Ring graphs and complete intersection toric ideals (Q960950)

Let \(G\) be a simple graph with \(n\) vertices \(x_1,\ldots,x_n\) and \(q\) edges \(t_1,\ldots,t_q\). A graph satisfies the primitive cycle property (PCP) if any two primitive (i.e., chordless) cycles have at most one common edge. The free rank of \(G\), denoted frank(\(G\)), is the number of primitive cycles in \(G\), while the rank of \(G\) is defined as the dimension of the cycle space of \(G\). It is shown that \(\text{rank}(G)\leq\text{frank}(G)\). The authors seek conditions for equality to hold. The graph \(G\) is called a ring graph if \(G\) every maximal biconnected subgraph of \(G\) can be constructed from a cycle by successively adjoining paths of length \(\geq2\) that are disjoint from the graph thus far constructed except that their terminal vertices are identified with adjacent vertices of said graph. Theorem 2.13: \(G\) is a ring graph if and only if \(\text{rank}(G)=\text{frank}(G)\), and equivalently if \(G\) satisfies the PCP and contains no subdivision of \(K_4\). All outerplanar graphs are ring graphs, and all ring graphs are planar. Consider the polynomial ring \(R=k[x_1,\ldots,x_n]\) over a field \(k\). The edge-subring \(k[G]\) of \(R\) is the \(k\)-subalgebra \(k[t_1,\ldots,t_q]\) of \(R\). The kernel of the algebra-epimorphism \(k[t_1,\ldots,t_q]\rightarrow k[G]\), where \(t_h=\{x_i,x_j\}\mapsto x_ix_j\), is a graded prime ideal, called the toric ideal of \(G\) and is denoted by \(P(G)\). The graph \(G\) is called a complete intersection if \(P(G)\) can be generated by \(g\) polynomials, where \(g\) is the greatest length of an ascending chain of prime ideals contained in \(P(G)\). Theorem 3.3: A bipartite graph is a complete intersection if and only if it is planar and satisfies the PCP. The final section considers these notions when \(G\) is an oriented graph.