On the weight of Berge-\(F\)-free hypergraphs (Q2327220)

Summary: For a graph \(F\), we say a hypergraph is a Berge-\(F\) if it can be obtained from \(F\) by replacing each edge of \(F\) with a hyperedge containing it. A hypergraph is Berge-\(F\)-free if it does not contain a subhypergraph that is a Berge-\(F\). The weight of a non-uniform hypergraph \(\mathcal{H}\) is the quantity \(\sum_{h \in E(\mathcal{H})} |h|\). Suppose \(\mathcal{H}\) is a Berge-\(F\)-free hypergraph on \(n\) vertices. In this short note, we prove that as long as every edge of \(\mathcal{H}\) has size at least the Ramsey number of \(F\), the weight of \(\mathcal{H}\) is \(o(n^2)\). This result is best possible in some sense. Along the way, we study other weight functions, and strengthen results of \textit{D. Gerbner} and \textit{C. Palmer} [SIAM J. Discrete Math. 31, No. 4, 2314--2327 (2017; Zbl 1372.05106)] and \textit{D. Grósz} et al. [Electron. Notes Discrete Math. 61, 527--533 (2017; Zbl 1378.05145)].