We consider the problem of enumerating Dyck paths staying weakly above the x-axis with a limit to the number of consecutive up steps, or a limit to the number of consecutive down steps. We use Finite Operator Calculus to obtain formulas for the number of all such paths reaching a given point in the first quadrant. All our results are based on the Eulerian coefficients.
We show connection between Dyck paths with peaks of bounded height and random walks. The correspondence between a certain class of random walks and such Dyck paths allows us to develop a probabilistic perspective on Chebyshev polynomials.
The number of Dyck paths of semilength $n$ is famously $C_n$, the $n$th Catalan number. This fact follows after noticing that every Dyck path can be uniquely parsed according to a context-free grammar. In a recent paper, Zeilberger showed that many restricted sets of Dyck paths satisfy different, more complicated grammars, and from this derived various generating function identities. We take this further, highlighting some combinatorial results about Dyck paths obtained via grammatical proof and generalizing some of Zeilberger's grammars to infinite families.
In this paper we study a subfamily of a classic lattice path, the \emph{Dyck paths}, called \emph{restricted $d$-Dyck} paths, in short $d$-Dyck. A valley of a Dyck path $P$ is a local minimum of $P$; if the difference between the heights of two consecutive valleys (from left to right) is at least $d$, we say that $P$ is a restricted $d$-Dyck path. The \emph{area} of a Dyck path is the sum of the absolute values of $y$-components of all points in the path. We find the number of peaks and the area of all paths of a given length in the set of $d$-Dyck paths. We give a bivariate generating functio…
Dyck paths are one of the most important objects in enumerative combinatorics, and there are many papers devoted to counting selected families of Dyck paths. Here we present two approaches for the automatic counting of many such families, using both a "dumb" approach (driven by numeric dynamic programming) that often works in practice, and a "clever" approach, needed for larger problems, driven by "symbolic" dynamic programming. Both approaches are fully automated and implemented in Maple.
For any integer $m\geq 2$ and $r \in \{1,\dots, m\}$, let $f_n^{m,r}$ denote the number of $n$-Dyck paths whose peak's heights are $im+r$ for some integer $i$. We find the generating function of $f_n^{m,r}$ satisfies a simple algebraic functional equation of degree $2$. The $r=m$ case is particularly nice and we give a combinatorial proof. By using the Sulanke and Xin's continued fraction method, we calculate the Hankel determinants for $f_n^{m,r}$. The special case $r=m$ of our result solves a conjecture proposed by Chien, Eu and Fu. We also enriched the class of eventually periodic Hankel de…
In this note, we present constructive bijections from Dyck and Motzkin meanders with catastrophes to Dyck paths avoiding some patterns. As a byproduct, we deduce correspondences from Dyck and Motzkin excursions to restricted Dyck paths.
In this paper, we characterize and enumerate pattern-avoiding permutations composed of only 3-cycles. In particular, we answer the question for the six patterns of length 3. We find that the number of permutations composed of $n$ 3-cycles that avoid the pattern 231 (equivalently 312) is given by $3^{n-1}$, while the generating function for the number of those that avoid the pattern 132 (equivalently 213) is given by a formula involving the generating functions for the well-known Motzkin numbers and Catalan numbers. The number of permutations composed of $n$ 3-cycles that avoid the pattern 321 …
Motzkin paths with air pockets (MAP) of the first kind are defined as a generalization of Dyck paths with air pockets. They are lattice paths in $\mathbb{N}^2$ starting at the origin made of steps $U=(1,1)$, $D_k=(1,-k)$, $k\geq 1$ and $H=(1,0)$, where two down-steps cannot be consecutive. We enumerate MAP and their prefixes avoiding peaks (resp. valleys, resp. double rise) according to the length, the type of the last step, and the height of its end-point. We express our results using Riordan arrays. Finally, we provide constructive bijections between these paths and restricted Dyck and Motzk…
Recently, Naruse discovered a hook length formula for the number of standard Young tableaux of a skew shape. Morales, Pak and Panova found two $q$-analogs of Naruse's hook length formula over semistandard Young tableaux (SSYTs) and reverse plane partitions (RPPs). As an application of their formula, they expressed certain $q$-Euler numbers, which are generating functions for SSYTs and RPPs of a zigzag border strip, in terms of weighted Dyck paths. They found a determinantal formula for the generating function for SSYTs of a skew staircase shape and proposed two conjectures related to RPPs of t…
Euler showed that the number of partitions of $n$ into distinct parts equals the number of partitions of $n$ into odd parts. This theorem was generalized by Glaisher and further by Franklin. Recently, Beck made three conjectures on partitions with restricted parts, which were confirmed analytically by Andrews and Chern and combinatorially by Yang. Analogous to Euler's partition theorem, it is known that the number of compositions of $n$ with odd parts equals the number of compositions of $n+1$ with parts greater than one, as both numbers equal the Fibonacci number $F_n$. Recently, Sills provid…
Goulden and Jackson introduced a very powerful method to study the distributions of certain consecutive patterns in permutations, words, and other combinatorial objects which is now called the cluster method. There are a number of natural classes of combinatorial objects which start with either permutations or words and add additional restrictions. These include up-down permutations, generalized Euler permutations, words with no consecutive repeated letters, Young tableaux, and non-backtracking random walks. We develop an extension of the cluster method which we call the {\em generalized clust…
We derive the length and area generating function of planar height-restricted forward-moving discrete paths of increments +1, 0, or -1 with arbitrary starting and ending points, the so-called Motzkin meanders, and the more general length-area generating functions for Motzkin paths with markers monitoring the number of passages from the two height boundaries ('floor' and 'ceiling') and the time spent there. The results are obtained by embedding Motzkin paths in a two-step anisotropic Dyck path process and using propagator, exclusion statistics and bosonization techniques. We also present a clus…
This short note deals with the so-called $ Sock \; Matching \; Problem$. We define $B_{n,k}$ as the number of all the finite sequences $a_1, \ldots, a_{2n}$ of nonnegative integers which contain at least one occurrence of $k$ $(1 \leq k \leq n)$ and for which $a_1 = 1 $, $a_{2n}=0$ and $ \mid a_i -a_{i+1}\mid \; = 1$. The value $a_i$ can be interpreted as the number of unmatched socks being present after having drawn the first $i$ socks randomly out of the pile which initially contained $n$ pairs of socks. Here, establishing a link between this problem and with both some old and some new resul…
Inspired by a new mathematical model for bobbin lace, this paper considers finite lattice paths formed from the set of step vectors $\mathfrak{A}=$$\{\rightarrow,$ $\nearrow,$ $\searrow,$ $\uparrow,$ $\downarrow\}$ with the restriction that vertical steps $(\uparrow, \downarrow)$ cannot be consecutive. The set $\mathfrak{A}$ is the union of the well known Motzkin step vectors $\mathfrak{M}=$$\{\rightarrow,$ $\nearrow,$ $\searrow\}$ with the vertical steps $\{\uparrow, \downarrow\}$. An explicit bijection $ϕ$ between the exhaustive set of vertically constrained paths formed from $\mathfrak{A}$ …
