Teoria dei Grafi
Academic Year 2025/2026 - Teacher: ELENA MARIA GUARDOExpected Learning Outcomes
The course has the following objectives:
Knowledge and understanding:
- Mathematic Instruments in graph theory such as theorems and algoritms will be provide in the course. They permit to develop mathematical abilities in reasoning and calculation. These abilities could permit to resolve known problems by mathematical model.
Applying and knowledge and understanding:
- At the end of course student will be able to get knowledge for a tightened use of new mathematical techniques and an understanding of treated arguments in such way to link them each other.
Making judgements:
- Course is based on logical-deductive method which wants to give to students authonomus judgement useful to understanding incorrect method of demonstration also, by logical reasoning, student will be able to face not difficult problems in graph theory with teacher's help.
Communication skills:
- In the final exam, student must show for learned different mathematical techniques an adapt maturity on oral communication using also multimedia tools.
Learning skills
- Autonomously student will be able to face application and theoretical arguments which could be studied in new classes or in different working fields; for example flow theory and connectivity have huge application on telecommunications field (Local Area Network and Metropolitan Area Network: LAN e MAN), on electrical and communication fields (Industrial design).
Course Structure
Graph Theory 9 CFU
teaching organization
total study 225 hours
152 hours of individual study
49 hours of frontal lectures
24 hours of exercises
The lessons will be held through classroom. In these lessons the program will be divided into the following sections: basic notions, planar graphs, cycles and cocycles, different graph connections, graph fluxes, matchings and coverings, colorability.
In each of these sections first it will be discussed the main theoretical topics and then showed how these topics can be linked to possible applications. Then algorithms can be presented, and they allow in many cases to identify particular graphs or solutions proposed by the theoretical results
Should teaching be carried out in mixed mode or remotely, it may be necessary to introduce changes with respect to previous statements, in line with the programme planned and outlined in the syllabus.
Learning assessment may also be carried out on line, should the conditions require it.
Information for students with disabilities and / or SLD
To guarantee equal opportunities and in compliance with the laws in force, interested students can ask for a personal interview in order to plan any compensatory and / or dispensatory measures, based on the didactic objectives and specific needs. It is also possible to contact the referent teacher CInAP (Center for Active and Participated Integration - Services for Disabilities and / or SLD) of our Department, prof.ssa Daniele.
Required Prerequisites
Detailed Course Content
Basic definition on Graph Theory. Cycles and cocycles. Cyclomatic and cocyclomatic numbers. Planar graph and their property. Euler's formula. Tree and cotree. Spanning tree. Strongly and minimally connected graphs and their property. Maximum and perfect matchings. Covering and minimum covering of a graph. Matching in bipartite graph, Köenig's theorem. Hamiltonian and Eulerian graphs. Edge and vertex colourings, chromatic number and index number. Vizing's theorem. Properties of digraphs. Basic notion on Matroids
Should teaching be carried out in mixed mode or remotely, it may be necessary to introduce changes with respect to previous statements, in line with the programme planned and outlined in the syllabus.
Learning assessment may also be carried out on line, should the conditions require it.
“Contribution to Sustainable Development Goals 2030
Goal 4 Quality Education – Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities.
Goal 5 Gender Equality – Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
Goal 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth – Promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.
Textbook Information
- C. Berge, "Graph and Hypergraph", Elsevier.
- Notes of the course - E. Guardo
- M. Gionfriddo, Notes on Graph Theory 2018 (available on Studium with the permission of Prof. Hemeritus M. Gionfriddo)
- R. J. Wilson, Introduction to Graph Theory
Course Planning
| Subjects | Text References | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | graphs | 1),2),3) |
| 2 | Trees and their properties | 2) 3) 4) |
| 3 | Eulerian and Hamiltonian Graphs | 2) 3) 4) |
| 4 | Planar Graphs | 2) 3) |
| 5 | Factorizations, Matchings | 2) 3) |
| 6 | Vertex coloring | 1) |
| 7 | Edge coloring | 1) |
| 8 | Chromatic polynomial | 1) 2) 3) 4) |
| 9 | internal and external stability | 2) 3) |
| 10 | Digraphs | 1) 2) 3) |
| 11 | Flow network | 1) 2) |
| 12 | Strongly connected graphs | 3)4) |
| 13 | Matroids | 4) |
| 14 | Basic notion on G designs and hypergraphs | 1) 3) |
Learning Assessment
Examples of frequently asked questions and / or exercises
Trees, Minimum Spanning trees
Eulerian and hamoltonian graphs
Planar graph and their property. Euler's formula.
Maximum and perfect matchings.
Matching in bipartite graph, Hall's Theorem Köenig's theorem.
Edge and vertex colourings, chromatic number and index number.
Properties of digraphs. Basic notion on Matroids