS

In graph theory, a graph is defined to be a set of points called vertices that are connected by

lines called edges. Figure 1 shows some examples of graphs under this definition.

Figure 1

We will consider only simple graphs; that is, there is a maximum of one edge connecting any two

vertices, and there can be no edges connecting a vertex to itself.

The vertex set of a graph is the set of all the vertices in the graph. Likewise, the edge set of a

graph is the set of all edges in the graph. The vertex and edge sets of a graph G are denoted V(G)

and E(G), respectively. The degree of a vertex v, denoted deg(v), is the number of edges that

contain v.

A path between two vertices a and b is a sequence of vertices and edges that lead from a tob in

which no vertex is repeated. The length of a path is the number of edges that it contains. Figure

2 shows a path of length 5 froma to b.

Figure 2

6
A graph of n vertices that is just a single path is denoted P. The distance between two vertices

a and b is the number of edges contained in the shortest path between a and b. Referring back to

Figure 2, a and b are distance 1 apart.

A graph H is a subgraph of a graph G if the vertex set of H is contained within the vertex set of

G and two vertices are connected in H only if they are connected in G. Figure 3 shows a graph,

G, and one possible subgraph, H.

G H=

Figure 3

When two vertices are connected in Hif and onlyifthey are connected in G, then His called an

induced subgraph of G.

The complement, G , of a graph G has the same vertex set as G and vertices vj and v2 are

connected in G if and only if they are not connected in G. Figure 4 shows a graph and its

complement.

G G

Figure 4

1.2. PROPERTIES OF GRAPHS

A graph is connected if there exists a path connecting any two vertices of a graph. Otherwise,

the graph is disconnected. Each connected part of a disconnected graph is calleda component.

Figure 5 shows both a connected and a disconnected graph.

 W Connected
Disconnected

Figure 5

vertex in the graph has the same degree. If all the vertices of a graph
A graph is regular if every

call that graph n-regular. Figure 6 shows some examples of regular graphs:
have degree n, we

3 -regular 4-regular
2-regular

Figure 6

with its endpoints joined by an additional edge. A cycle

A cycle is a path of length 2 or more

7 shows
with n vertices is called an n-cycle. The cycles are exactly the 2-regular graphs. Figure

some examples of cycles.

4-cycle 5-cycle

Figure 7

cycles as subgraphs. Figure 8 shows two

A graph is called tree if it is connected and contains no

examples of trees.

8
 Figure 8

A graph is called complete if every vertex is connected to every other vertex in the graph. Ka

denotes the complete graph with n vertices. Figure 9 shows some examples of complete graphs.

K4 Ks K

Figure 9

9
 CHAPTER 2
SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS

2.1. INTRODUCTION

2 away from exactly the same

A graph is semiregular if each vertex in the graph is distance
number of vertices. If each vertex is distance 2 from n other vertices, we call that graph n-

semiregular. Figure 10 shows some examples of semiregular graphs.

2-semiregular 3-semiregular 6-semiregular

Figure 10

Semiregular graphs are a natural extension of the idea of regular graphs. Although extensive

literature exists on regular graphs, semiregular graphs have been much less studies. A similar

idea appears in "Distance Degree Regular Graphs" by Bloom, Kennedy and Quintas.

Define deg2(v) to be the number of vertices that are distance 2 away fromv in a given graph. It

is obvious that the union more than one n-semiregular graph is also n-semiregular, so we will

limit our discussion to connected semiregular graphs.

2.2. THE BARBELL CLASS

The n-barbell graph is formed by taking a connected pair of vertices, v1 and v2 and then

connecting n new vertices to vj and then n new vertices to v2. Figure 11 depicts several of the

smaller barbell graphs.

10
 0-barbell 2-barbell 4-barbell

Figure 11

Theorem 2.1. The n-barbell graph is n-semiregular for all nz0.

Proof. Let G be the n-barbell graph. That is, G is formed by a central line segment connecting

other vertices connected to each of vj and v2. Let v be a vertex in G. For

v1 and v2 with n

n =0, G is 0-semiregular. For all other n, there are two possible cases:

Case 1. vis a point on the central line segment of G. Without loss of generality, say that v is

+1 vertices connected to v, including v2. There are also other vertices

v. There
n
are n

connected to v2, and v is distance 2 from each of them. We have considered all the vertices

of G, so deg2(v) = n.

Case 2. vis an endpoint of G. Without loss of generality, say that v is connected to v1. vis

distance 2 from v2 and the other n-1 other vertices connected onto vj. vis distance 3 from

the n vertices connected onto v2. We have considered all the vertices of G, so

deg2(v) = (n-1)+1 = n.

Thus, deg2(v) =n for every vertex v in G, and G is n-semiregular.

This theorem leads us to the solution of a natural question that arises concerning semiregular

graphs: Is there an n-semiregular graph for every n?

Corollary 2.2. There exists a n-semiregular graph for every n20.

Proof. For any n 20, the n-barbell graph is n-semiregular.

11
2.3. VERTEX-TRANSITIVITY

An automorphism ofa graph G is a one-to-one, onto map fV(G)>V(G) such that {u,v} ¬E(G)

iff {f)A)} EE(G). A graph G is vertex-transitive if for all pairs of vertices vi and v2 of G

there is an automorphism of G mapping v| to v2

Lemma 2.3. Iffis an automorphism of a connected graph G and a, b are vertices of G, then the

distance between a and b is the same as the distance between fa) and flb).
Proof. Let G be a graph, and let a and b be vertices of G. LetfV(G)>V(G) be an

automorphism of G. Say that a and b are distance d apart. Then there is a path a, v]. v2., Vd-

1,b (where v, EV(G), Vi) that has length d. Now consider the vertices fa), fAv1).Sv2).

Avd-1),Sb). By definition of automorphism, the connections between vertices are preserved

under the automorphism, so the sequence fla), Av1),Av2),.va-1),b) forms a path of length

d from fla) to fb). Therefore, the distance betweenfla) and f{b) is at most d. Say that there is a

path Sla), u1, u2,. n-1,fb) in G such that the length of the path is n, where n < d. Since fis a

bijection we can rewrite this path as fla), f{w1).\w2),., Wn-1),Sb) for some w], w2,, Wn-1

in G. Then a, w], wz,., Wy-1, b defines a path oflength n in G, which contradicts our

assumption that a andb are distance d apart. Thus, fMa) and fb) are the same distance apart as a

and b.

Theorem 2.4. All connected vertex-transitive graphs are semiregular.

