Complete bipartite graph
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In the mathematical field of graph theory, a complete bipartite graph or biclique is a special kind of bipartite graph where every vertex of the first set is connected to every vertex of the second set.
Similar to complete graphs they have very nice properties.
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Definition
A complete bipartite graph <math>G:=(V_1 + V_2, E)</math> is a bipartite graph such that for any two vertices <math>v_1 \in V_1</math> and <math>v_2 \in V_2</math> <math>v_1 v_2</math> is an edge in <math>G</math>. A complete bipartite graph with partitions of size <math>\|V_1\|=m</math> and <math>\|V_2\|=n</math> is denoted <math>K_{m,n}</math>.
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Examples
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Properties
- A planar graph cannot contain <math>K_{3,3}</math> as a minor; an outerplanar graph cannot contain <math>K_{2,3}</math> as a minor. (These are not sufficient conditions for planarity and outerplanarity, but necessary.)
- A complete bipartite graph <math>K_{m,n}</math> has a vertex covering number of <math>\min \lbrace m,n \rbrace</math> and an edge covering number of <math>\max\lbrace m,n\rbrace</math>
- A complete bipartite graph <math>K_{m,n}</math> has a maximum independent set of size <math>\max\lbrace m,n\rbrace</math>
- A complete bipartite graph <math>K_{m,n}</math> has a perfect matching of size <math>\min\lbrace m,n\rbrace</math>
- A complete bipartite graph <math>K_{n,n}</math> has a proper n-edge-coloring
- The last two results are corollaries of the Marriage Theorem as applied to a k-regular bipartite graph
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