Design and Analysis of Algorithms (18CSE107)

NP Hard & NP Complete

NP Completeness

Veningston. K
Computer Science and Engineering
 Unit V - Outline

• Network flow problem

– Ford Fulkerson Algorithm for Maximum Flow Problem

• NP–Hard and NP–Complete Problems

– Terminologies
– Examples

– Complexity Class - P, NP, NP-Complete, NP-Hard

– Is P=NP?
– Reducibility
•Design and Analysis of Algorithms
•2
(18CSE107)
 P vs. NP

• NP
– Set of all problems which could be verified in polynomial
time.
– This set even contains P algorithms
• We will try to find out one problem to which every
problem in NP could be reduced to that problem in
polynomial time.
 Reducibility

• Let us say, we have some problem A,

• We found out this problem is such a way that, every

problem in NP could be converted to this problem A
in polynomial time.

A
 Why do we find such a problem?

• Why it is important to find such a problem A?

• This make the following things easy,
– To prove that every problem in NP can be solved in
polynomial time, provided if we could find a polynomial
time algorithm to A.
– If every problem in NP can be solved in polynomial time,
we can prove P == NP
• If we have found out many such problems, the name
given to such a problem is NP-Hard.
 What is NP-Hard problem?

• If every problem in NP can be polynomial time

reducible to a problem A, then A is called NP-Hard.

• What does it mean?

– The problem A is as hard as any problem in NP. Why?

– If we can solve A, it means that we are able to solve every

problem in NP.
 Scenario

• Arm Wrestling
 What are the implications?

• What is the significance of such a problem?

– If A is such a problem, then we could make the following
simple statements.
• If A (which is NP-Hard problem) could be solved in
polynomial time, then what does it mean? Every
problem in NP is P (i.e. polynomial time solvable)

• If a problem in NP-Hard is solved in Polynomial

time, then we can say that P == NP

NOTE: Till now, no one is ever able to find out a polynomial time
solution to any NP-Hard problems
 NP-Complete

• If the problem A is also NP, which means solution to

A can also be verified in polynomial time, then A is
NP as well as NP-Hard.

• The problem A happens to be present in this set

itself.
 Scenario

• Arm Wrestling

Same class?
 NP-Complete

• If we can find a problem A in the same NP set, in

such a way that every other problem could be
converted to this problem A,
– It is NP-Hard, because it is as hard as any problem in NP.

– As well as, it is NP

– Therefore, it is NP-Complete
 NP-Complete - Formal definition

• A problem is said to be NP-Complete, if it is NP and

NP-Hard.
– If a problem is in NP, as well as every problem in NP can
be converted to it, then we call such a problem as NP-
Complete.
 P vs. NP vs. NP-Hard vs. NP-Complete

• What is the relationship between P, NP, NP-Hard &

NP-Complete?
– We do not have any concrete proof of saying that P == NP
or P != NP
 P vs. NP vs. NP-Hard vs. NP-Complete

• Well known NP-

Complete problems:
– Clique
– Vertex cover
– Hamiltonian Cycle
– TSP
– Subset sum
– 0/1 Knapsack
– Boolean
Satisfiability problem
(SAT)
– Longest path
 P vs. NP vs. NP-Hard vs. NP-Complete

• Summary:
– NP-Hard or NP-Complete is solved in polynomial
time, then P == NP

– NP problem or NP-Complete is proven to be not

solvable in polynomial time, then P != NP.