Proof. Let G be a connected vertex-transitive graph, and let v1, v2 be vertices of G. Say that v1

is distance 2 away from exactly n other vertices, namely, u1, u2, u3,.., Un Now, since G is

vertex-transitive, there exists an automorphism, p, that maps V2 onto v1. Since p is an

automorphism, there must also be vertices w]. w2, w3,., WnEV(G) such that p(wi) = uj. Since,

according to Lemma 2.3, distance is preserved by automorphism,

12
 d(v], 4i) = d(v2, wi)

2 d(v2, Wi)

Thus, v2 is also distance 2 away from at least n other vertices, namely, w1. w2, wg,..,Wn. Say

that v2 is distance 2 from an additional vertex, x. Since fis a bijection and because distance is

preserved by automorphism, there exists a yeV(G) that is not any of the uj and that is distance 2

from v. That contradicts our assumption that u1, u2, u3,.., ún are the only vertices that are

distance 2 from vj. Thus, v2 is distance 2 away from exactly n other vertices. Since this is true

for any v1, v2EV(G), Gmustbe n-semiregular.

13
 CHAPTER3
CLASSIFICATIONS
3.1. THE 0-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS

Now that we know some basic truths about semiregular graphs, we shall move on to classifying

certain types of semiregular graphs. First, we shall fully classify the 0-semiregular graphs.

Theorem 3.1. A connected graph is 0-semiregular if and only if it is a complete graph, K, for

nz1.

Proof. Let G be a connected 0-semiregular graph with n vertices, n2 1. The distance between

any two vertices of G must be 1, because a distance greater than 1 would mean that G would have

two vertices that were distance 2 apart, and G would therefore not be 0-semiregular. A connected

graph withn vertices in which all vertices are at distance 1 from all other vertices is the complete

graph, K

Let G be the complete graph, KF, for n21. Then for any vertex v in G, v is not distance 2 away

from any other vertices. Thus, G is 0-semiregular.

3.2. THE 1-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS

Now we shall classify the 1-semiregular graphs, but first we will need a lemma.

Lemma 3.2. Every finite 1-semiregular graph has an even number of vertices

Proof. Let G be a 1-semiregular graph. Let v be a vertex of G. Since G is 1-semiregular, v must

be distance 2 away from exactly one other vertex in G. Call it u. Likewise, u is distance 2 away

from v alone. Thus the vertices of G can be divided into pairs that are distance 2 away from each

other, but not from any other vertex. If G had an odd number of vertices, there would be a vertex

that was not part of a pair, and therefore not distance 2 away from any other vertex. Then G

would not be 1-semiregular. So G must have an even number ofvertices.

Now we are ready for the classification of the 1-semiregular graphs.

14
Theorem 3.3. A connected graph is 1-semiregular if and only ifit is P4 or |UP2 |, for n22.

G must have at least four vertices, because it

Proof. Let G be a connected 1-semiregular graph.
must have an even number of vertices (according to Lemma 3.2), and the only connected graph

with two vertices, P2, is not 1-semiregular.

Case 1: Every two vertices of G are either distance 1 or 2 apart. Say that G has m vertices,

m24. According to Lemma 3.2, m must be even, and its vertices can be divided into pairs

that are distance 2 apart from each other. Since, as stated, the only possible distances

between two vertices of G is 1 or 2, each vertex must be distance 1 away from every vertex

except its pair. Thus, the graph is completely connected except that the pairs are not
connected. The complement of the graph is then a union of (at least two) P2 graphs. Thus G

can be written in the form UP, for n22.

i=1

Case 2: There are vertices of G that are at distance greater than 2 from one another. That

means that there exists a pair of vertices, v, and Va, that are distance 3 apart, as shown below:

V2 V4

Figure 12

What we have here is actually a 1-semiregular graph (P4). We must check to see if we can

First should check to see if any more edges can be added to the
expand this graph. we

vertices we already have. There are only two distinct possibilities:

V2 3 V3 4

Figure 13

15
In both cases, vj is no longer distance 3 from v4, which contradicts our assumption. So no

more edges can be added among the vertices vj through v4. Now we examine what happens

when a new vertex is added to G, call it v5. There are only two cases that must be examined.

Case 2a: We connect vs to an endpoint; say v1

V V2

Figure 14

As can be seen in the figure above, the addition of vs causes v2 to be distance 2 away

from both v4 and v5. We cannot, by adding edges, make the dist ce between two

vertices any longer, so we must make v2 to be only distance 1 away from 5

V2

Figure 15

Now we have the problem that v3 is distance 2 away from more than one other vertex,

namely v1 and v5. We cannot connect v3 to vj, so we must connect v3 to vs.

Vs

Figure 16

In the same manner, it can be concluded that v4 and v5 must also be connected.

V2 V3

Figure 17

16
 2 away from v4, which contradicts our assumption.
But now v] is only distance
in Case 2a, this causes vj and
Case 2b: We connect v5 to a non-endpoint; say v2. Just as

so we must connect both vj and v3 to v5.

v3 to be distance 2 away
from two vertices,
Again, there
Now v4 is distance 2 away from two other vertices, so we connect v4 to vs.

have reached a contradiction.

is now a path of length 2 between vj and v4 so we

is connected and
Assume that Giseither P4 or|UP|, for n22. IfGis P4, then G
i=

P2's. Then, as seen above,

1-semiregular. Say that G is a complement of a union of at least two

its "pair". Since

each vertex of G is connected to (distance 1 from) every other vertex except

n22, Gmust have at least four vertices. Let vj and v2 be any of the pairs of vertices in G, and

path of length 2
let v be a third vertex. Then v must be connected to both vj and v2, creating a

from vj to v2. Since they are not connected, vj and v2 are indeed distance 2 from each other.

It also follows that G is connected, since vj is connected to all

vertices
Thus G is 1-semiregular.

except v2, and there is a path from vj to v2.

fom m/2

Figure 18 shows some examples of graphs of the form

Figure 18

3.3. THE 2-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS

Now that we have seen the classifications of the 0- and 1-semiregular graphs, we shall move on

to the classification of the 2-semiregular graphs, which is a much more complicated problem.

17
Theorem 3.4. A connected graph is 2-semiregular if and only if it is an n-cycle or the

complement of an n-cycle for n25, the complement of the union of at least two disjoint cycles, or

one of the seventeen graphs below:

(a) (b) (C) (d)

(c) ( (g)

(h) (i) )

(k) 1) (m)

(n) (o)

(p) (q)

Figure 19

18
Proof. Let G be a connected 2-semiregular graph. We break up the possibilities for G into two

cases: First, that G contains an endpoint. Second, that G does not.

If we know that G has an endpoint, we can start with that endpoint, and try all the possible cases

See Appendix A for a full exploration of all possible cases. We conclude that graphs (a), (b), (c),

(d), (e), (), (g), (h), and (i) in Figure 19 above are the only possibilities for a connected 2-

semiregular graph that has an endpoint. Secondly, assume that G does not contain an endpoint.

