Title: Conflict-Free Coloring of Planar Graphs,
Abstract: A conflict-free k-coloring of a graph assigns one of k different colors to
some of the vertices such that, for every vertex v, there is a color that is
assigned to exactly one vertex among v and v's neighbors. Such colorings have
applications in wireless networking, robotics, and geometry, and are
well-studied in graph theory. Here we study the natural problem of the
conflict-free chromatic number chi_CF(G) (the smallest k for which
conflict-free k-colorings exist). We provide results both for closed
neighborhoods N[v], for which a vertex v is a member of its neighborhood, and
for open neighborhoods N(v), for which vertex v is not a member of its
neighborhood.
For closed neighborhoods, we prove the conflict-free variant of the famous
Hadwiger Conjecture: If an arbitrary graph G does not contain K_{k+1} as a
minor, then chi_CF(G) <= k. For planar graphs, we obtain a tight worst-case
bound: three colors are sometimes necessary and always sufficient. We also give
a complete characterization of the computational complexity of conflict-free
coloring. Deciding whether chi_CF(G)<= 1 is NP-complete for planar graphs G,
but polynomial for outerplanar graphs. Furthermore, deciding whether
chi_CF(G)<= 2 is NP-complete for planar graphs G, but always true for
outerplanar graphs. For the bicriteria problem of minimizing the number of
colored vertices subject to a given bound k on the number of colors, we give a
full algorithmic characterization in terms of complexity and approximation for
outerplanar and planar graphs.
For open neighborhoods, we show that every planar bipartite graph has a
conflict-free coloring with at most four colors; on the other hand, we prove
that for k in {1,2,3}, it is NP-complete to decide whether a planar bipartite
graph has a conflict-free k-coloring. Moreover, we establish that any general}
planar graph has a conflict-free coloring with at most eight colors.