arXiv subjects

Ewan Davies

Publications and source records attributed to Ewan Davies.

34 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

The $χ$-Ramsey problem for triangle-free graphs

In 1967, Erdős asked for the greatest chromatic number, $f(n)$, amongst all $n$-vertex, triangle-free graphs. An observation of Erdős and Hajnal together with Shearer's classical upper bound for the off-diagonal Ramsey number $R(3, t)$ shows that $f(n)$ is at most $(2 \sqrt{2} + o(1)) \sqrt{n/\log n}$. We improve this bound by a factor $\sqrt{2}$, as well as obtaining an analogous bound on the list chromatic number which is tight up to a constant factor. A bound in terms of the number of edges that is similarly tight follows, and these results confirm a conjecture of Cames van Batenburg, de Joannis de Verclos, Kang, and Pirot.

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arXiv2021

Computational thresholds for the fixed-magnetization Ising model

The ferromagnetic Ising model is a model of a magnetic material and a central topic in statistical physics. It also plays a starring role in the algorithmic study of approximate counting: approximating the partition function of the ferromagnetic Ising model with uniform external field is tractable at all temperatures and on all graphs, due to the randomized algorithm of Jerrum and Sinclair. Here we show that hidden inside the model are hard computational problems. For the class of bounded-degree graphs we find computational thresholds for the approximate counting and sampling problems for the ferromagnetic Ising model at fixed magnetization (that is, fixing the number of $+1$ and $-1$ spins). In particular, letting $β_c(Δ)$ denote the critical inverse temperature of the zero-field Ising model on the infinite $Δ$-regular tree, and $η_{Δ,β,1}^+$ denote the mean magnetization of the zero-field $+$ measure on the infinite $Δ$-regular tree at inverse temperature $β$, we prove, for the class of graphs of maximum degree $Δ$: 1. For $β< β_c(Δ)$ there is an FPRAS and efficient sampling scheme for the fixed-magnetization Ising model for all magnetizations $η$. 2. For $β> β_c(Δ)$, there is an FPRAS and efficient sampling scheme for the fixed-magnetization Ising model for magnetizations $η$ such that $|η| >η_{Δ,β,1}^+ $. 3. For $β> β_c(Δ)$, there is no FPRAS for the fixed-magnetization Ising model for magnetizations $η$ such that $|η| <η_{Δ,β,1}^+ $ unless NP=RP\@.

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arXiv2021

A proof of the Upper Matching Conjecture for large graphs

We prove that the `Upper Matching Conjecture' of Friedland, Krop, and Markström and the analogous conjecture of Kahn for independent sets in regular graphs hold for all large enough graphs as a function of the degree. That is, for every $d$ and every large enough $n$ divisible by $2d$, a union of $n/(2d)$ copies of the complete $d$-regular bipartite graph maximizes the number of independent sets and matchings of size $k$ for each $k$ over all $d$-regular graphs on $n$ vertices. To prove this we utilize the cluster expansion for the canonical ensemble of a statistical physics spin model, and we give some further applications of this method to maximizing and minimizing the number of independent sets and matchings of a given size in regular graphs of a given minimum girth.

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arXiv2021

On zero-free regions for the anti-ferromagnetic Potts model on bounded-degree graphs

For a graph $G=(V,E)$, $k\in \mathbb{N}$, and a complex number $w$ the partition function of the univariate Potts model is defined as \[ {\bf Z}(G;k,w):=\sum_{ϕ:V\to [k]}\prod_{\substack{uv\in E \\ ϕ(u)=ϕ(v)}}w, \] where $[k]:=\{1,\ldots,k\}$. In this paper we give zero-free regions for the partition function of the anti-ferromagnetic Potts model on bounded degree graphs. In particular we show that for any $Δ\in \mathbb{N}$ and any $k\geq eΔ+1$, there exists an open set $U$ in the complex plane that contains the interval $[0,1)$ such that ${\bf Z}(G;k,w)\neq 0$ for any $w\in U$ and any graph $G$ of maximum degree at most $Δ$. (Here $e$ denotes the base of the natural logarithm.) For small values of $Δ$ we are able to give better results. As an application of our results we obtain improved bounds on $k$ for the existence of deterministic approximation algorithms for counting the number of proper $k$-colourings of graphs of small maximum degree.