We will divide this possibility further into two cases:

Case 1: G contains no endpoint, and the distance between any two vertices of G is at most 2.

That means that every vertex v in G is connected to every other vertex in G except for the

two vertices that it is distance 2 away from. Now consider G. G must be a 2-regular

graph, but it might have more than one component. Recall that the only possible connected

2-regular graphs are the cycles. Thus G must be either a cycle or the union of two or more

disjoint cycles. G cannot be a 3-cycle or a 4-cycle, because then G would be disconnected.

Case 2: Gcontains no endpoint, and there exist vertices u and v of G that are at least distance

3 apart. See Appendix B for a full exploration of all the possible cases. We conclude that the

n-cycle graphs for nzó and the graphs ), (k), (1), (m), (n), (o), (p), and (q) in Figure 19 are

the only possibilities for a connected 2-semiregular graph that has no endpoint and contains

two vertices that are at least distance 3 apart. (Notice that the case that G is a 5-cycle is

contained in Case 1, because the complement ofa 5-cycle is itself a 5-cycle.)

If G is an n-cycle for n2s, then G is obviously connected and 2-semiregular. If G is the

complement of an S-cycle, then G is itself a 5-cycle, and is covered by the previous case. IfG is

the complement of an n-cycle for n26, then every vertex in G is connected to all but two of the

other vertices. Consider a vertex v in G that is not connected to vj or v2. Additionally, v1 is not

connected to uj and v2 is not connected to u2, where neither uj nor u2 is v. But G has at least six

19
vertices, so G must contain a vertex u that is connected to v and vj and v2. Thus there is a path

of length 2 between v and vj and between v and v2. Thus deg2(v) = 2, meaning G is 2

semiregular. Furthermore, since v is connected to all vertices except vj and v2, G is connected.

Now consider the case that G is the complement of the union of at least two cycles. Just as in the

case that G was the complement of a cycle, each vertex v of G must be connected to all but two

of the other vertices in G. Let u be a vertex that was part of a different cycle than v before the

complement was taken. Then in G, u must be connected to both v and the two vertices that v is

not connected to, creating paths of length 2 between them. Again, this causes the graph to be

connected.

The seventeen sporadic examples can be checked individually for 2-semiregularity.

3.4. THE SEMIREGULAR TREES

We will now classify some semiregular graphs by a different type of property.

Theorem 3.5. A finite tree is semiregular if and only if it is P1 or a member of the barbell class.

Proof. Recall that by definition, trees are connected. Let G be a finite semiregular tree. If G has

just one point (P1), it is a 0-semiregular tree.

Figure 20

Now consider the case that G has at least two points. Since G is a finite tree, it must have an

endpoint. Call it v. Vertex v must be connected to exactly one other vertex, which we will callx.

Figure 21

20
xis the only vertex that v is distance 1 from, so v is distance 2 away only from those vertices

connected tox. Since G isn-semiregular, v must be distance 2 away from n other vertices, so

there must be n other vertices connected to x. Call them y1,y2, y3, Yn

Figure 22

Now:

vis distance 2 away from n other vertices (y1, 2, V3,. Vn).

Each y-vertex is distance 2 away from n other vertices (the other y-vertices and vV).

However, x is not distance 2 away from any other vertices.

We cannot connect v to any other vertices, so, in order to solve this problem, we have to

connect new vertices onto one or more of the y-vertices.

Case 1: We connect the n new vertices to a single y-vertex.

vertices all connected to y1. Call the new

Without loss of generality, say that the n new are

vertices z], z2, 23,, Zn. Now we have:

y2 4 n

Figure 23

21
 v is distance 2 away fromn other vertices (1. y2. y3,.,n)
x is distance 2 away from n other vertices (71, 22, 23, Zn).

Each y-vertex is distance 2 away from n other vertices (the other y-vertices and v).

Each z-vertex is distance 2 away from n other vertices (the other z-vertices and x).

So this tree is n-semiregular. It is the n-barbell graph. We cannot connect any more vertices

to the z-vertices, because that would makeyj distance 2 away from more than n vertices.

Case 2: We connect the n new vertices to more than one of the y-vertices. Without loss of

generality, assume that m of the new vertices are connected to y1, and the remaining n-m of

the new vertices are connected to other y-vertices.

Z Z2 Z3 24 m m+1 m+2 4n-1 4n

****

Figure 24

It can be seen that z1 is now is distance 2 from only m other vertices, namely, z2, z3, z4..

Zm and x. Since m<n, our graph is not n-semiregular. We must see if it is possible to connect

other vertices to z1, making paths of length 2.

22
 24 m m+1 m+2*** n-1 n

V3Y4.. Yn

Figure 25

That does not work because it causes y1 to be distance 2 from more than n other vertices.

We have already stated that P1 is a semiregular tree. We have seen that the barbellis

semiregular, and the barbells are, by definition, trees.

23
 CHAPTER 4
MORE ON SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS

4.1. SYMMETRY

of automorphisms
One way to think of the symmetries of a graph is by considering the number

has. Every graph has at least one automorphism: the identity automorphism.
that the graph
graph. We could
aside from that could be considered a symmetry of the
Every automorphism
automorphisms other than the
graph is completely nonsymmetric if it has
no
then say that a

identity automorphism.
that have seen until now have some
of the examples of semiregular graphs
we
All

has some symmetry, but that is

symmetry. One might conjecture that every semiregular graph

The numbers within the faces of the graph

not the case. Consider the graph in Figure 26.

determine the faces.

represent the size of the cycles that

15
15

2
21

18

Figure 26

and the 12-

One can see that in any automorphism ofthis graph, the positions of the 18-cycle

cycle are fixed. That causes the 15-cycle and the 9-cycle that are adjacent to both of them to be

fixed, and that in turn fixes the entire graph.

24
4.2. ADDING EDGES

It is an interesting property of semiregular graphs that in some cases a single edge can be added

to an n-semiregular graph without changing the n-semiregularity of the graph. This property 1s

never true with regular graphs. Figure 27 shows an example of this phenomenon. Both figures

are 2-semiregular graphs.

Figure 27

Lemma 4.1. When an edge is added between two vertices a and b, the vertices that are distance

2 away from a given vertex in the graph will not change except possibly if that vertex is a, b, or a

vertex adjacent to a or b.

Proof. Consider a connected graph G that contains vertices a and b, which are not connected by

an edge. Now, let G' be exactly the same as G, but with an edge added between a and b. Let c be

a vertex in G that is distance at least 2 away from a and from b. Any vertex that c is distance 2

away from in G will still be distance 2 from c in G', because the addition of an edge could not

cause it to be any farther away, and because a distance less then 2 would be a distance of 1, but

we did not add an edge to c. We must also check that e doesn't become distance 2 away from

any vertex in G that it was not already distance 2 away from in G. Assume that in G', c is

distance 2 from a vertex that it was not distance 2 from in G. We shall call that vertex g. That

means that there is a path c,f, g, for some vertex f in G'. Now,fcannot be equal to a or b,

because we said that c was distance 2 from a and b. Sincefis neithera nor b, the edges between

c and fand betweenfand g must also exist in G. Therefore, g must be distance 2 from c in G as

well.

