Generalized spectral characterization of signed bipartite graphs

Abstract

Let $\Sigma$ be an $n$-vertex controllable or almost controllable signed bipartite graph, and let $\Delta_\Sigma$ denote the discriminant of its characteristic polynomial $\chi(\Sigma; x)$. We prove that if (\rmnum{1}) the integer $2^{ -\lfloor n/2 \rfloor }\sqrt{\Delta _{\Sigma}}$ is squarefree, and (\rmnum{2}) the constant term (even $n$) or linear coefficient (odd $n$) of $\chi(\Sigma; x)$ is $\pm 1$, then $\Sigma$ is determined by its generalized spectrum. This result extends a recent theorem of Ji, Wang, and Zhang [Electron. J. Combin. 32 (2025), \#P2.18], which established a similar criterion for signed trees with irreducible characteristic polynomials.