On the nullspace of split graphs

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Jaume, Daniel A., Schvöllner, Victor N., Panelo, Cristian, Pereyra, Kevin
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Jaume, Daniel A.
Schvöllner, Victor N.
Panelo, Cristian
Pereyra, Kevin
author_facet Jaume, Daniel A.
Schvöllner, Victor N.
Panelo, Cristian
Pereyra, Kevin
contents We study the nullspace of the adjacency matrix of split graphs, whose vertex set can be partitioned into a clique and an independent set. We introduce the clique-kernel, a subspace that decides whether clique vertices lie in the support of a kernel eigenvector, and we prove that its dimension is at most one. This yields the formula $null(Sp) = null(R) + \dim(\mathrm{Cker}(Sp))$, which fully describes the nullity of a split graph in terms of the biadjacency submatrix $R$. We also analyze unbalanced split graphs through the concept of swing vertices and characterize the structure of their kernel supports. Furthermore, we study the behavior of the nullspace under Tyshkevich composition and derive a closed formula for the determinant. These results provide a unified algebraic framework for understanding when a split graph is singular and how its combinatorial structure determines its nullspace.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2512_00190
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle On the nullspace of split graphs
Jaume, Daniel A.
Schvöllner, Victor N.
Panelo, Cristian
Pereyra, Kevin
Combinatorics
Spectral Theory
We study the nullspace of the adjacency matrix of split graphs, whose vertex set can be partitioned into a clique and an independent set. We introduce the clique-kernel, a subspace that decides whether clique vertices lie in the support of a kernel eigenvector, and we prove that its dimension is at most one. This yields the formula $null(Sp) = null(R) + \dim(\mathrm{Cker}(Sp))$, which fully describes the nullity of a split graph in terms of the biadjacency submatrix $R$. We also analyze unbalanced split graphs through the concept of swing vertices and characterize the structure of their kernel supports. Furthermore, we study the behavior of the nullspace under Tyshkevich composition and derive a closed formula for the determinant. These results provide a unified algebraic framework for understanding when a split graph is singular and how its combinatorial structure determines its nullspace.
title On the nullspace of split graphs
topic Combinatorics
Spectral Theory
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.00190