Exact and Approximate Algorithms for Computing a Second Hamiltonian Cycle

In this paper we consider the following total functional problem: Given a cubic Hamiltonian graph G and a Hamiltonian cycle C₀ of G, how can we compute a second Hamiltonian cycle C₁ ≠ C₀ of G? Cedric Smith and William Tutte proved in 1946, using a non-constructive parity argument, that such a second Hamiltonian cycle always exists. Our main result is a deterministic algorithm which computes the second Hamiltonian cycle in O(n⋅2^0.299862744n) = O(1.23103ⁿ) time and in linear space, thus improving the state of the art running time of O*(2^0.3n) = O(1.2312ⁿ) for solving this problem (among deterministic algorithms running in polynomial space). Whenever the input graph G does not contain any induced cycle C₆ on 6 vertices, the running time becomes O(n⋅ 2^0.2971925n) = O(1.22876ⁿ). Our algorithm is based on a fundamental structural property of Thomason’s lollipop algorithm, which we prove here for the first time. In the direction of approximating the length of a second cycle in a (not necessarily cubic) Hamiltonian graph G with a given Hamiltonian cycle C₀ (where we may not have guarantees on the existence of a second Hamiltonian cycle), we provide a linear-time algorithm computing a second cycle with length at least n - 4α (√n+2α)+8, where α = (Δ-2)/(δ-2) and δ,Δ are the minimum and the maximum degree of the graph, respectively. This approximation result also improves the state of the art.