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arXiv2020

Occupancy fraction, fractional colouring, and triangle fraction

Given $\varepsilon>0$, there exists $f_0$ such that, if $f_0 \le f \le Δ^2+1$, then for any graph $G$ on $n$ vertices of maximum degree $Δ$ in which the neighbourhood of every vertex in $G$ spans at most $Δ^2/f$ edges, (i) an independent set of $G$ drawn uniformly at random has at least $(1/2-\varepsilon)(n/Δ)\log f$ vertices in expectation, and (ii) the fractional chromatic number of $G$ is at most $(2+\varepsilon)Δ/\log f$. These bounds cannot in general be improved by more than a factor $2$ asymptotically. One may view these as stronger versions of results of Ajtai, Komlós and Szemerédi (1981) and Shearer (1983). The proofs use a tight analysis of the hard-core model.

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arXiv2020

Colouring triangle-free graphs with local list sizes

We prove two distinct and natural refinements of a recent breakthrough result of Molloy (and a follow-up work of Bernshteyn) on the (list) chromatic number of triangle-free graphs. In both our results, we permit the amount of colour made available to vertices of lower degree to be accordingly lower. One result concerns list colouring and correspondence colouring, while the other concerns fractional colouring. Our proof of the second illustrates the use of the hard-core model to prove a Johansson-type result, which may be of independent interest.

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arXiv2020

An algorithmic framework for colouring locally sparse graphs

We develop an algorithmic framework for graph colouring that reduces the problem to verifying a local probabilistic property of the independent sets. With this we give, for any fixed $k\ge 3$ and $\varepsilon>0$, a randomised polynomial-time algorithm for colouring graphs of maximum degree $Δ$ in which each vertex is contained in at most $t$ copies of a cycle of length $k$, where $1/2\le t\le Δ^\frac{2\varepsilon}{1+2\varepsilon}/(\logΔ)^2$, with $\lfloor(1+\varepsilon)Δ/\log(Δ/\sqrt t)\rfloor$ colours. This generalises and improves upon several notable results including those of Kim (1995) and Alon, Krivelevich and Sudakov (1999), and more recent ones of Molloy (2019) and Achlioptas, Iliopoulos and Sinclair (2019). This bound on the chromatic number is tight up to an asymptotic factor $2$ and it coincides with a famous algorithmic barrier to colouring random graphs.

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arXiv2020

Graph structure via local occupancy

The first author together with Jenssen, Perkins and Roberts (2017) recently showed how local properties of the hard-core model on triangle-free graphs guarantee the existence of large independent sets, of size matching the best-known asymptotics due to Shearer (1983). The present work strengthens this in two ways: first, by guaranteeing stronger graph structure in terms of colourings through applications of the Lovász local lemma; and second, by extending beyond triangle-free graphs in terms of local sparsity, treating for example graphs of bounded local edge density, of bounded local Hall ratio, and of bounded clique number. This generalises and improves upon much other earlier work, including that of Shearer (1995), Alon (1996) and Alon, Krivelevich and Sudakov (1999), and more recent results of Molloy (2019), Bernshteyn (2019) and Achlioptas, Iliopoulos and Sinclair (2019). Our results derive from a common framework built around the hard-core model. It pivots on a property we call local occupancy, giving a clean separation between the methods for deriving graph structure with probabilistic information and verifying the requisite probabilistic information itself.

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arXiv2019

Statistical physics approaches to Unique Games

We show how two techniques from statistical physics can be adapted to solve a variant of the notorious Unique Games problem, potentially opening new avenues towards the Unique Games Conjecture. The variant, which we call Count Unique Games, is a promise problem in which the "yes" case guarantees a certain number of highly satisfiable assignments to the Unique Games instance. In the standard Unique Games problem, the "yes" case only guarantees at least one such assignment. We exhibit efficient algorithms for Count Unique Games based on approximating a suitable partition function for the Unique Games instance via (i) a zero-free region and polynomial interpolation, and (ii) the cluster expansion. We also show that a modest improvement to the parameters for which we give results would refute the Unique Games Conjecture.

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arXiv2019

Independent Sets, Matchings, and Occupancy Fractions

We prove tight upper bounds on the logarithmic derivative of the independence and matching polynomials of d-regular graphs. For independent sets, this theorem is a strengthening of the results of Kahn, Galvin and Tetali, and Zhao showing that a union of copies of $K_{d,d}$ maximizes the number of independent sets and the independence polynomial of a d-regular graph. For matchings, this shows that the matching polynomial and the total number of matchings of a d-regular graph are maximized by a union of copies of $K_{d,d}$. Using this we prove the asymptotic upper matching conjecture of Friedland, Krop, Lundow, and Markström. In probabilistic language, our main theorems state that for all d-regular graphs and all $λ$, the occupancy fraction of the hard-core model and the edge occupancy fraction of the monomer-dimer model with fugacity $λ$ are maximized by $K_{d,d}$. Our method involves constrained optimization problems over distributions of random variables and applies to all d-regular graphs directly, without a reduction to the bipartite case.

