Graph Information Ratio

TL;DR

This paper introduces the information ratio between graphs, measuring their similarity in the context of reliable communication, and explores its properties, bounds, and related graph concepts.

Contribution

It defines the information ratio for graphs, establishes bounds and properties, and introduces information equivalence and a metric structure on graph classes.

Findings

Bounds on the information ratio in terms of graph properties

Introduction of information equivalence as a quantitative similarity measure

A metric structure on the space of graph equivalence classes

Abstract

We introduce the notion of information ratio $\text{Ir}(H/G)$ between two (simple, undirected) graphs $G$ and $H$, defined as the supremum of ratios $k/n$ such that there exists a mapping between the strong products $G^k$ to $H^n$ that preserves non-adjacency. Operationally speaking, the information ratio is the maximal number of source symbols per channel use that can be reliably sent over a channel with a confusion graph $H$, where reliability is measured w.r.t. a source confusion graph $G$. Various results are provided, including in particular lower and upper bounds on $\text{Ir}(H/G)$ in terms of different graph properties, inequalities and identities for behavior under strong product and disjoint union, relations to graph cores, and notions of graph criticality. Informally speaking, $\text{Ir}(H/G)$ can be interpreted as a measure of similarity between $G$ and $H$. We make this notion precise by introducing the concept of information equivalence between graphs, a more quantitative version of homomorphic equivalence. We then describe a natural partial ordering over the space of information equivalence classes, and endow it with a suitable metric structure that is contractive under the strong product. Various examples and open problems are discussed.