25
Theorem 4.2. If G is an n-semiregular graph, and a and b are vertices in G that are not joined by

iffa is
an edge, then a andb can be connected without changing the n-semiregularity ofG

distance 2 away from every vertex connected to b, and b is distance 2 away from every vertex

connected to a.

with and b vertices in G that are not connected. Let a

Proof. Let Gbe ann-semiregular graph, a

2 from every vertex

be distance 2 away from every vertex connected to b and b be distance away

from each other, then there is a vertex c that is

connected to a. If a and b are distance 2 away

and b are at least

distance 1 from botha and b, which contradicts our assumption. Therefore, a

distance 3 apart. Now, consider connecting vertices a and b with an edge. Lemma 4.1 tells us

that we need only concern ourselves with a, b and the vertices that are adjacent to a or b to

determine whether the graph is still n-semiregular.

Consider vertex a. After the edge is added, any vertex originally connected to a remains distance

l from a. Vertices a and b are more than distance 2 from each other in G, and distance 1 from

each other after the edge is added. By adding the edge between a and b, a would become

distance 2 away from any vertex adjacent to b. However, a is already distance 2 from every

vertex connected to b. Thus, after the edge is added, a remains distance 2 away from exactly the

same vertices as beforehand. Likewise, b remains at distance 2 from exactly the same vertices as

before the edge was added.

Now consider g, a vertex adjacent to a. By Lemma 4.1, any vertex that is distance 2 or more

from a and b is not affected by the addition of the edge. Vertex g is adjacent to a before and after

the edge is added. By our assumptions, g is originally distance 2 from b, and remains so. In G, g

is distance either 1 or 2 away from every other vertex that is adjacent to a. Since no edge is

added to g, g remains the same distance from these vertices. Now let h be a vertex that is

adjacent to b. Ifg and h are originally distance 1 apart, then they remain distance 1 apart. If they

are originally distance 2 apart, then they remain distance 2 apart, because no edge was added

26
 originally m o r e than distance 2 apart, but that after
between g and h. Assume that g and h
were

That that after the edge

added, they become distance 2 apart.
means
the edge between a and b is

either b, because by
somej in V(G). Vertexj cannot be
a or
is added, there is a path g,j, h for

be distance 2 from a. Therefore the

our assumptions, g must be distance 2 from b, and h must

edges between g andj and betweenj and h must have existed in the original graph. Therefore, g

the
been distance 2 apart. So g remains distance 2 from exactly
same
and h must have always

vertices as before the edge was added.

and b non-adjacent vertices in G with

Say that for a connected n-semiregular graph G, a are two

of G.
the property that adding an edge between a and b does not change the n-semiregularity
Case 1: Say that a and b are distance 2 apart. After an edge is added between them, a will

remain distance 2 away from all other vertices (besides b) that it was originally distance 2

away from (the distance cannot get longer, nor become 1). This means that unless a

becomes, by the addition of the edge, distance 2 away from exactly one vertex that it was not

already distance 2 away from, a will not be distance 2 away fromn vertices, as it needs to be.

When the edge is added between a and b, the only vertices that become distance 2 away firom

a that weren't originally distance 2 from a are the vertices that are connected to b but not toa

and are not already distance 2 froma. This means that in G there must be exactly one vertex

that is connected to b but is greater than distance 2 from a. Call that vertex g. Now any

vertex from which g was originally distance 2 from, g must still be distance 2 from.

However, g is now distance 2 from a, making g distance 2 from at least n +l other vertices.

This contradicts our assumption that G is an n-semiregular graph.

Case 2: Say that a andb are at distance more than 2 from cach other. That means that there

is no vertex connected to both a and b. Thus, when a and b are connected by an edge, a

would have to become (if it isn't already) distance 2 away from every vertex that is adjacent

to b. Similarly, b would become connected to every vertex that is adjacent to a. Now, when

27
 the edge between a and b is added, a remains distance 2 from every vertex that it was

originally distance 2 from. Therefore, in order to ensure that a is distance 2 away from only

n other vertices, a must originally be distance 2 from every vertex adjacent to b. Similarly, b

must originally be distance 2 from every vertex adjacent to a.

4.3 CONNECTIONS BETWEEN REGULARITY AND SEMIREGULARITY

Another natural question to ask regarding semiregular graphs is whether there is any connection

between regularity and semiregularity. The following is a method for transforming an 7

semiregular into an n-regular graph, and visa versa.

Theorem 4.3. If Gis an n-semiregular graph, let G* be defined as the graph with the same

vertex set as G, such that vj and v2 are connected in G* if and only if they are distance 2 away

from each other in G. Then G* is n-regular.

Proof. Let Gbe an n-semiregular graph. Let v be a vertex in G. v is then distance 2 away from

exactly other vertices in G. Now consider v in G*. In G*, v is connected to exactly those

vertices that it was distance 2 away from in G. That is, v is connected to exactly n other vertices.

Since this is true for all vertices, G* is n-regular.

G and the corresponding G*.

Figure 28 shows a graph

G G*=

Figure 28

T'heorem 4.4. If G is an n-regular graph, let G' is defined by inserting two vertices onto each

edge of G. Then G' is an n-semiregular graph.

Figure 29 shows a graph G and the corresponding G'.

28
 G G

Figure 29

Proof. Let G be an n-regular graph, and G as defined above. Let v be a vertex in G'. Then v

may or may not have been a vertex in G.

Case 1: If v is a vertex of G, then in G vertex v was connected to exactly n other vertices:

.(n of these)

Figure 30

In G we have:

. (n of these)

Figure 31

So v is distance 2 away from exactly n other vertices.

Case 2: Ifv is not a vertex of G, then v must have been added in along an edge of G. Say that v

was added to the edge connecting vj to v2 in G. Since G is n-regular, we have the following

situation in G:

29
 Figure 32

in G' have:
(Note that vj and v2 may be connected to some of the same vertices.) Thus, we

Figure 33

Vertex v is distance two away from exactly n other vertices; those which are highlighted with a

double circle above.

Since deg2(v)=n for every vertex v in G', G' is n-semiregular.

4.4 ALGORITHM FOR DETERMINING SEMIREGULARITY

Once the verticesofa graph G have been labeled from 1 to n, the adjaceney matrix ofG is the

n xn matrix where cach element a, has value l if vertex i is connected to vertex j, and value 0

if vertex i is not connected to vertexj. Figure 25 shows an example of a graph and its

corresponding adjacency matrix.

