Ars Combinatoria

ISSN 0381-7032 (print), 2817-5204 (online)

Ars Combinatoria is the oldest Canadian journal of combinatorics, established in 1976, dedicated to advancing combinatorial mathematics through the publication of high-quality, peer-reviewed research papers. Over the decades, it has built a strong international reputation and continues to serve as a leading platform for significant contributions to the field.
Open Access:  The journal follows the Diamond Open Access model—completely free for both authors and readers, with no article processing charges (APCs)
Publication Frequency: From 2024 onward, Ars Combinatoria publishes four issues annually—in March, June, September, and December.
Scope: Publishes research in all areas of combinatorics, including graph theory, design theory, enumeration, algebraic combinatorics, combinatorial optimization and related fields.
Indexing & Abstracting:  Indexed in MathSciNet, Zentralblatt MATH, and EBSCO, ensuring wide visibility and scholarly reach.
Rapid Publication: Submissions are processed efficiently, with accepted papers published promptly in the next available issue.
Print & Online Editions: Issues are available in both print and online formats to serve a broad readership.

Rui Li1,2, Baogang Xu1
1School of Mathematical Sciences, Nanjing Normal University 1 Wenyuan Road, Yadong New District, Nanjing, 210046, China
2Normal College, Shihezi University Shihezi, Xinjiang, 832003, China
Abstract:

Two cycles are said to be intersecting if they share at least one common vertex. Let \(\chi'(G)\) and \(\chi”(G)\) denote the list edge chromatic number and list total chromatic number of a graph \(G\), respectively.In this paper, we proved that for any toroidal graph G without intersecting triangles, \(\chi'(G) \leq \Delta(G) +1\) and \(\chi”(G) \leq \Delta(G)+2\) if \(\Delta(G) \geq 6\), and \(\chi'(G) = \Delta(G)\) if \(\Delta(G) \geq 8\).

S. Catada-Ghimire1, H. Roslan1
1School of Mathematical Sciences Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Penang, Malaysia
Abstract:

Graphs which are derived from the same graph are called homeomorphic graphs or simply homeomorphs. A \(K_4\)-homeomorph denoted by
\(K_4(a,,c,d,e, f)\) is obtained by subdividing the six paths of a complete graph with four vertices into \(a, b, c,d, e, f\) number of segments, respectively.In this paper, we shall study the chromaticity of \(K_4(a, b,c,d,e, f)\) with exactly two non-adjacent paths of length two. We also give a sufficient and necessary condition for all the graphs in this family to be chromatically
unique.

Justie Su-Tzu Juan1, Daphne Der-Fen Liu2
1Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering, National Chi Nan University, Nantou 54561, Taiwan.
2Department of Mathematics, California State University, Los Angeles, CA 90032.
Abstract:

Let G be a graph with diameter d. An antipodal labeling of G is a function f that assigns to each vertex a
non-negative integer (label) such that for any two vertices \(u\) and \(v\), \(|f(u) — f(v)| \geq d — d(u,v)\), where \(d(u, v)\)
is the distance between \(u\) and \(v\). The span of an antipodal labeling f is \(\max{f(u) — f(v) : u,v \in V(G)}\). The
antipodal number for G, denoted by an\((G)\), is the minimum span of an antipodal labeling for \(G\). Let \(C_n\) denote
the cycle on n vertices. Chartrand \(et al\). \([4]\) determined the value of an\((C_n)\) for \(n \equiv 2 \pmod 4\). In this article we
obtain the value of an\((C_n)\) for \(n \equiv 1 \pmod 4\), confirming a conjecture in \([4]\). Moreover, we settle the case \(n \equiv 3 \pmod 4\), and improve the known lower bound and give an upper bound for the case \(n \equiv 0 \pmod 4\).

Z. Akca1, A. Bayar1, S. Ekmekci 1, R. Kaya1, J.A. Thas2, H.Van Maldeghem2
1Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, 26480, Eskisehir TURKEY
2Department of Mathematics, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281-S22, 9000 Ghent, BELGIUM
Abstract:

We classify all embeddings \(\theta\) : \(PG(n,\mathbb{K}) \rightarrow PG(d,\mathbb{F})\), with \(d \geq \frac{n(n+1)}{2}\)
and \(\mathbb{K},\mathbb{F}\) skew fields with \(|\mathbb{K}| > 2\), such that \(\theta\) maps the set of points of each line of \(PG(n, \mathbb{K})\) to a set of coplanar points of \(PG(n, \mathbb{F})\), and such that the image of \(\theta\) generates \(PG(d, \mathbb{F})\). It turns out that \(d = \frac{1}{2}n(n + 3)\) and all examples “essentially” arise from a similar “full” embedding \(\theta’\) : \(PG(n, \mathbb{K}) \rightarrow PG(d, \mathbb{K})\) by identifying \(\mathbb{K}\) with subfields of F and embedding \(PG(d, \mathbb{K})\) into \(PG(d, \mathbb{F})\) by several ordinary field extensions. These “full” embeddings satisfy one more property and are classified in \([5]\). They relate to the quadric Verone-sean of \(PG(n, \mathbb{K})\) in \(PG(d, \mathbb{K})\) and its projections from subspaces of \(PG(n, \mathbb{K})\) generated by sub-Veroneseans (the point sets corresponding to subspaces of \(PG(n, \mathbb{K})\), if \(\mathbb{K}\) is commutative, and to a degenerate analogue of this, if \(\mathbb{K}\) is noncommutative.

