Received 31 January 1985 Revised 10 September 1985 | N. ALON
The paper by N. Alon explores the relationship between the eigenvalues of a graph's adjacency matrix and its expansion properties, particularly focusing on regular bipartite graphs. Key findings include:
1. **Eigenvalue Separation and Expansion**: A regular bipartite graph is an expander if and only if the second largest eigenvalue of its adjacency matrix is well separated from the largest eigenvalue. This result has implications for generating expanders randomly and efficiently checking their properties.
2. **Magnifiers and Expanders**: The concept of magnifiers, which are non-bipartite analogues of expanders, is introduced. The paper establishes a close relationship between eigenvalues and magnifiers, showing that every strong expander is a magnifier and vice versa.
3. **Random Generation of Expanders**: The paper discusses methods for generating random expanders and magnifiers. It provides a probabilistic construction where almost every graph in a chosen class has strong expanding properties. This allows for efficient generation and verification of expanders.
4. **Analytic Analogue**: The discrete results are linked to analytic analogues, particularly Cheeger's theorem on Riemannian manifolds, providing a bridge between discrete and continuous mathematics.
5. **Numerical Examples and Results**: The paper includes numerical examples and new results on the distribution of eigenvalues of random regular graphs, suggesting that the difference between the largest and second largest eigenvalues is significant for random regular graphs.
6. **Concluding Remarks**: The paper concludes with open questions and conjectures, including a conjecture about the lower bound of the second largest eigenvalue for random regular graphs.
Overall, the paper provides a comprehensive framework for understanding and generating expanders, with practical implications for theoretical computer science and related fields.The paper by N. Alon explores the relationship between the eigenvalues of a graph's adjacency matrix and its expansion properties, particularly focusing on regular bipartite graphs. Key findings include:
1. **Eigenvalue Separation and Expansion**: A regular bipartite graph is an expander if and only if the second largest eigenvalue of its adjacency matrix is well separated from the largest eigenvalue. This result has implications for generating expanders randomly and efficiently checking their properties.
2. **Magnifiers and Expanders**: The concept of magnifiers, which are non-bipartite analogues of expanders, is introduced. The paper establishes a close relationship between eigenvalues and magnifiers, showing that every strong expander is a magnifier and vice versa.
3. **Random Generation of Expanders**: The paper discusses methods for generating random expanders and magnifiers. It provides a probabilistic construction where almost every graph in a chosen class has strong expanding properties. This allows for efficient generation and verification of expanders.
4. **Analytic Analogue**: The discrete results are linked to analytic analogues, particularly Cheeger's theorem on Riemannian manifolds, providing a bridge between discrete and continuous mathematics.
5. **Numerical Examples and Results**: The paper includes numerical examples and new results on the distribution of eigenvalues of random regular graphs, suggesting that the difference between the largest and second largest eigenvalues is significant for random regular graphs.
6. **Concluding Remarks**: The paper concludes with open questions and conjectures, including a conjecture about the lower bound of the second largest eigenvalue for random regular graphs.
Overall, the paper provides a comprehensive framework for understanding and generating expanders, with practical implications for theoretical computer science and related fields.