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arXiv2019

Regularity inheritance in hypergraphs

We give a new approach to handling hypergraph regularity. This approach allows for vertex-by-vertex embedding into regular partitions of hypergraphs, and generalises to regular partitions of sparse hypergraphs. We also prove a corresponding sparse hypergraph regularity lemma.

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arXiv2018

Counting proper colourings in 4-regular graphs via the Potts model

We give tight upper and lower bounds on the internal energy per particle in the antiferromagnetic $q$-state Potts model on $4$-regular graphs, for $q\ge 5$. This proves the first case of a conjecture of the author, Perkins, Jenssen, and Roberts on extensions of their methods, and implies tight bounds on the antiferromagnetic Potts partition function. The zero-temperature limit gives upper and lower bounds on the number of proper $q$-colourings of $4$-regular graphs, which almost proves the case $d=4$ of a conjecture of Galvin and Tetali. For any $q \ge 5$ we prove that the number of proper $q$-colourings of a $4$-regular graph is maximised by a union of $K_{4,4}$'s.

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arXiv2018

Tight bounds on the coefficients of partition functions via stability

Partition functions arise in statistical physics and probability theory as the normalizing constant of Gibbs measures and in combinatorics and graph theory as graph polynomials. For instance the partition functions of the hard-core model and monomer-dimer model are the independence and matching polynomials respectively. We show how stability results follow naturally from the recently developed occupancy method for maximizing and minimizing physical observables over classes of regular graphs, and then show these stability results can be used to obtain tight extremal bounds on the individual coefficients of the corresponding partition functions. As applications, we prove new bounds on the number of independent sets and matchings of a given size in regular graphs. For large enough graphs and almost all sizes, the bounds are tight and confirm the Upper Matching Conjecture of Friedland, Krop, and Markström and a conjecture of Kahn on independent sets for a wide range of parameters. Additionally we prove tight bounds on the number of $q$-colorings of cubic graphs with a given number of monochromatic edges, and tight bounds on the number of independent sets of a given size in cubic graphs of girth at least $5$.

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arXiv2017

Extremes of the internal energy of the Potts model on cubic graphs

We prove tight upper and lower bounds on the internal energy per particle (expected number of monochromatic edges per vertex) in the anti-ferromagnetic Potts model on cubic graphs at every temperature and for all $q \ge 2$. This immediately implies corresponding tight bounds on the anti-ferromagnetic Potts partition function. Taking the zero-temperature limit gives new results in extremal combinatorics: the number of $q$-colorings of a $3$-regular graph, for any $q \ge 2$, is maximized by a union of $K_{3,3}$'s. This proves the $d=3$ case of a conjecture of Galvin and Tetali.

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arXiv2017

On the average size of independent sets in triangle-free graphs

We prove an asymptotically tight lower bound on the average size of independent sets in a triangle-free graph on $n$ vertices with maximum degree $d$, showing that an independent set drawn uniformly at random from such a graph has expected size at least $(1+o_d(1)) \frac{\log d}{d}n$. This gives an alternative proof of Shearer's upper bound on the Ramsey number $R(3,k)$. We then prove that the total number of independent sets in a triangle-free graph with maximum degree $d$ is at least $\exp \left[\left(\frac{1}{2}+o_d(1) \right) \frac{\log^2 d}{d}n \right]$. The constant $1/2$ in the exponent is best possible. In both cases, tightness is exhibited by a random $d$-regular graph. Both results come from considering the hard-core model from statistical physics: a random independent set $I$ drawn from a graph with probability proportional to $λ^{|I|}$, for a fugacity parameter $λ>0$. We prove a general lower bound on the occupancy fraction (normalized expected size of the random independent set) of the hard-core model on triangle-free graphs of maximum degree $d$. The bound is asymptotically tight in $d$ for all $λ=O_d(1)$. We conclude by stating several conjectures on the relationship between the average and maximum size of an independent set in a triangle-free graph and give some consequences of these conjectures in Ramsey theory.

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arXiv2017

Multicolour Ramsey numbers of paths and even cycles

We prove new upper bounds on the multicolour Ramsey numbers of paths and even cycles. It is well known that $(k-1)n+o(n)\leq R_k(P_n)\leq R_k(C_n)\leq kn+o(n)$. The upper bound was recently improved by Sárközy who showed that $R_k(C_n)\leq\left(k-\frac{k}{16k^3+1}\right)n+o(n)$. Here we show $R_k(C_n) \leq (k-\frac14)n +o(n)$, obtaining the first improvement to the coefficient of the linear term by an absolute constant.

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