6.

Pushdown Automata

CIS 5513 - Automata and Formal Languages – Pei Wang

Pushdown automata: idea
Context-Free Languages can be accepted by
pushdown automata
A pushdown automaton is an ɛ-NFA with a stack
with unlimited capacity
Its transition function also takes the top of the
stack into account, and may change the top
item in the stack
It accepts at a final state or an empty stack
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Pushdown automata: definition
A pushdown automaton (PDA)
P = (Q, Σ, Γ, δ, q0, Z0, F) where
Γ (Gamma): A finite stack alphabet
 δ: Q×(Σ{ε})×Γ → 2Q×Γ*, a transition function
that specifies the set of possible next state and
the new content at the top of the stack
 Z0  Γ, the start symbol in stack

The other components are like in an ɛ-NFA

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Example: transition table
A PDA for the binary language {wwr}:
P = ({q0,q1,q2}, {0, 1}, {Z0,0,1}, δ, q0, Z0, {q2})
1. δ(q0, 0, Z0) = {(q0, 0Z0)}; δ(q0, 1, Z0) = {(q0, 1Z0)}
2. δ(q0, 0, 0) = {(q0, 00)}; δ(q0, 0, 1) = {(q0, 01)};
δ(q0, 1, 0) = {(q0, 10)}; δ(q0, 1, 1) = {(q0, 11)}
3. δ(q0, ɛ, Z0) = {(q1, Z0)}; δ(q0, ɛ, 0) = {(q1, 0)};
δ(q0, ɛ, 1) = {(q1, 1)}
4. δ(q1, 0, 0) = {(q1, ɛ)}; δ(q1, 1, 1) = {(q1, ɛ)}
5.4 δ(q1, ɛ, Z0) = {(q2, Z0)}
Example: transition graph

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Instantaneous descriptions of PDA
The configuration, or instantaneous description
(ID), of a PDA: (q, w, r), where q is the state, w
is the remaining input, and r is the stack contents
Here “state” only specifies the “control unit”, not
the stored “data” in stack
If the value of δ(q, a, X) contains (p, α), then the ID
transition is (q, aw, Xβ) ˫ (p, w, αβ), for arbitrary
w and β

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ID transitions: an example

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Properties of ID transitions
ID transition with multiple moves is shown as ˫*
Symbols may be added or removed to input or
stack in ID transitions

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Exercise 6.1.1

Solution

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Two types of acceptance
A PDA can define a language in two ways

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From Empty Stack to Final State

PF can be obtained by adding an ɛ-transition to a final state whenever the stack in

PN is empty, with the help of a new stack-symbol below Z 0

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From Final State to Empty Stack

PN can be obtained by popping out all stack symbols in final states in PF,
with the help of a new stack-symbol below Z0
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Exercises for Section 6.2

6.2.1(a): Design a PDA to accept

{0n1n | n ≥ 1}
6.2.2(a): Design a PDA to accept
{aibjck | i = j or j = k}

Solutions:
http://infolab.stanford.edu/~ullman/ialcsols/sol6.html#sol62
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CFG to PDA
From a given CFG G = (V, T, Q, S), a PN =
({q},T, VT, , q, S) can accept L(G) by
simulating the leftmost derivation to expand
the symbols in stack to match the input
When PN is in ID (q, y, Aα) where A is a variable
and there is a rule A→β in Q, the next ID can
be (q, y, βα). Remove the common prefix of βα
and y. Repeat until the stack is empty
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CFG to PDA: example

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PDA to CFG ： simple case
If a PDA is P = ({q}, Σ, Γ, δ, q, Z), the
equivalent CFG G = (Γ{S}, Σ, R, S),
where R contains S → Z, and for each
(q, Y1Y2…Yk) in δ(q, a, X), R contains X
→ aY1Y2…Yk, where k ≥ 0, and Yi can
be a variable, a terminal, or ε

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PDA to CFG: general case
Use a grammar variable [pXq] to
represent the state change from p to q
for the popping out of a stack symbol X

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PDA to CFG (cont.)

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PDA to CFG: example

6.10: δ(q, i, Z) = {(q, ZZ)}; δ(q, e, Z) = {(q, ε)}

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PDA to CFG: example (2)

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PDA to CFG: example (3)

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Exercises for Section 6.3

Solutions: http://infolab.stanford.edu/~ullman/ialcsols/sol6.html#sol63
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Deterministic pushdown automata
A PDA is deterministic (DPDA), if
 Each δ(q, a, X) has at most one element
 If δ(q, a, X) is
nonempty, then
δ(q, ɛ, X) must be
empty
 Lwcwr = {wcwR}
with a marker c
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PDA, DPDA, and DFA
The set of language accepted by DPDA is a
subset of CFL, and a super set of regular
language, so the capability of DPDA is
between those of PDA and DFA
DPDA accept all regular languages, but only the
context-free languages that have
unambiguous CFG

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