DROPS

Document

DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ISAAC.2025.43

New Approximate Distance Oracles and Their Applications

Authors: Avi Kadria and Liam Roditty

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 359, 36th International Symposium on Algorithms and Computation (ISAAC 2025)

Abstract

Let G = (V, E) be an undirected graph with n vertices and m edges, and let μ = m/n. A distance oracle is a data structure designed to answer approximate distance queries, with the goal of achieving low stretch, efficient space usage, and fast query time. While much of the prior work focused on distance oracles with constant query time, this paper presents a comprehensive study of distance oracles with non-constant query time. We explore the tradeoffs between space, stretch, and query time of distance oracles in various regimes. Specifically, we consider both weighted and unweighted graphs in the regimes of stretch < 2 and stretch ≥ 2. In addition, we demonstrate several applications of our new distance oracles to the n-Pairs Shortest Paths (n-PSP) problem and the All Nodes Shortest Cycles (ANSC) problem. Our main contributions are: - Weighted graphs: We present a new three-way trade-off between stretch, space, and query time, offering a natural extension of the classical Thorup–Zwick distance oracle [STOC’01 and JACM’05] to regimes with larger query time. Specifically, for any 0 < r < 1/2 and integer k ≥ 1, we construct a (2k(1 - 2r) - 1)-stretch distance oracle with Õ(m + n^{1 + 1/k}) space and Õ(μ n^r) query time. This construction provides an asymptotic improvement over the classical (2k - 1)-stretch and O(n^{1 + 1/k})-space tradeoff of Thorup and Zwick in sparse graphs, at the cost of increased query time. We also improve upon a result of Dalirrooyfard et al. [FOCS’22], who presented a (2k - 2)-stretch distance oracle with O(m + n^{1 + 1/k}) space and O(μ n^{1/k}) query time. In our oracle we reduce the stretch from (2k - 2) to (2k - 5) while preserving the same space and query time. - Unweighted graphs: We present a (2k - 5, 4 + 2_{odd})-approximation distance oracle with O(n^{1 + 1/k}) space and O(n^{1/k}) query time. This improves upon a (2k - 2, 2_{odd})-approximation distance oracle of Dalirrooyfard et al. [FOCS’22] while maintaining the same space and query time. We also present a distance oracle that given u,v ∈ V returns an estimate d̂(u,v) ≤ d(u,v) + 2⌈ d(u,v) / 3 ⌉ + 2, using O(n^{4/3 + 2ε}) space and O(n^{1 - 3ε}) query time. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first distance oracle that simultaneously achieves a multiplicative stretch < 2, and a space complexity O(n^{1.5 - α}), for some α > 0. - Applications for n-PSP and ANSC: We present an Õ(m^{1 - 1/(k+1)} n)-time algorithm for the n-PSP problem, that for every input pair ⟨s_i,t_i⟩, where i ∈ [n], returns an estimate d̂(s_i, t_i) such that d̂(s_i,t_i) ≤ d(s_i,t_i) + 2⌈d(s_i,t_i)/2k⌉. By allowing a small additive error, this result circumvents the conditional running time lower bound of Ω(m^{2 - 2/(k+1)} ⋅ n^{1/(k+1) - o(1)}), established by Dalirrooyfard et al. [FOCS’22] for achieving (1 + 1/k)-stretch. Additionally, we present an Õ(mn^{1 - 1/k})-time algorithm for the ANSC problem that computes, for every u ∈ V, an estimate ĉ_u such that ĉ_u ≤ SC(u) + 2⌈SC(u)/2(k - 1)⌉, where SC(u) denotes the length of the shortest cycle containing u. This improves upon the Õ(m^{2 - 2/k}n^{1/k})-time algorithm of Dalirrooyfard et al. [FOCS'22], while achieving the same approximation guarantee. We obtain our results by developing several new techniques, among them are the borderline vertices technique and the middle vertex technique, which may be of independent interest.

