Euler cycle

views updated

Euler cycle (Euler path) A path in a directed graph that includes each edge in the graph precisely once; thus it represents a complete traversal of the arcs of the graph. The concept is named for Leonhard Euler who introduced it around 1736 to solve the Königsberg bridges problem. He showed that for a graph to possess an Euler cycle it should be connected and each vertex should have the same number of edges entering it as leaving it.

More From encyclopedia.com