A note on efficient k-limited broadcast domination in graphs

Abstract

An efficient $k$-limited dominating broadcast, or $k$-ELDB, is a $k$-limited broadcast in which every vertex is dominated exactly once. This notion brings together efficient domination and limited broadcast domination in a common framework. For a graph $G$, we write $mcr(G)$ for the smallest integer $k$ for which $G$ admits a $k$-ELDB. For an admissible value $k\ge mcr(G)$, we denote by $γ_{ebk}(G)$ the minimum cost of a $k$-ELDB on $G$, and is called the $k$-efficient broadcast domination number of $G$. In this paper, we study these parameters from an algorithmic perspective with complexity analysis. We develop a dynamic programming algorithm for trees which, for fixed $k$, computes $γ_{ebk}(T)$ and thereby obtains a polynomial-time procedure for determining $mcr(T) $. In contrast, we prove that, for every fixed integer $k\ge 1$, deciding whether a graph admits a $k$-ELDB is NP-complete for arbitrary graphs. These results place efficient limited broadcast domination in a natural complexity framework, with trees forming a tractable class and arbitrary graphs remaining computationally hard.