What is the time complexity of Bellman-Ford single-source shortest path…

20132013

What is the time complexity of Bellman-Ford single-source shortest path algorithm on a complete graph of \(n\) vertices?

  1. A.

    \(Θ(n^2)\)

  2. B.

    \( Θ(n^2 \ log \ n) \)

  3. C.

    \(Θ(n^3)\)

  4. D.

    \( Θ(n^3 \ log \ n) \)

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Correct answer: C

Key idea: Bellman-Ford performs |V|-1 iterations and relaxes every edge in each iteration, so its running time is Θ(V·E).

  • Step 1: General running time is Θ(V·E) (V = number of vertices, E = number of edges).

  • Step 2: For a complete graph with n vertices, E = n(n−1)/2 = Θ(n^2).

  • Step 3: Substitute E = Θ(n^2) and V = n into Θ(V·E) to get Θ(n·n^2) = Θ(n^3).

Therefore, the time complexity of Bellman-Ford on a complete graph of n vertices is Θ(n^3).

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