Even cycles and even 2-factors in the line graph of a simple graph (Q2411500)

Summary: Let \(G\) be a connected graph with an even number of edges. We show that if the subgraph of \(G\) induced by the vertices of odd degree has a perfect matching, then the line graph of \(G\) has a \(2\)-factor whose connected components are cycles of even length (an even \(2\)-factor). For a cubic graph \(G\), we also give a necessary and sufficient condition so that the corresponding line graph \(L(G)\) has an even cycle decomposition of index \(3\), i.e., the edge-set of \(L(G)\) can be partitioned into three \(2\)-regular subgraphs whose connected components are cycles of even length. The more general problem of the existence of even cycle decompositions of index \(m\) in \(2d\)-regular graphs is also addressed.