TY - JOUR
T1 - Polynomial bounds for chromatic number VI. Adding a four-vertex path
AU - Chudnovsky, Maria
AU - Scott, Alex
AU - Seymour, Paul
AU - Spirkl, Sophie
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2023/5
Y1 - 2023/5
N2 - A hereditary class of graphs is χ-bounded if there is a function f such that every graph G in the class has chromatic number at most f(ω(G)), where ω(G) is the clique number of G; and the class is polynomially χ-bounded if f can be taken to be a polynomial. The Gyárfás–Sumner conjecture asserts that, for every forest H, the class of H-free graphs (graphs with no induced copy of H) is χ-bounded. Let us say a forest H is good if it satisfies the stronger property that the class of H-free graphs is polynomially χ-bounded. Very few forests are known to be good: for example, the goodness of the five-vertex path is open. Indeed, it is not even known that if every component of a forest H is good then H is good, and in particular, it was not known that the disjoint union of two four-vertex paths is good. Here we show the latter (with corresponding polynomial ω(G)16); and more generally, that if H is good then so is the disjoint union of H and a four-vertex path. We also prove an even more general result: if every component of H1 is good, and H2 is any path (or broom) then the class of graphs that are both H1-free and H2-free is polynomially χ-bounded.
AB - A hereditary class of graphs is χ-bounded if there is a function f such that every graph G in the class has chromatic number at most f(ω(G)), where ω(G) is the clique number of G; and the class is polynomially χ-bounded if f can be taken to be a polynomial. The Gyárfás–Sumner conjecture asserts that, for every forest H, the class of H-free graphs (graphs with no induced copy of H) is χ-bounded. Let us say a forest H is good if it satisfies the stronger property that the class of H-free graphs is polynomially χ-bounded. Very few forests are known to be good: for example, the goodness of the five-vertex path is open. Indeed, it is not even known that if every component of a forest H is good then H is good, and in particular, it was not known that the disjoint union of two four-vertex paths is good. Here we show the latter (with corresponding polynomial ω(G)16); and more generally, that if H is good then so is the disjoint union of H and a four-vertex path. We also prove an even more general result: if every component of H1 is good, and H2 is any path (or broom) then the class of graphs that are both H1-free and H2-free is polynomially χ-bounded.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.ejc.2023.103710
DO - 10.1016/j.ejc.2023.103710
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85149777084
SN - 0195-6698
VL - 110
JO - European Journal of Combinatorics
JF - European Journal of Combinatorics
M1 - 103710
ER -