Generalized Tur\'an problems for small graphs

Abstract

For graphs $H$ and $F$, the generalized Tur\'an number $ex(n,H,F)$ is the largest number of copies of $H$ in an $F$-free graph on $n$ vertices. We consider this problem when both $H$ and $F$ have at most four vertices. We give sharp results in almost all cases, and connect the remaining cases to well-known unsolved problems. Our main new contribution is applying the progressive induction method of Simonovits for generalized Tur\'an problems.