English

On main eigenvalues of certain graphs

Combinatorics 2026-02-17 v1

Abstract

An eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix of a graph is said to be \emph{main} if the all-1 vector is not orthogonal to the associated eigenspace. In this work, we approach the main eigenvalues of some graphs. The graphs with exactly two main eigenvalues are considered and a relation between those main eigenvalues is presented. The particular case of harmonic graphs is analyzed and they are characterized in terms of their main eigenvalues without any restriction on its combinatorial structure. We give a necessary and sufficient condition for a graph GG to have 1λmin-1-\lambda_{\min} as an eigenvalue of its complement, where λmin\lambda_{\min} denotes the least eigenvalue of GG. Also, we prove that among connected bipartite graphs, Kr,rK_{r,r} is the unique graph for which the index of the complement is equal to 1λmin-1-\lambda_{\min}. Finally, we characterize all paths and all double stars (trees with diameter three) for which the smallest eigenvalue is non-main. Main eigenvalues of paths and double stars are identified.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1605.03533,
  title  = {On main eigenvalues of certain graphs},
  author = {Nair Abreu and Domingos M. Cardoso and Francisca A. M. França and Cybele T. M. Vinagre},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1605.03533},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

15 pages, 1 figure

R2 v1 2026-06-22T13:58:43.905Z