Cite as

Avi Kadria and Liam Roditty. New Approximate Distance Oracles and Their Applications. In 36th International Symposium on Algorithms and Computation (ISAAC 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 359, pp. 43:1-43:17, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{kadria_et_al:LIPIcs.ISAAC.2025.43,
  author =	{Kadria, Avi and Roditty, Liam},
  title =	{{New Approximate Distance Oracles and Their Applications}},
  booktitle =	{36th International Symposium on Algorithms and Computation (ISAAC 2025)},
  pages =	{43:1--43:17},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-408-6},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{359},
  editor =	{Chen, Ho-Lin and Hon, Wing-Kai and Tsai, Meng-Tsung},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ISAAC.2025.43},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-249514},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ISAAC.2025.43},
  annote =	{Keywords: Distance oracles, Fine-grained algorithms, Graph algorithms, Data structures}
}

Document

DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.13

Low Sensitivity Hopsets

Authors: Vikrant Ashvinkumar, Aaron Bernstein, Chengyuan Deng, Jie Gao, and Nicole Wein

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 325, 16th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2025)

Abstract

Given a weighted graph G = (V,E,w), a (β, ε)-hopset H is an edge set such that for any s,t ∈ V, where s can reach t in G, there is a path from s to t in G ∪ H which uses at most β hops whose length is in the range [dist_G(s,t), (1+ε)dist_G(s,t)]. We break away from the traditional question that asks for a hopset H that achieves small |H| and small diameter β and instead study the sensitivity of H, a new quality measure. The sensitivity of a vertex (or edge) given a hopset H is, informally, the number of times a single hop in G ∪ H bypasses it; a bit more formally, assuming shortest paths in G are unique, it is the number of hopset edges (s,t) ∈ H such that the vertex (or edge) is contained in the unique st-path in G having length exactly dist_G(s,t). The sensitivity associated with H is then the maximum sensitivity over all vertices (or edges). The highlights of our results are: - A construction for (Õ(√n), 0)-hopsets on undirected graphs with O(log n) sensitivity, complemented with a lower bound showing that Õ(√n) is tight up to polylogarithmic factors for any construction with polylogarithmic sensitivity. - A construction for (n^o(1), ε)-hopsets on undirected graphs with n^o(1) sensitivity for any ε > 0 that is at least inverse polylogarithmic, complemented with a lower bound on the tradeoff between β, ε, and the sensitivity. - We define a notion of sensitivity for β-shortcut sets (which are the reachability analogues of hopsets) and give a construction for Õ(√n)-shortcut sets on directed graphs with O(log n) sensitivity, complemented with a lower bound showing that β = Ω̃(n^{1/3}) for any construction with polylogarithmic sensitivity. We believe hopset sensitivity is a natural measure in and of itself, and could potentially find use in a diverse range of contexts. More concretely, the notion of hopset sensitivity is also directly motivated by the Differentially Private All Sets Range Queries problem [Deng et al. WADS 23]. Our result for O(log n) sensitivity (Õ(√n), 0)-hopsets on undirected graphs immediately improves the current best-known upper bound on utility from Õ(n^{1/3}) to Õ(n^{1/4}) in the pure-DP setting, which is tight up to polylogarithmic factors.

Cite as

Vikrant Ashvinkumar, Aaron Bernstein, Chengyuan Deng, Jie Gao, and Nicole Wein. Low Sensitivity Hopsets. In 16th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 325, pp. 13:1-13:23, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{ashvinkumar_et_al:LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.13,
  author =	{Ashvinkumar, Vikrant and Bernstein, Aaron and Deng, Chengyuan and Gao, Jie and Wein, Nicole},
  title =	{{Low Sensitivity Hopsets}},
  booktitle =	{16th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2025)},
  pages =	{13:1--13:23},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-361-4},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{325},
  editor =	{Meka, Raghu},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.13},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-226418},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.13},
  annote =	{Keywords: Hopsets, Shortcuts, Sensitivity, Differential Privacy}
}

Document

DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.SWAT.2024.36

Path-Reporting Distance Oracles with Linear Size

Authors: Ofer Neiman and Idan Shabat

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 294, 19th Scandinavian Symposium and Workshops on Algorithm Theory (SWAT 2024)

