We show how a bijection due to Biane between involutions and labelled Motzkin paths yields bijections between Motzkin paths and two families of restricted involutions that are counted by Motzkin numbers, namely, involutions avoiding 4321 and 3412. As a consequence, we derive characterizations of Motzkin paths corresponding to involutions avoiding either 4321 or 3412 together with any pattern of length 3. Furthermore, we exploit the described bijection to study some notable subsets of the set of restricted involutions, namely, fixed point free and centrosymmetric restricted involutions.
In this note, we introduce a statistic on Motzkin paths that describes the rank generating function of Bruhat order for involutions. Our proof relies on a bijection introduced by Philippe Biane from permutations to certain labeled Motzkin paths and a recently introduced interpretation of this rank generating function in terms of visible inversions. By restricting our identity to fixed-point-free (FPF) involutions, we recover an identity due to Louis Billera, Lionel Levine and Karola Mészáros with a previous bijective proof by Matthew Watson. Our work sheds new light on the Ethiopian dinner gam…
The problem of counting plane trees with $n$ edges and an even or an odd number of leaves was studied by Eu, Liu and Yeh, in connection with an identity on coloring nets due to Stanley. This identity was also obtained by Bonin, Shapiro and Simion in their study of Schröder paths, and it was recently derived by Coker using the Lagrange inversion formula. An equivalent problem for partitions was independently studied by Klazar. We present three parity reversing involutions, one for unlabelled plane trees, the other for labelled plane trees and one for 2-Motzkin paths which are in one-to-one corr…
We examine the enumeration of certain Motzkin objects according to the numbers of crossings and nestings. With respect to continued fractions, we compute and express the distributions of the statistics of the numbers of crossings and nestings over three sets, namely the set of $4321$-avoiding involutions, the set of $3412$-avoiding involutions, and the set of $(321,3\bar{1}42)$-avoiding permutations. To get our results, we exploit the bijection of Biane restricted to the sets of $4321$- and $3412$-avoiding involutions which was characterized by Barnabei et al.~ and the bijection between $(321,…
We say that a permutation $π$ is a Motzkin permutation if it avoids 132 and there do not exist $a<b$ such that $π_a<π_b<π_{b+1}$. We study the distribution of several statistics in Motzkin permutations, including the length of the longest increasing and decreasing subsequences and the number of rises and descents. We also enumerate Motzkin permutations with additional restrictions, and study the distribution of occurrences of fairly general patterns in this class of permutations.
We give several bijections among restricted Motzkin paths, explaining why various parameters on these paths are equidistributed. For example, the number of doublerise-free Motzkin paths of length n is the same as the number of peak-free Motzkin paths of length n+1 and the parameter "number of doublefalls" has the same distribution on the former set as "number of valleys" does on the latter. The bijections are most easily presented recursively but we also give explicit descriptions using the notion of Motzkin tree.
Motzkin paths are simple yet important combinatorial objects. In this paper, we consider families of Motzkin paths with restrictions on peak heights, valley heights, upward-run lengths, downward-run lengths, and flat-run lengths. This paper presents two fully automated methods for enumerating the paths of such families. The first method uses numeric dynamic programming. While this method often times works, it can be slow and may not work for larger problems. The second method uses symbolic dynamic programming to solve such problems. These methods are implemented in the maple packages accompany…
We enumerate and characterize some classes of alternating and reverse alternating involutions avoiding a single pattern of length three or four. If on one hand the case of patterns of length three is trivial, on the other hand, the length four case is more challenging and involves sequences of combinatorial interest, such as Motzkin and Fibonacci numbers.
We study the fine structure of the sets of involutions avoiding either 4312 (I(4321)) or 3412 (I(3412)), connecting the point of view of the decomposition theorems with the one of the associated labelled Motzkin paths. The algebraic generating function of the simple involutions in I(4321) is given, together with other generating functions, while the set I(3412) is shown containing no simple involutions of length n>2. The reverse-complement bijection maintains the fine structures of I(4321) and trivially of I(3412).
We study the involutions belonging to the class of 321 avoiding permutations. We calculate the algebraic generating functions of the set containing the involutions avoiding 321 and of some of its subsets. Precisely we determine the algebraic generating functions of the involutions that are expansions of 12, of those expansions of 21, of the simple ones and of their expansions. The graphics of the simple involutions are caracterized. Being the simple involutions avoiding 321 counted by Riordan's numbers, a combinatoric interpretation of the results is illustrated through a class of Motzkin path…
We study generating functions for the number of involutions, even involutions, and odd involutions in $S_n$ subject to two restrictions. One restriction is that the involution avoid 3412 or contain 3412 exactly once. The other restriction is that the involution avoid another pattern $τ$ or contain $τ$ exactly once. In many cases we express these generating functions in terms of Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind.
Several authors have examined connections among restricted permutations, continued fractions, and Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind. In this paper we prove analogues of these results for involutions which avoid 3412. Our results include a recursive procedure for computing the generating function for involutions which avoid 3412 and any set of additional patterns. We use our results to give enumerations and generating functions for involutions which avoid 3412 and various sets of additional patterns. In many cases we express these generating functions in terms of Chebyshev polynomials of…
In this paper we prove a refined major-balance identity on the $321$-avoiding involutions of length $n$, respecting the leading element of permutations. The proof is based on a sign-reversing involution on the lattice paths within a $\lfloor\frac{n}{2}\rfloor\times\lceil\frac{n}{2}\rceil$ rectangle. Moreover, we prove affirmatively a question about refined major-balance identity on the $123$-avoiding involutions, respecting the number of descents.
