Notes on dual-critical graphs

TL;DR

This paper explores dual-critical graphs, providing new characterizations and polynomial algorithms for special cases, and introduces fixed-parameter tractable algorithms for a relaxed version, advancing understanding of their complexity.

Contribution

The paper offers new equivalent descriptions of dual-critical graphs, polynomial algorithms for special classes, and an FPT algorithm for k-dual-criticality, enhancing the theoretical framework.

Findings

Polynomial algorithms for planar and 3-regular dual-critical graphs.

Equivalent descriptions of dual-critical graphs in general and special cases.

FPT algorithm for k-dual-criticality.

Abstract

We define dual-critical graphs as graphs having an acyclic orientation, where the indegrees are odd except for the unique source. We have very limited knowledge about the complexity of dual-criticality testing. By the definition the problem is in NP, and a result of Bal\'azs and Christian Szegedy provides a randomized polynomial algorithm, which relies on formal matrix rank computing. It is unknown whether dual-criticality test can be done in deterministic polynomial time. Moreover, the question of being in co-NP is also open. We give equivalent descriptions for dual-critical graphs in the general case, and further equivalent descriptions in the special cases of planar graphs and 3-regular graphs. These descriptions provide polynomial algorithms for these special classes. We also give an FPT algorithm for a relaxed version of dual-criticality called $k$-dual-criticality.