30
 2 0 10 0 1
10110
010 1 0
A =
0110 1
0 0 1 0

Figure 34

In order for the property of semiregularity to be determined by a computer, it is necessary to have

an appropriate algorithm. The following algorithm will determine if a graph is n-semiregular for

any n, given the adjacency matrix for the graph.

Algorithm 4.5. To compute whether G is n-semiregular for some n:

1. Start with A, the adjacency matrix of G.

2. Compute A2.

3. Reduce all elements on the main diagonal to 0.

4. Change all elements with value greater than 1 to 1. Call the resulting matrix A*.

5. Compute 4*-A.

6. If the number of positive l's appearing in each row is the same for all rows, then the

graph is semiregular. Ifeach row contains exactly n positive 1's, then the graph is n-

semiregular.

We shall first run through an example of this algorithm in use, and then prove the validity of the

algorithm.
Example:
1. Start with adjacency matrix, A. (We use the same graph and adjacency matrix as in

Figure 25 above.)
0 10 0 1 1
10 1 1 0 0
10 1 0
Alo 110 1
1 0 0 10
1 0 00 1 0

Figure 35
2. Compute A2.

3 0 1 1 1
0 3 1 2 1
2

12 1 0 3 1
1 I 01 1 2
Figure 36

3. Reduce all elements on the main diagonal to 0.

0 0 1 1
0 0 1 1 2

10 0
210 0
10 1 1 o

Figure 37

4. Change all elements with value greater than 1 to 1. Call the resulting matrix A*.

o01 1 1

0o

Figure 38

32
 5. Compute A*-A.

0 10 01 1 0-1 1 1 0

-10 0 0
01 0 1 0 10 0 10 0 010
I0o 01I 0 1 0 1 0 00 -1
0 01 0 0 1 1 -1 0
0 0 0 1 o0 I01 0 0

Figure 39

6. We see that in the matrix above, each row contains exactly two positive 1's, so the graph

in Figure 34 is 2-semiregular.

Proof. The proof of this algorithm relies on the fact that in the square of an adjacency matrix, the

value of the element aij represents the number of distinct paths of length 2 between the vertices i

andj.
Say that we have a graph G with adjacency matrix A. The pairs of vertices in G fall into four

categories: 1)i andj are the same vertex 2) i arej are connected by an edge (i.e. there is a path

between i and) 3) i andj are distance 2 apart 4) i andj are distinet vertices that are
oflength
at least distance 3 apart. Now, for each of these possibilities, we shall consider the value of ai in

A*-A. For 1) we see that the value of aij in A is O and in 4* is 0 (since all the elements of the

main diagonal were made to be 0). Thus the value of ai in 4*-A is 0. For 2), the value for ay in

A is 1 and in 4* is either 0 or 1, so the value of aij in A*-A is either 0 or -1. For 3), the value of

ai in A is 0 and in A* is 1, so a =l in 4*-4. For 4), the value of aj in both A and 4* is zero, so

a-0 in A*-A, too. Thus we see that the value of aij in 4*-A is 1 if and only if i andj are distinct

vertices that are distance 2 apart. Let n; be the number of l's appearing in the th row of the

matrix. Then nj represents the number of vertices that i is distance 2 away from. If n; = n for all

i, then G is n-semiregular.

33
 APPENDIX A

2-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS WITH ENDPOINTS

As stated in the proof of Theorem 3.4, we must do a case-by-case analysis to determine all the

possible 2-semiregular graphs that have an endpoint. Before we begin, it will be useful to prove

two lemmas.

Lemma A.1. IfH is an induced subgraph ofa 2-semiregular graph G, and v EV(H), and u1,

124n are vertices of H that are adjacent to v such that deg2(u) =2 in H, then if G includes

any other vertex, u, connected to v, u is must also be connected to all the uj.

Proof. Since His an induced subgraph of G, if two vertices are distance 2 apart in H, then they
are also distance 2 apart in G. Consider uj. We know that deg2(ui) = 2 in H. If uj is not

connected to u in G, then uj is distance 2 from u, and deg2(uj) 2 3 in G. But G is a 2-

semiregular graph, so uj must be connected to u.

This Lemma is helpful to speed up the process of evaluating all the cases. It also leads to another

useful lemma.

Lemma A.2. If H is a 2-semiregular graph that includes an endpoint, and it is an induced

subgraph of some connected 2-semiregular graph G such that there exists a vertex of G that does

not belong to H, then G cannot contain an endpoint.

Proof. Let H be a 2-semiregular graph that has an endpoint, e. Let H be an induced subgraph of

G such that G is a connected 2-semiregular graph with more vertices than H. Since G is

connected, there must be a vertex v in G and not in H such that v is connected to one of the

vertices of H. Since His a

2-semiregular induced subgraph of G, Lemma A.2 tells us that v must

be connected to all the vertices of H. But that means that v is connected to e, so e is not an

endpoint in G. Furthermore, since all the vertices ofG that are not in H are connected to all the

vertices of H (and there has to be at least two vertices in H, since H is 2-semiregular) none of
them can be endpoints. Thus, G does not contain an
endpoint.

34
Lemma A.2. shows us that once we have found a 2-semiregular graph with an endpoint, and we

know all the connections between the vertices of that graph, we need not try to expand the graph

further, since any resulting graph will not have an endpoint, and will therefore not concern us.

We must now show that the only 2-semiregular graphs that have an endpoint are graphs (a), (6),

(c). (d). (e), (1), (8). (h), and (i) in Figure 19.

Proof. Note: In the following diagrams will denote a vertex to which nothing more can be

connected, and a dotted line between two vertices denotes that those two vertices are not

connected.

Assume that G is a connected, 2-semiregular graph that has an endpoint, v. Then v must be

connected to exactly one other vertex (the graph with one point is not 2-semiregular). Call it u.

Furthermore, since G is 2-semiregular, v must be distance 2 away from exactly two other

vertices. That means that u must be connected to exactly two other vertices, which we shall call a

and b. Now consider what we have so far:

Now we must branch off into two separate cases: either a and b are connected by an edge, or they

are not.

Case 1: Vertices a and b are not connected by an edge:

v u

Vertex u must be distance 2 away from two other vertices, call them c and d. c and d cannot

be connected to v, so they must be connected to a and/or b. There are four distinct ways in

which this can be done.

35
Case la: Both c and d are connected to one of a or b, and not to the other. Without loss

of generality, say that both c and d are connected to a.

This is a 2-semiregular graph; the 2-barbell. It is (a) in Figure 19. If we assume that c

and d are not connected, then we can apply Lemma A.2, and we are done. However, we

must explore the possibility that c and d are connected:

v
b

Now deg2()=1. But we cannot add any new vertices onto c or d, because that would

cause a to be distance 2 away from more than 2 vertices.

