Calculating effective resistances on underlying networks of association schemes

TL;DR

This paper derives explicit formulas for calculating effective resistances on networks derived from association schemes, utilizing algebraic combinatorics and Bose-Mesner algebra, avoiding spectral computations.

Contribution

It extends previous work by providing a general method for effective resistance calculation on association scheme networks using algebraic structures.

Findings

Explicit formulas for effective resistances in association scheme networks.

Representation of adjacency matrices as polynomials of a single matrix.

Procedure for resistance calculation with simplified conductance assumptions.

Abstract

Recently, in Refs. \cite{jsj} and \cite{res2}, calculation of effective resistances on distance-regular networks was investigated, where in the first paper, the calculation was based on stratification and Stieltjes function associated with the network, whereas in the latter one a recursive formula for effective resistances was given based on the Christoffel-Darboux identity. In this paper, evaluation of effective resistances on more general networks which are underlying networks of association schemes is considered, where by using the algebraic combinatoric structures of association schemes such as stratification and Bose-Mesner algebras, an explicit formula for effective resistances on these networks is given in terms of the parameters of corresponding association schemes. Moreover, we show that for particular underlying networks of association schemes with diameter $d$ such that the adjacency matrix $A$ possesses $d+1$ distinct eigenvalues, all of the other adjacency matrices $A_i$, $i\neq 0,1$ can be written as polynomials of $A$, i.e., $A_i=P_i(A)$, where $P_i$ is not necessarily of degree $i$. Then, we use this property for these particular networks and assume that all of the conductances except for one of them, say $c\equiv c_1=1$, are zero to give a procedure for evaluating effective resistances on these networks. The preference of this procedure is that one can evaluate effective resistances by using the structure of their Bose-Mesner algebra without any need to know the spectrum of the adjacency matrices.