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.

Dengju Ma1, Han Ren2
1School of Sciences, Nantong University, Jiangsu Province, 226019, China
2 Department of Mathematics, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China
Abstract:

In the paper, we show that the orientable genus of the generalized Petersen graph \(P(km, m)\) is at least \( \frac{km}{4} – \frac{m}{2}-\frac{km}{4m-4}+1\) if \(m\geq 4\) and \(k \geq 3\). We determine the orientable genera of \(P(3m, m)\), \(P(4k, 4)\), \(P(4m, m)\) if \(m \geq 4\), \(P(6m, m)\) if \(m \equiv 0 \pmod{2}\) and \(m \geq 6\), and so on.

Bao-Xuan Zhu1
1 School of Mathematics and Statistics, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou 221116, P.R. China
Abstract:

Assume that \(\mu_1, \mu_2, \ldots, \mu_n\) are the eigenvalues of the Laplacian matrix of a graph \(G\). The Laplacian Estrada index of \(G\), denoted by \(LEE(G)\), is defined as \(LEE(G) = \sum_{i=1}^{n} e^{\mu_i}\). In this note, we give an upper bound on \(LEE(G)\) in terms of chromatic number and characterize the corresponding extremal graph.

Mark Shattuck1
1Mathematics Department University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-1320
Abstract:

In this note, we provide a combinatorial proof of a recent formula for the total number of peaks and valleys (either strict or weak) within the set of all compositions of a positive integer into a fixed number of parts.

Qin Chen1
1College of Science, China Jiliang University, Hangzhou 310018, P.R. China
Abstract:

The adjacent vertex distinguishing total chromatic number \(\chi_{at}(G)\) of a graph \(G\) is the smallest integer \(k\) for which \(G\) admits a proper \(k\)-total coloring such that no pair of adjacent vertices are incident to the same set of colors. Snarks are connected bridgeless cubic graphs with chromatic index \(4\). In this paper, we show that \(\chi_{at}(G) = 5\) for two infinite subfamilies of snarks, i.e., the Loupekhine snark and Blanusa snark of first and second kind. In addition, we give an adjacent vertex distinguishing total coloring using \(5\) colors for Watkins snark and Szekeres snark, respectively.

Xinying Pai1,2, Sanyang Liu1
1Department of Mathematics, Xidian University, Xi’an, Shanxi 710071, P. R. China
2College of science, China University of Petroleum, Qingdao, Shandong 266580, P. R. China
Abstract:

Let \(G\) be a tricyclic graph. Tricyclic graphs are connected graphs in which the number of edges equals the number of vertices plus two. In this paper, we determine graphs with the largest signless Laplacian spectral radius among all the tricyclic graphs with \(n\) vertices and diameter \(d\).

Zheng-Jiang Xia1, Yong-Liang Pan1, Jun-Ming Xu1, Xi-Ming Cheng1
1School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, 230026, P. R. China
Abstract:

A pebbling move on a graph \(G\) consists of taking two pebbles off one vertex and placing one on an adjacent vertex. The pebbling number of a graph \(G\), denoted by \(f(G)\), is the least integer \(n\) such that, however \(n\) pebbles are located on the vertices of \(G\), we can move one pebble to any vertex by a sequence of pebbling moves. For any connected graphs \(G\) and \(H\), Graham conjectured that \(f(G \times H) \leq f(G)f(H)\). In this paper, we give the pebbling number of some graphs and prove that Graham’s conjecture holds for the middle graphs of some even cycles.

Micheal Arockiaraj1, L. Packiaraj2, R.Sundara Rajan3
1Department of Mathematics, Loyola College, Chennai, India
2Department of Mathematics, St. Joseph’s College, Trichy, India
3School of Advanced Sciences, VIT University, Chennai, India
Abstract:

Graph embedding is an important factor to evaluate the quality of an interconnection network. It is also a powerful tool for implementation of parallel algorithms and simulation of different interconnection networks. In this paper, we compute the exact wirelength of embedding circulant networks into cycle-of-ladders.

Jinxi Li1, Lihua You1
1School of Mathematical Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, P.R. China
Abstract:

In this paper, we characterize the extremal digraph with the maximal signless Laplacian spectral radius and the minimal distance signless Laplacian spectral radius among all simple connected digraphs with a given dichromatic number, respectively.

Wenjie Ning1, Mei Lu2, Jia Guo2
1College of Science, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
2Department of Mathematical Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Abstract:

Given a graph \(G = (V, E)\) with no isolated vertex, a subset \(S \subseteq V\) is a total dominating set of \(G\) if every vertex in \(V\) is adjacent to a vertex in \(S\). A total dominating set \(S\) of \(G\) is a locating-total dominating set if for every pair of distinct vertices \(u\) and \(v\) in \(V – S\), we have \(N(u) \cap S \neq N(v) \cap S\), and \(S\) is a differentiating-total dominating set if for every pair of distinct vertices \(u\) and \(v\) in \(V\), we have \(N(u) \cap S \neq N(v) \cap S\). The locating-total domination number (or the differentiating-total domination number) of \(G\), denoted by \(\gamma_t^L(G)\) (or \(\gamma_t^D(G)\)), is the minimum cardinality of a locating-total dominating set (or a differentiating-total dominating set) of \(G\). In this paper, we investigate the bounds of locating and differentiating-total domination numbers of unicyclic graphs.

Quan-Hui Yang1, Min Tang2
1School of Mathematics and Statistics, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, 210044, P. R. China
2Department of Mathematics, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241003, China
Abstract:

Motzkin posed the problem of finding the maximal density \(\mu(M)\) of sets of integers in which the differences given by a set \(M\) do not occur. The problem is already settled when \(|M| \leq 2\) or \(M\) is a finite arithmetic progression. In this paper, we determine \(\mu(M)\) when \(M\) has some other structure. For example, we determine \(\mu(M)\) when \(M\) is a finite geometric progression.