Metric general position extensions of classical graph invariants
Abstract
We introduce a two-parameter framework that refines several classical graph invariants by imposing higher-order constraints along bounded-length geodesics. For integers , a vertex set is called -independent if every shortest path of length at most contains fewer than vertices of the set, giving rise to corresponding -independence, chromatic, clique, and domination invariants. We develop a general framework for these parameters by associating each graph with a -uniform hypergraph that encodes its geodesic structure. We then establish basic bounds and monotonicity properties, and introduce a notion of -perfection extending the classical theory of perfect graphs. Exact formulas are obtained for the -chromatic number of paths and cycles. In particular, all paths are -perfect for all parameters, while cycles admit a complete classification of -perfection that recovers the classical case when and exhibits new periodic and finite-exception behavior for . We further investigate the interaction between -invariants and graph powers, showing that while the case reduces to graph powers in a straightforward way, substantially different behavior arises for higher values of , even for powers of paths.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2601.04351,
title = {Metric general position extensions of classical graph invariants},
author = {Brent Cody and Rose Detore},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2601.04351},
year = {2026}
}