Case 1b: Vertex c is connected to a but not b, and vertex d is connected to b but not a.

b d

Now there are two cases: either c and d are connected, or they are not. If cand d are

connected, then we get:

vO-

This is a problem, because now vertex a is distance 2 away from three other vertices.

Ifc and d are not connected, then we have:

36
 V

Now vertices a andb are already distance 2 away from two other vertices. Therefore no

other vertices can be added onto c or d. The graph cannot be expanded, and it is not 2-

semiregular, so this leads us nowhere.

Case 1c: Vertex c is connected to both and b, but d is connected to b

a
only
a C

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (b) in Figure 19. Again, if we assume that c and d are

not connected, then we can apply Lemma A.2 and we are done. However, we must try

the case that c and d are connected by an edge:

This case leads nowhere, because deg2(a) =3.

Case 1d: Both vertices c and d are connected to both a and b:

a C

b d

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (c) in Figure 19. But we must try the possibility that

c and d are connected by an edge

37
 C
V

This case does not lead to anything because it is not 2-semiregular, and if any new

vertices are connected onto c or d, then a will be distance 2 away from more than two

other vertices.

Case 2: Vertices a and b are connected by an edge.

Since G is 2-semiregular, vertex u must be distance 2 away from exactly two other vertices.

Just as in Case 1, the vertices that u is distance 2 away from (c and d) must be connected to a

and/or b, and there are four distinct ways in which this can be done:

Case 2a. Both c and d are connected to one of a or b, but not to the other. Without loss

of generality, say that both c and d are connected to a, and not to b.

This causes b to be distance 2 away from three other vertices: v, c, and d. Thus, G is not

2-semiregular.
Case 2b. Vertex c is connected to a but not b, and vertex d is connected to b but not a.

b d

38
 that and d are not
2-semiregular graph. It is (d) in Figure 19. If
we assume c
This is a

connected, then Lemma A.2 tells us that we are finished. However, we must try

connecting vertices c and d with an edge. We get:

C
V

This graph is also 2-semiregular. It is (e) in Figure 19.

Case 2c. Vertex c is connected to both a and b, but vertex d is connected only to b.

a C

b d

We see that vertex d is now distance 2 away from three other vertices (u, a, c). We must

then shorten the path between d and one of the vertices that d is distance 2 away from.

We know that d cannot be connected toa or u, so we must add an edge between d and c.

K b d

No other vertices can be connected toa and b. Neither can a new vertex be connected to

e because that would make vertex a distance 2 away from more than 2 vertices.

However, vertex b is distance 2 away from only one other vertex. We must add

something; the only possibility is connecting vertex d to a new vertex, 8.

b d

39
This graph is 2-semiregular; it is (f) in Figure 19. We know from Lemma A.2 that we

cannot connect d org to any new vertices

Case 2d. Both vertices c and d are connected to both a and b.

b d

No new vertices could be connected onto a or b, because that would cause vertex u to be

distance 2 away from more than 2 other vertices. We must try the two cases of when c

and d are and are not connected.

Case 2d(1): If c and d are connected:

The only vertices that can be connected to a new vertex are c and d. Without loss of

generality, say that d is connected to a new vertex, g.

Vertex g is distance 2 away from a, b and c. We must then connect g to c:

b d

This graph is still not 2-semiregular, and the only vertex to which it is possible to

connect a new vertex is g, so we try that:

40
 C-

b 8

This graph is 2-semiregular. It is (g) in Figure 19. We cannot add any more vertices.

Case 2d(b): Vertices c and d are not connected.

Vertices c and d are the only ones that could be connected to a new vertex. Without

loss of generality, say that a new vertex, g, is connected to c. Vertex g may or may

not be connected to d. Ifd and g are not connected:

VO-

b 8

This graph is 2 semiregular. It is (h) in Figure 19. No new vertices can be connected

to c, d, or g. Ifd and g are connected:

b d

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (i) in Figure 19. No new vertices can be

connected to c, d, or g

Thus, the only possible connected 2-semiregular graphs that have an endpoint are graphs (a), (b),

(c), (d), (). (), (g), (h), and (i) in Figure 19.

41
 APPENDIX B
2-SEMIREGULAR GRAPHS WITHOUT AN ENDPOINT
THAT CONTAIN A DISTANCE 3

Before we delve into the cases of 2-semiregular graphs without an endpoint that contain a

distance 3, we must prove a lemma. Similar to Lemma A.2, it will determine when we can stop

expanding a particular case.

Lemma B.l. IfG is a connected 2-semiregular graph that contains two vertices a andb that are

at least distance 3 apart, and His a connected 2-semiregular induced subgraph of G that contains

both a and b, then G = H.

Proof. Say that G # H. Recall that Hbeing an induced subgraph G means that two vertices are

connected in Aif and only ifthey are connected in G. Then, since G is connected, there must be

some vertex v in G that is not contained in Hbut that is connected to a vertex u in H. Now

consider a vertex u' in H that is connected to u. Vertex u' exists because His 2-semiregular,

and there are no 2-semiregular graphs with only one vertex. Vertex u' must be distance 2 away

from exactly two other vertices in H. But u' is also distance 2 away from v, unless we connect

uand v by an edge. In the same way, by Lemma A.l, we must connect all of the vertices of H

to v. But that creates a path from a to v to b, which means that a and b are only distance 2 apart,

contradicting our assumption.

Now we prove that the only connected 2-semiregular graphs without an endpoint and that contain

two vertices that are at least distance 3 apart are the n-cycles forn26 and graphs G), (k), (1),

(m), (n), (o), (p), and (q) of Figure 19. This proof is tedious, leading us into twenty separate

cases

Proof B.2. Assume that G is a connected 2-semiregular graph with no endpoints that contains

two vertices that are at least distance 3 apart. IfG contains vertices that are at least distance 3

apart, then G must contain a pair of vertices, b and e that are exactly distance 3 apart. Thus b and

40 42
 e are connected by a path of length 3. Furthermore, b and e cannot be endpoints, so each must be
connected to at least one other vertex. What we have so far looks like:

b d e

Although the labels will no longer be written, these six vertices will be referred to
exactly as

above for the remaining portion of Appendix B. Note that in the

following diagrams, a dotted
line between two vertices means that those vertices are not connected by an edge. Also, a

number appearing next to a vertex represents the number of vertices that are distance 2 from that

vertex.

The six vertices above

might be interconnected in some way. Without loss of generality, there
are twenty distinct ways to interconnect them so that b and e remain distance 3 apart. They
appear below:

We must consider each of these cases separately.

