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Introduction of Minimum Spanning Tree


A tree is a graph with the following properties:

  1. The graph is connected (can go from anywhere to anywhere)
  2. There are no cyclic (Acyclic)
Minimum Spanning Tree Introduction
Minimum Spanning Tree Introduction

Spanning Tree:

Given a connected undirected graph, a spanning tree of that graph is a subgraph that is a tree and joined all vertices. A single graph can have many spanning trees.

For Example:

Minimum Spanning Tree Introduction

For the above-connected graph. There can be multiple spanning Trees like

Minimum Spanning Tree Introduction

Properties of Spanning Tree:

  1. There may be several minimum spanning trees of the same weight having the minimum number of edges.
  2. If all the edge weights of a given graph are the same, then every spanning tree of that graph is minimum.
  3. If each edge has a distinct weight, then there will be only one, unique minimum spanning tree.
  4. A connected graph G can have more than one spanning trees.
  5. A disconnected graph can't have to span the tree, or it can't span all the vertices.
  6. Spanning Tree doesn't contain cycles.
  7. Spanning Tree has (n-1) edges where n is the number of vertices.

Addition of even one single edge results in the spanning tree losing its property of Acyclicity and elimination of one single edge results in its losing the property of connectivity.

Minimum Spanning Tree:

Minimum Spanning Tree is a Spanning Tree which has minimum total cost. If we have a linked undirected graph with a weight (or cost) combine with each edge. Then the cost of spanning tree would be the sum of the cost of its edges.

Minimum Spanning Tree Introduction
Minimum Spanning Tree Introduction
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