Related papers: Hard Tiling Problems with Simple Tiles
We fix $n$ and say a square in the two-dimensional grid indexed by $(x,y)$ has color $c$ if $x+y \equiv c \pmod{n}$. A {\it ribbon tile} of order $n$ is a connected polyomino containing exactly one square of each color. We show that the set…
Given a graph, when can we orient the edges to satisfy local constraints at the vertices, where each vertex specifies which local orientations of its incident edges are allowed? This family of graph orientation problems is a special kind of…
A polyomino is a polygonal region with axis parallel edges and corners of integral coordinates, which may have holes. In this paper, we consider planar tiling and packing problems with polyomino pieces and a polyomino container $P$. We give…
We prove that the following problem is co-RE-complete and thus undecidable: given three simple polygons, is there a tiling of the plane where every tile is an isometry of one of the three polygons (either allowing or forbidding…
Which polygons admit two (or more) distinct lattice tilings of the plane? We call such polygons double tiles. It is well-known that a lattice tiling is always combinatorially isomorphic either to a grid of squares or to a grid of regular…
In 2007, Arkin et al. initiated a systematic study of the complexity of the Hamiltonian cycle problem on square, triangular, or hexagonal grid graphs, restricted to polygonal, thin, superthin, degree-bounded, or solid grid graphs. They…
We apply the theory of Groebner bases to the study of signed, symmetric polyomino tilings of planar domains. Complementing the results of Conway and Lagarias we show that the triangular regions T_N=T_{3k-1} and T_N=T_{3k} in a hexagonal…
We prove that the number of monomer-dimer tilings of an $n\times n$ square grid, with $m<n$ monomers in which no four tiles meet at any point is $m2^m+(m+1)2^{m+1}$, when $m$ and $n$ have the same parity. In addition, we present a new proof…
We consider tromino tilings of $m\times n$ domino-deficient rectangles, where $3|(mn-2)$ and $m,n\geq0$, and characterize all cases of domino removal that admit such tilings, thereby settling the open problem posed by J. M. Ash and S.…
We prove that the 2017 puzzle game ZHED is NP-complete, even with just 1 tiles. Such a puzzle is defined by a set of unit-square 1 tiles in a square grid, and a target square of the grid. A move consists of selecting an unselected 1 tile…
We prove the computational intractability of rotating and placing $n$ square tiles into a $1 \times n$ array such that adjacent tiles are compatible--either equal edge colors, as in edge-matching puzzles, or matching tab/pocket shapes, as…
We show that for any closed, orientable surface $K$ smoothly embedded in $\mathbb{R}^4$, the unit $4$-ball $B^4 \subset \mathbb{R}^4$ can be tiled using $n \geq 3$ tiles each congruent to a regular neighborhood (with corners) of a surface…
We prove that the problem of deciding whether a 2- or 3-dimensional simplicial complex embeds into $\mathbb{R}^3$ is NP-hard. Our construction also shows that deciding whether a 3-manifold with boundary tori admits an $\mathbb{S}^{3}$…
We present two algorithms to list certain classes of monomino-domino coverings which conform to the \emph{tatami} restriction; no four tiles meet. Our methods exploit structural features of tatami coverings in order to create the lists in…
We construct a unilateral lattice tiling of $\mathbb{R}^n$ into hypercubes of two differnet side lengths $p$ or $q$. This generalizes the Pythagorean tiling in $\mathbb{R}^2$. We also show that this tiling is unique up to symmetries, which…
We consider the problem of deciding, given a sequence of regions, if there is a choice of points, one for each region, such that the induced polyline is simple or weakly simple, meaning that it can touch but not cross itself. Specifically,…
We study the complexity of symmetric assembly puzzles: given a collection of simple polygons, can we translate, rotate, and possibly flip them so that their interior-disjoint union is line symmetric? On the negative side, we show that the…
In this thesis we will present and discuss various results pertaining to tiling problems and mathematical logic, specifically computability theory. We focus on Wang prototiles, as defined in [32]. We begin by studying Domino Problems, and…
Tilings are around us everywhere, and our curiosity draws us to study their properties. A tiling is a way of arranging pieces on a board, such that there is no space left uncovered, nor any space covered by more than one tile. In…
We study whether an asymmetric limited-magnitude ball may tile $\mathbb{Z}^n$. This ball generalizes previously studied shapes: crosses, semi-crosses, and quasi-crosses. Such tilings act as perfect error-correcting codes in a channel which…