Edge removal in undirected networks

Abstract

The edge-removal problem asks whether the removal of a $\lambda$-capacity edge from a given network can decrease the communication rate between source-terminal pairs by more than $\lambda$. In this short manuscript, we prove that for undirected networks, removing a $\lambda$-capacity edge decreases the rate by $O(\lambda)$. Through previously known reductive arguments, here newly applied to undirected networks, our result implies that the zero-error capacity region of an undirected network equals its vanishing-error capacity region. Whether it is possible to prove similar results for directed networks remains an open question.