4 43
Case 1:

*******
1
Since we have assumed that G contains no endpoints, we know that a and f must each be

connected to another vertex, which may or may not be the same vertex. Say that a is connected

to a new vertex, g. We shall whether g can also be connected to any ofb, c, d or e.

Case la: Say that g is connected to b:

This forces the following connections:

****

Now vertex d is distance 2 away from three other vertices, so this is impossible.

Case lb: Say that g is connected to c:

************

This forces the following connections:

Now dega(d) = 3, so we are done with this case.

Case lc: Say that g is connected to d:

**************

Vertex d is distance 2 avvay from three other vertices.

42 44
 Case 1d: Let g be connected to e:

***************

That forces a connection between g and d, which has already been tried in Case lc.

Thus, g is not connected to b, c, d or e.

Now we shall consider whether any new vertex can be connected to b, c, d, or e. By symmetry,

we need only consider the cases that a new vertex is added to d or to e.

Case le: A new vertex, h, is connected to e:

""

This forces the following connections:

*************T

Vertices b and e are no longer distance 2 apart.

Case 1f: The new vertex, h, is connected to d:

***** ***

We divide this case further into two cases, a and f are connected to distinct vertices or to the

same vertex.

Case 1f(a): Vertices a and fare connected to distinct vertices:

************

This forces the following connections:

******'**"****

545
 Again, we have lost our distance 3 between b and e.

Case 1f(2): Vertices a and fare connected to the same vertex:

This forces the following connections:

Once more, we have lost the distance 3.

Thus b, c, d, and e cannot be connected to any new vertices (outside of the original six). We

follow along the path from c to b to a... until we come to a vertex of degree at least 3. (Recall

that G cannot have any vertices of degree 1.) Now consider the vertex immediately before that

vertex. It must be distance 2 away from at least 3 other vertices. Therefore, there can be no

vertices of degree 3 or more in G and we know that there is no vertex of degree 1 (an endpoint)

in G. Gmustthen be an n-cycle, for n >7.

Case 2:

This graph is already 2-semiregular. It is a 6-cycle. According to Lemma B.1, we cannot add

anything to this graph.

Case 3:

*******'**

In this graph, deg:(g) =

3, so it does not lead anywhere.
Case 4:

44 46
This graph also contains a vertex that is distance 2 away from three other vertices.

Case 5

This graph contains an endpoint, which contradicts our assumptions, so we must add a new

vertex, g, onto it:

Now vertex e is distance 2 away from 3 other vertices. We must connect g and e. In the same

way, we must make the following other connections:

But now vertex a is distance 2 away from 3 other vertices, which contradicts our assumptions.

Therefore this case does not lead us anywhere.

Case 6:

This graph is already a 2-semiregular graph. It is (G) in Figure 19. By Lemma B.1, we cannot

connect anything else to this graph.

Case 7:

**********'*****

We must add a vertex, g, tof so that we do not have an

endpoint:

45 47
This forces two more connections:

We must try all the possibilities for connecting the new vertex to the other vertices of the graph:
Case 7a: Vertex g is not connected to c:

If we connect vertices a and g, we get:

This is a
2-semiregular graph. It is (k) in 19.
Figure Say that vertices a and g are not

connected:

If we connect a new vertex, h, to b we get (by Lemma A.1):

But now we have lost our assumed distance 3. Consider connecting a vertex to
new
vertexff
'**..

.
'

Nowfis distance 2 away from three other vertices. Connecting a new vertex onto any of the

remaining vertices leaves us with:

A6
 * ** y

This graph is 2-semiregular. It is (p) in Figure 19. According to Lemma B.1, we cannot add

anything else to this graph.

Case 7b: We have:

...
This graph is 2-semiregular. Again, it is (k) in Figure 19. Now, say that a andgare

connected:

Now fis distance 2 away from three other vertices.

Case 8:

Vertex fis distance 2 away from three other vertices.

Case 9:

**********

Without loss of generality, there are three distinct vertices to which we can connect a new vertex:

a, b, and c. Ifwe connect the new vertex, g, to c, then an edge is also forced berween d and g.

and we have the following situation:

** ********

4
Now vertex g is distance 2 away from four other vertices: a, b, e, and f. In order to alleviate this
situation, we must connect g to at least two of these four
vertices. Without loss of generality,
there are three ways to do this: Vertex g can be connected to a and b, to a and e, to
or a
andj.
(Note that b and e cannot both be connected to
g.))
Case 9a: Vertex g is connected to a and b.

If we connect g
to f, then dega(f-3. So we have the following:

***

Now we must try adding another vertex, h.

Case 9a(1): Ifh is connected to any one

of the vertices labeled "2" above, then it must be
connected to all of them (Lemma A.1). We get:

This graph is 2-semiregular. It is (o) in Figure 19. We must see if h can be connected to

a or b. If h is connected to a, we get:

AX
Vertex fis now distance 2 away from three other vertices. Ifh is connected to b, we get:

Again, this causesf to be distance 2 away from three other vertices.

 Case 9a(2): Ifh is connected to b, we get the following:

***************

Now deg2(c)=3, so we go on.

Case 9a(3): Ifh is connected to a, then we get the following:

h
Again, dega(c)=3, so this case is complete.

Case 9b: Vertex g is connected to a and e:

We need only consider the case that g andfare not connected, since the other possibilityis

examined in Case 9a. This graph is 2-semiregular. Ifis (k) in Figure 19.

Case 9c: Vertex g is connected to a andf.

.
**

This graph is 2-semiregular. Again, it is (k) in Figure 19.

Now we must examine the possibility that a new vertex is connected to b. We get:

****

****************

We see that deg2(c)=3. If anew vertex is connected to a, we get:

*************

Again, degl«)=3.

5
Case 10:

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is () in Figure 19.

Case 11:

*******

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (G) in Figure 19.

Case 12:

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (m) in Figure 19.

Case 13:

This does not work; dega(d)=3.

Case 14:

Again, degld)=3.
Case 15:

S0 52
Adding a vertex to either a or c forces a connection with the other one, and likewise for the pair e

andf. Therefore there are four possibilities that we must try: connecting a new vertex to a, b, d

and e.

Case 15a: If we connect a new vertex, g, to d, we get:

************

This forces four more connections:

We now know exactly how these seven vertices are connected, so we must consider what

will happen if an eighth vertex, h, is added. Without loss of generality, there are three

different vertices to which we can connect h: a, d, and e (d and g are equivalent because we

do not have to use the fact that g and e are distance 3 apart).

Case 15a(1): We connect h to a, which forces connections with b and c:

**************

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (0) in Figure 19. We must consider the possibility of

adding more edges between h and the other vertices this graph, however. If we connect h

to any of the verticesd,for g, then dega(e)=3. Therefore h cannot be connected to any

other vertices in this graph, and according to Lemma B.1, we are done with this case.