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.
Laguerre histories (restricted or not) are certain weighted Motzkin paths with two types of level steps. They are, on one hand, in natural bijection with the set of permutations, and on the other hand, yield combinatorial interpretations for the moments of Laguerre polynomials via Flajolet's combinatorial theory of continued fractions. In this paper, we first introduce a reflection-like involution on restricted Laguerre histories. Then, we demonstrate its power by composing this involution with three bijections due to Fran\ccon-Viennot, Foata-Zeilberger, and Yan-Zhou-Lin, respectively. A host …
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…
We study generating functions for the number of involutions in $S_n$ avoiding (or containing once) 132, and avoiding (or containing once) an arbitrary permutation $τ$ on $k$ letters. In several interesting cases the generating function depends only on $k$ and is expressed via Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind. In particular, we establish that involutions avoiding both 132 and $12... k$ have the same enumerative formula according to the length than involutions avoiding both 132 and any {\em double-wedge pattern} possibly followed by fixed points of total length $k$. Many results are also…
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…
Let $A_k$ be the set of permutations in the symmetric group $S_k$ with prefix 12. This paper concerns the enumeration of involutions which avoid the set of patterns $A_k$. We present a bijection between symmetric Schroder paths of length $2n$ and involutions of length $n+1$ avoiding $\mathcal{A}_4$. Statistics such as the number of right-to-left maxima and fixed points of the involution correspond to the number of steps in the symmetric Schroder path of a particular type. For each $k> 2$ we determine the generating function for the number of involutions avoiding the subsequences in $A_k$, acco…
In [GM] Guibert and Mansour studied involutions on n letters avoiding (or containing exactly once) 132 and avoiding (or containing exactly once) an arbitrary pattern on k letters. They also established a bijection between 132-avoiding involutions and Dyck word prefixes of same length. Extending this bijection to bilateral words allows to determine more parameters; in particular, we consider the number of inversions and rises of the involutions onto the words. This is the starting point for considering two different directions: even/odd involutions and statistics of some generalized patterns. T…
Define $I_n^k(α)$ to be the set of involutions of $\{1,2,...,n\}$ with exactly $k$ fixed points which avoid the pattern $α\in S_i$, for some $i \geq 2$, and define $I_n^k(\emptyset;α)$ to be the set of involutions of $\{1,2,...,n\}$ with exactly $k$ fixed points which contain the pattern $α\in S_i$, for some $i \geq 2$, exactly once. Let $i_n^k(α)$ be the number of elements in $I_n^k(α)$ and let $i_n^k(\emptyset;α)$ be the number of elements in $I_n^k(\emptyset;α)$. We investigate $I_n^k(α)$ and $I_n^k(\emptyset;α)$ for all $α\in S_3$. In particular, we show that $i_n^k(132)=i_n^k(213)=i_n^k(3…
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 $\mathfrak{A}$ …
The known bijections on Dyck paths are either involutions or have notoriously intractable cycle structure. Here we present a size-preserving bijection on Dyck paths whose cycle structure is amenable to complete analysis. In particular, each cycle has length a power of 2. A new manifestation of the Catalan numbers as labeled forests crops up enroute as does the Pascal matrix mod 2. We use the bijection to show the equivalence of two known manifestations of the Motzkin numbers. Finally, we consider some statistics on the new Catalan manifestation.
We use Naito-Sagaki's work [S. Naito & D. Sagaki, J. Algebra 245 (2001) 395--412, J. Algebra 251 (2002) 461--474] on Lakshmibai-Seshadri paths fixed by diagram automorphisms to study the partitions fixed by Mullineux involution. We characterize the set of Mullineux-fixed partitions in terms of crystal graphs of basic representations of twisted affine Lie algebras of type $A_{2\ell}^{(2)}$ and of type $D_{\ell+1}^{(2)}$. We set up bijections between the set of symmetric partitions and the set of partitions into distinct parts. We propose a notion of double restricted strict partitions. Bijectio…
We exhibit a bijection between 132-avoiding permutations and Dyck paths. Using this bijection, it is shown that all the recently discovered results on generating functions for 132-avoiding permutations with a given number of occurrences of the pattern $12... k$ follow directly from old results on the enumeration of Motzkin paths, among which is a continued fraction result due to Flajolet. As a bonus, we use these observations to derive further results and a precise asymptotic estimate for the number of 132-avoiding permutations of $\{1,2,...,n\}$ with exactly $r$ occurrences of the pattern $12…
We consider the two permutation statistics which count the distinct pairs obtained from the last two terms of occurrences of patterns t_1...t_{m-2}m(m-1) and t_1...t_{m-2}(m-1)m in a permutation, respectively. By a simple involution in terms of permutation diagrams we will prove their equidistribution over the symmetric group. As special case we derive a one-to-one correspondence between permutations which avoid each of the patterns t_1...t_{m-2}m(m-1) in S_m and such ones which avoid each of the patterns t_1...t_{m-2}(m-1)m. For m=3, this correspondence coincides with the bijection given by S…
We define $(k,\ell)$-restricted Lukasiewicz paths, $k\le\ell\in\mathbb{N}_0$, and use these paths as models of polymer adsorption. We write down a polynomial expression satisfied by the generating function for arbitrary values of $(k,\ell)$. The resulting polynomial is of degree $\ell+1$ and hence cannot be solved explicitly for sufficiently large $\ell$. We provide two different approaches to obtain the phase diagram. In addition to a more conventional analysis, we also develop a new mathematical characterization of the phase diagram in terms of the discriminant of the polynomial and a zero o…