Abstract

Given an undirected weighted graph, an (approximate) distance oracle is a data structure that can (approximately) answer distance queries. A Path-Reporting Distance Oracle, or PRDO, is a distance oracle that must also return a path between the queried vertices. Given a graph on n vertices and an integer parameter k ≥ 1, Thorup and Zwick [M. Thorup and U. Zwick, 2001] showed a PRDO with stretch 2k-1, size O(k⋅n^{1+1/k}) and query time O(k) (for the query time of PRDOs, we omit the time needed to report the path itself). Subsequent works [Mendel and Naor, 2007; Shiri Chechik, 2014; Shiri Chechik, 2015] improved the size to O(n^{1+1/k}) and the query time to O(1). However, these improvements produce distance oracles which are not path-reporting. Several other works [Michael Elkin et al., 2016; Michael Elkin and Seth Pettie, 2016] focused on small size PRDO for general graphs, but all known results on distance oracles with linear size suffer from polynomial stretch, polynomial query time, or not being path-reporting. In this paper we devise the first linear size PRDO with poly-logarithmic stretch and low query time O(log log n). More generally, for any integer k ≥ 1, we obtain a PRDO with stretch at most O(k^4.82), size O(n^{1+1/k}), and query time O(log k). In addition, we can make the size of our PRDO as small as n+o(n), at the cost of increasing the query time to poly-logarithmic. For unweighted graphs, we improve the stretch to O(k²). We also consider pairwise PRDO, which is a PRDO that is only required to answer queries from a given set of pairs P. An exact PRDO of size O(n+|P|²) and constant query time was provided in [Michael Elkin and Seth Pettie, 2016]. In this work we dramatically improve the size, at the cost of slightly increasing the stretch. Specifically, given any ε > 0, we devise a pairwise PRDO with stretch 1+ε, constant query time, and near optimal size n^o(1)⋅ (n+|P|).

Cite as

Ofer Neiman and Idan Shabat. Path-Reporting Distance Oracles with Linear Size. In 19th Scandinavian Symposium and Workshops on Algorithm Theory (SWAT 2024). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 294, pp. 36:1-36:16, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2024)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{neiman_et_al:LIPIcs.SWAT.2024.36,
  author =	{Neiman, Ofer and Shabat, Idan},
  title =	{{Path-Reporting Distance Oracles with Linear Size}},
  booktitle =	{19th Scandinavian Symposium and Workshops on Algorithm Theory (SWAT 2024)},
  pages =	{36:1--36:16},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-318-8},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2024},
  volume =	{294},
  editor =	{Bodlaender, Hans L.},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.SWAT.2024.36},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-200760},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.SWAT.2024.36},
  annote =	{Keywords: Graph Algorithms, Shortest Paths, Distance Oracles}
}

Document

DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2024.83

On the Size Overhead of Pairwise Spanners

Authors: Ofer Neiman and Idan Shabat

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 287, 15th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2024)

Abstract

Given an undirected possibly weighted n-vertex graph G = (V,E) and a set 𝒫 ⊆ V² of pairs, a subgraph S = (V,E') is called a P-pairwise α-spanner of G, if for every pair (u,v) ∈ 𝒫 we have d_S(u,v) ≤ α⋅ d_G(u,v). The parameter α is called the stretch of the spanner, and its size overhead is define as |E'|/|P|. A surprising connection was recently discussed between the additive stretch of (1+ε,β)-spanners, to the hopbound of (1+ε,β)-hopsets. A long sequence of works showed that if the spanner/hopset has size ≈ n^{1+1/k} for some parameter k ≥ 1, then β≈(1/ε)^{log k}. In this paper we establish a new connection to the size overhead of pairwise spanners. In particular, we show that if |P|≈ n^{1+1/k}, then a P-pairwise (1+ε)-spanner must have size at least β⋅ |P| with β≈(1/ε)^{log k} (a near matching upper bound was recently shown in [Michael Elkin and Idan Shabat, 2023]). That is, the size overhead of pairwise spanners has similar bounds to the hopbound of hopsets, and to the additive stretch of spanners. We also extend the connection between pairwise spanners and hopsets to the large stretch regime, by showing nearly matching upper and lower bounds for P-pairwise α-spanners. In particular, we show that if |P|≈ n^{1+1/k}, then the size overhead is β≈k/α. A source-wise spanner is a special type of pairwise spanner, for which P = A×V for some A ⊆ V. A prioritized spanner is given also a ranking of the vertices V = (v₁,… ,v_n), and is required to provide improved stretch for pairs containing higher ranked vertices. By using a sequence of reductions: from pairwise spanners to source-wise spanners to prioritized spanners, we improve on the state-of-the-art results for source-wise and prioritized spanners. Since our spanners can be equipped with a path-reporting mechanism, we also substantially improve the known bounds for path-reporting prioritized distance oracles. Specifically, we provide a path-reporting distance oracle, with size O(n⋅(log log n)²), that has a constant stretch for any query that contains a vertex ranked among the first n^{1-δ} vertices (for any constant δ > 0). Such a result was known before only for non-path-reporting distance oracles.