Case 15a(2): We connect h to d:

3 .

S3
 Now dega(a)=3.

Case 15a(3): We connect h tooe:

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (p) in Figure 19.

Case 15b: We connect g to b:

****

This forces connections rom g toa and from g to c

If g is connected to f, then degz(e)=3, so g is not connected to f

Adding a new vertex onto a, b, e orfwould force a connection with d, but we have already

tried that case in Case 15a, so we need only consider the possibility that a new vertex is

connected to g or b. If we connect a new vertex, h, to g, then dega(c)=3. Ifwe connect h to

b, then deg:(h)=3.

Case 15c: We connect g to a, which forces a connection with c:

*,

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (n) in Figure 19. Now we must try adding more edges.

Connecting g to e forces a connection between g andf

..

s2 54
 This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (q) in Figure 19. Now we know all the connections

between this set of vertices, so we are done with this case, according to Lemma B.1.

Case 15d: We connect g to e, which forces an additional connection between g andf:

Consider vertex b. It is distance 2 away from only one other vertex, d. No new vertex can be

connected to it (Case 15b) or to either of the vertices it is connected to (Case 15c). Therefore

it is impossible that vertex b become distance 2 away from more than vertex d. So we are

done.

Case 16:

According to Lemma A. l, adding a vertex to either of b or c forces a connection with the other.

The same situation exists between e and f. Therefore we have four cases to try: adding a new

vertex to a, b, d or e. We shall call the new vertex g.

Case 16a: We connect g to d: This forces the following connections (by Lemma A.1):

Vertices b and e are no longer distance 3 apart.

Case 16b: We connect g to e, which forces connection
a
withf:
 This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (k) in Figure 19. But we must try connecting g to the

other vertices of G. Ifg is connected to c, then dega(b) = 3. Ifg is connected to a, then

dega(g) = 3.

Case 16.c: If we connect g to b, that forces a connection between g and c:

**..
****.

This is a 2-semiregular graph. Again, it is (k) in Figure 19. We must try connecting g to a in

the graph above:

.

Not dega( = 3.

Case 16.d: Ifg is connected to a, we know that g is not connected to any of the other

vertices, because we have already tried those cases. So we have:

Now deg2(g) = 4.

Case 17:

Vertex fis distance 2 away from three other vertices.

Case 18:

According to Lemma A.1, connecting a new vertex to any of d, e orf forces a connection with

the other two. So we have four cases: we can connect a new vertex, g, to a, b, c or d.

S6
 Cases 18.a and 18.b: Connecting g to either a or c forces connections with both b and e and

we lose our distance 3.

Case 18.c: If we connect g to b, we get:

Vertex g cannot be connected to d, e, orf, because that would cause us to lose our distance 3.

What we have here is a 2-semiregular graph, but it contains an endpoint, so we are not

interested in it. According to Lemma B.1, we cannot add any more vertices.

Case 18d: If we add g to d, it forces a connection with e andf, so we have:

*****...

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (9) in Figure 19. According to ILemma B.1, we cannot

add any more vertices to his graph.

Case 19:

Due to symmetry and Lemma A.l, we have only 2 distinct cases: adding a new vertex g either to

a or to c.

Case 19a: We connect g to c, which forces connections with a, b, e and f, and we lose our

distance 3

Case 19b: We connect g to a, which forces a connection with b:

**********

This is a
2-semiregular graph. It is (k) in Figure 19. We can't connect g to e (and therefore
alsof), or we would lose our distance 3.

S5 5
Case 20:

By symmetry, we have only three possibilities to try; adding a new vertex to d, e orf. But, due to

Lemma A.1, we see that adding a vertex to d or tof forces a connection with e, so we need only
consider the case of connecting the new vertex to e.

We connect a new
vertex, g, to e:

Weg cannot be connected to b, or we would lose our distance 3. Likewise, g cannot be

connected to a or c because, under Lemma A.1, that would force the connection with b.

Case 20.a: Say that g is also not connected to d.

Case 20a.(1): Say that g is not connected to either.

f, g cannot be an
endpoint, so we

Connectg to a new vertex, h:

This forces connections with d, e, andf:

This is a
2-semiregular graph. It is (p) in Figure 19. We must now examine whether h
can be connected to any other vertices in G. hcannot be connected to
b, or we would
lose the distance 3. Also, h cannot be connected t0 a or c, because that would force a

connection betweenh and b. Thus, h cannot be connected to

any other vertices of G. By
Lemma B.1, this graph cannot be expanded any further.
Case 20a(2): Vertex g is connected to f.

56 58
 3

Now deg(g) = 3.

Case 20b: Vertex g is connected to d:

This forces g to be connected to fas well:

Vertex g cannot be connected to

any other vertex in G, because that would lead to the loss of

our distance 3. Now we must

try adding another vertex, h. h cannot be connected to either d

or f, because that would cause many connections that would lead to a path of length 2

between b and e. Therefore, we must try two cases: connectingh to the group a, b, c, or to

the group e, g (we say group here because connectingh to any one member of the group
forces connections with the others, in accordance with Lemma
A.1).
Case 20b(1): We connect h to vertices a, b, and C. h cannot be connected to
any other

vertex in G, because that would result in losing the distance 3 between b and e. We have

the following:

This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (o) in Figure 19. By Lemma B.1, we are done with

this case.

Case 20.b.(2): We connecth to vertices e andg:

5759
 This is a 2-semiregular graph. It is (p) in Figure 19. Vertex h cannot be connected to

any of the other vertices of G because that would lead to the loss of distance 3 between b

and e. Therefore, by Lemma B.1, we are done.

Thus, the n-cycles forn26 and graphs g), (k), (), (m), (n), (o), (p) and (q) in Figure 19 are the
only 2-semiregular graphs without an endpoint that contain two vertices that are at least distance

3 apart.

58 60
 REFERENCES

Bloom, G.S., J.W. Kennedy, and L.V. Quintas. "Distance Degree Regular Graphs." The Theory and
Application of Graphs. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1981: 95-108.
Chartrand, Gary, Paul Erdos, and Ortrud R. Oellermann. "How to Define an Irregular Graph." College
Math Journal Jan. 1998: 39.

E. Friedman. Notes from Graph Theory, MS 395 at Stetson University, Fall semester 2000.

59-6
 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Alison Pechin Northup was born in Lansing, Michigan on December 10, 1979. Her

family relocated to Fort Myers, Florida in 1981, where Alison attended Cypress Lake Center for

the Arts, a Magnet high school. After graduating from High School in 1998, she enrolled at

Stetson University.

Alison was involved in Math Team from seventh through twelfth grade. In college, she

has participated in the Putnam Examination and the Carleton-St. Olaf Summer Mathematics

Program for women. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics with a

minor in Spanish.

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