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.

Xu Liping1, Liu Zhishan2, Li Zhi1
1School of Mathematics, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434023, P.R.China.
2Yang-En University, Quanzhou, 362014, P.R.China.
Abstract:

A necessary and sufficient condition of the complement to be cordial and its application are obtained.

Sapna Jain1
1Department of Mathematics University of Delhi Delhi 110 007 India
Abstract:

In this paper, we introduce the notion of blockwise-bursts in array codes equippped with m-metric \([13]\) and obtain some bounds on the parameters of $m$-metric array codes for the detection and correction of blockwise-burst array errors.

Sizhong Zhou1
1School of Mathematics and Physics Jiangsu University of Science and Technology Mengxi Road 2, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu 212003 People’s Republic of China
Abstract:

Let \(G\) be a graph, and let \(a\) and \(b\) be integers with \(1 \leq a \leq b\). An \([a, b]\)-factor of \(G\) is defined as a spanning subgraph \(F\) of \(G\) such that \(a \leq d_F(v) \leq b\) for each \(v \in V(G)\). In this paper, we obtain a sufficient condition for a graph to have \([a, b]\)-factors including given edges, extending a well-known sufficient condition for the existence of a \(k\)-factor.

Saeid Alikhani1,2, Yee-hock Peng2,3
1Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science Shiraz University of Technology 71555-318, Shiraz, Iran
2Institute for Mathematical Research, and University Putra Malaysia, 48400 UPM Serdang, Malaysia
3Department of Mathematics, University Putra Malaysia, 48400 UPM Serdang, Malaysia
Abstract:

We introduce the domination polynomial of a graph \(G\). The domination polynomial of a graph \(G\) of order \(n\) is defined as \(D(G, x) = \sum_{i=\gamma(G)}^{n} d(G, i)x^i\), where \(d(G, i)\) is the number of dominating sets of \(G\) of size \(i\), and \(\gamma(G)\) is the domination number of \(G\). We obtain some properties of \(D(G, x)\) and its coefficients, and compute this polynomial for specific graphs.

Masao Tsugaki 1, Yao Zhang1
1Academy of Mathematics and Systems Science Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
Abstract:

For a tree \(T\), \(Leaf(T)\) denotes the set of leaves of \(T\), and \(T – Leaf(T)\) is called the stem of \(T\). For a graph \(G\) and a positive integer \(m\), \(\sigma_m(G)\) denotes the minimum degree sum of \(m\) independent vertices of \(G\). We prove the following theorem: Let \(G\) be a connected graph and \(k \geq 2\) be an integer. If \(\sigma_3(G) \geq |G| – 2k + 1\), then \(G\) has a spanning tree whose stem has at most \(k\) leaves.

Zhidan Yan1, Wei Wang1
1College of Information Engineering, Tarim University, Alar, Xinjiang, 843300, P.R.China
Abstract:

A proper vertex coloring of a graph is equitable if the sizes of color classes differ by at most \(1\). The equitable chromatic threshold of a graph \(G\), denoted by \(\chi_m^*(G)\), is the minimum \(k\) such that \(G\) is equitably \(k’\)-colorable for all \(k’ > k\). Let \(G \times H\) denote the direct product of graphs \(G\) and \(H\). For \(n \geq m \geq 2\), we prove that \(\chi_m^*(K_m \times K_n)\) equals \(\left\lceil \frac{mn}{m+1} \right\rceil\) if \(n \equiv 2, \ldots, m \pmod{m+1}\), and equals \(m\left\lceil \frac{n}{s^*} \right\rceil\) if \(n \equiv 0, 1 \pmod{m+1}\), where \(s^*\) is the minimum positive integer such that \(s^* \nmid n\) and \(s^* \geq m+2\).

Salvatore Milici1, Gaetano Quattrocchi1, Zsolt Tuza2
1Department of Mathematics, University of Catania, viale A. Doria, 6, 95125 Cata- nia, Italy
2Alfréd Rényi Institute of Mathematics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest ; and Department of Computer Science and Systems Technology, University of Pannonia, Veszprém, Hungary
Abstract:

For an undirected graph \(G\) and a natural number \(n\), a \(G\)-design of order \(n\) is an edge partition of the complete graph \(K_n\) with \(n\) vertices into subgraphs \(G_1, G_2, \ldots\), each isomorphic to \(G\). A set \(T \subset V(K_n)\) is called a blocking set if it intersects the vertex set \(V(G_i)\) of each \(G_i\) in the decomposition but contains none of them. Extending previous work [J. Combin. Designs \(4 (1996), 135-142]\), where the authors proved that cycle designs admit no blocking sets, we establish that this result holds for all graphs \(G\). Furthermore, we show that for every graph \(G\) and every integer \(k \geq 2\), there exists a non-\(k\)-colorable \(G\)-design.

Changqing Xu1, Jingjing Chang1
1Department of Applied Mathematics, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300401 P. R. China
Abstract:

Let \(G\) be a planar graph with maximum degree \(\Delta(G)\). The least integer \(k\) such that \(G\) can be partitioned into \(k\) edge-disjoint forests, where each component is a path of length at most \(2\), is called the linear \(2\)-arboricity of \(G\), denoted by \(la_2(G)\). We establish new upper bounds for the linear \(2\)-arboricity of certain planar graphs.

Yaping Wu1,2, Qiong FAN2
1Faculty of Math.and Computer Jianghan University, Wuhan, China
2School of Math.and Statistics Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China
Abstract:

A graph \(G\) of order \(n\) is called a bicyclic graph if \(G\) is connected and the number of edges of \(G\) is \(n+ 1\). In this paper, we study the lexicographic ordering of bicyclic graphs by spectral moments. For each of the three basic types of bicyclic graphs on a fixed number of vertices maximal and minimal graphs in the mentioned order are determined.

Ali Ahmad1, Martin Baca2
1Abdus Salam School of Mathematical Sciences, GC University 68-B, New Muslim Town, Lahore, Pakistan
2Department of Appl. Mathematics, Technical University Letné 9, 042 00 Koiice, Slovak Republic
Abstract:

An edge irregular total \(k\)-labeling of a graph \(G = (V, E)\) is a labeling \(f: V \cup E \to \{1, 2, \ldots, k\}\) such that the total edge-weights \(wt(xy) = f(x) + f(xy) + f(y)\) are distinct for all pairs of distinct edges. The minimum \(k\) for which \(G\) has an edge irregular total \(k\)-labeling is called the total edge irregularity strength of \(G\). In this paper, we determine the exact value of the total edge irregularity strength of the Cartesian product of two paths \(P_n\) and \(P_m\). Our result provides further evidence supporting a recent conjecture of Ivančo and Jendrol.