Chin-Mei Fu1, Nan-Hua Jhuang 1, Yuan-Lung Lin1
1 Department of Mathematics, Tamkang University, Tamsui, Taipei County 25137, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Abstract:

Let \(\mathbb{N}\) be the set of all positive integers, and \(\mathbb{Z}_n = \{0, 1, 2, \ldots, n-1\}\). For any \(h \in \mathbb{N}\), a graph \(G = (V, E)\) is said to be \(\mathbb{Z}_h\)-magic if there exists a labeling \(f: E \rightarrow \mathbb{Z}_h \setminus \{0\}\) such that the induced vertex labeling \(f^+: V \rightarrow \mathbb{Z}_h\), defined by \(f^+(v) = \sum_{uv \in E(v)} f(uv)\), is a constant map. The integer-magic spectrum of \(G\) is the set \(\text{JM}(G) = \{h \in \mathbb{N} \mid G \text{ is } \mathbb{Z}_h\text{-magic}\}\). A sun graph is obtained from attaching a path to each pair of adjacent vertices in an \(n\)-cycle. In this paper, we show that the integer-magic spectra of sun graphs are completely determined.

Bart De Bruyn1
1Ghent University, Department of Pure Mathematics and Computer Algebra, Krijgslaan 281 ($22), B-9000 Gent, Belgium,
Abstract:

Let \(e: \mathcal{S} \rightarrow \Sigma\) be a full polarized projective embedding of a dense near polygon \(\mathcal{S}\), i.e., for every point \(p\) of \(\mathcal{S}\), the set \(H_p\) of points at non-maximal distance from \(p\) is mapped by \(e\) into a hyperplane \(\Pi_p\) of \(\Sigma\). We show that if every line of \(S\) is incident with precisely three points or if \(\mathcal{S}\) satisfies a certain property (P\(_y\)) then the map \(p \mapsto \Pi_p\) defines a full polarized embedding \(e^*\) (the so-called dual embedding of \(e\)) of \(\mathcal{S}\) into a subspace of the dual \(\Sigma^*\) of \(\Sigma\). This generalizes a result of \([6]\) where it was shown that every embedding of a thick dual polar space has a dual embedding. We determine which known dense near polygons satisfy property (P\(_y\)). This allows us to conclude that every full polarized embedding of a known dense near polygon has a dual embedding.

Ruifang Liu1, Huicai Jia2, Jinlong Shu3
1Department of Mathematics, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450001, China
2Department of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Henan Institute of Engineering, Zhengzhou, Henan 451191, China
3Department of Mathematics, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200241, China
Abstract:

Let \(\mathcal{B}(n,k)\) be the set of bicyclic graphs with \(n\) vertices and \(k\) pendant vertices. In this paper, we determine the unique graph with minimal least eigenvalue among all graphs in \(\mathcal{B}(n,k)\). This extremal graph is the same as that on the Laplacian spectral radius as done by Ji-Ming Guo(The Laplacian spectral radius of bicyclic graphsmwith \(n\) vertices and \(k\) pendant vertices, Science China Mathematics, \(53(8)(2010)2135-2142]\). Moreover, the minimal least eigenvalue is a decreasing function on \(k\).

Xianggian Zhou1, Bing Yao1, Xiang’en Chen1, Haixia Tao 1
1College of Mathematics and Information Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730070, China
Abstract:

Gnanajothi conjectured that all trees are odd-graceful and verified this conjecture for all trees with order up to \(10\). Since the
conjecture is open now we present a proof to the odd-gracefulness of all lobsters and show a connection between set-ordered odd-graceful labellings and bipartite graceful labellings in a connected graph.

Stefano Innamorati1, Mauro Zannetti1, Fulvio Zuanni1
1Department of Electrical and Information Engineering University of L’ Aquila Via G. Gronchi, 18 J-67100 L’ Aquila Italy
Abstract:

In this article, the lines not meeting a hyperbolic quadric in PG\((3,q)\) are characterized by their intersection properties with points and planes.

Nianliang Wang1, Chao Li1, Hailong Li2
1Institute of Mathematics, Shangluo University, Shangluo, Shaanxi 726000, P.R.China.
2Department of Mathematics, Weinan Teachers College, Weinan, P.R.China, 714000.
Abstract:

By the classical method for obtaining the values of the Riemann zeta-function at even positive integral arguments, we shall give some functional equational proof of some interesting identities and recurrence relations related to the generalized higher-order Euler and Bernoulli numbers attached to a Dirichlet character \(\chi\) with odd conductor \(d\), and shall show an identity between generalized Euler numbers and generalized Bernoulli numbers. Finally, we remark that any weighted short-interval character sums can be expressed as a linear combination of Dirichlet \(L\)-function values at positive integral arguments, via generalized Bernoulli (or Euler) numbers.