Cite as

Ofer Neiman and Idan Shabat. On the Size Overhead of Pairwise Spanners. In 15th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2024). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 287, pp. 83:1-83:22, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2024)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{neiman_et_al:LIPIcs.ITCS.2024.83,
  author =	{Neiman, Ofer and Shabat, Idan},
  title =	{{On the Size Overhead of Pairwise Spanners}},
  booktitle =	{15th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2024)},
  pages =	{83:1--83:22},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-309-6},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2024},
  volume =	{287},
  editor =	{Guruswami, Venkatesan},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2024.83},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-196110},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2024.83},
  annote =	{Keywords: Graph Algorithms, Shortest Paths, Spanners}
}

Document

DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2022.81

A Unified Framework for Hopsets

Authors: Ofer Neiman and Idan Shabat

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 244, 30th Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2022)

Abstract

Given an undirected graph G = (V,E), an (α,β)-hopset is a graph H = (V,E'), so that adding its edges to G guarantees every pair has an α-approximate shortest path that has at most β edges (hops), that is, d_G(u,v) ≤ d_{G∪H}^(β)(u,v) ≤ α⋅ d_G(u,v). Given the usefulness of hopsets for fundamental algorithmic tasks, several different algorithms and techniques were developed for their construction, for various regimes of the stretch parameter α. In this work we devise a single algorithm that can attain all state-of-the-art hopsets for general graphs, by choosing the appropriate input parameters. In fact, in some cases it also improves upon the previous best results. We also show a lower bound on our algorithm. In [Ben-Levy and Parter, 2020], given a parameter k, a (O(k^ε),O(k^{1-ε}))-hopset of size Õ(n^{1+1/k}) was shown for any n-vertex graph and parameter 0 < ε < 1, and they asked whether this result is best possible. We resolve this open problem, showing that any (α,β)-hopset of size O(n^{1+1/k}) must have α⋅β ≥ Ω(k).

Cite as

Ofer Neiman and Idan Shabat. A Unified Framework for Hopsets. In 30th Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2022). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 244, pp. 81:1-81:13, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2022)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{neiman_et_al:LIPIcs.ESA.2022.81,
  author =	{Neiman, Ofer and Shabat, Idan},
  title =	{{A Unified Framework for Hopsets}},
  booktitle =	{30th Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2022)},
  pages =	{81:1--81:13},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-247-1},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2022},
  volume =	{244},
  editor =	{Chechik, Shiri and Navarro, Gonzalo and Rotenberg, Eva and Herman, Grzegorz},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2022.81},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-170192},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2022.81},
  annote =	{Keywords: Graph Algorithms, Shortest Paths, Hopsets}
}

5 Search Results for "Shabat, Idan"

New Approximate Distance Oracles and Their Applications

Abstract

Cite as

Low Sensitivity Hopsets

Abstract

Cite as

Path-Reporting Distance Oracles with Linear Size

Abstract

Cite as

On the Size Overhead of Pairwise Spanners

Abstract

Cite as

A Unified Framework for Hopsets

Abstract

Cite as

Thanks for your feedback!

Could not send message