Random walks, universal traversal sequences, and the complexity of maze problems

Abstract

It is well known that the reachability problem for directed graphs is logspace-complete for the complexity class NSPACE(log n) , and thus holds the key to the open question of whether DSPACE(logn)= NSPACE(logn) ([3,4,5,6]). Here as usual OSPACE(logn) is the class of languages that are accepted in logn space by deterministic Turing Ma chi nes, wh i 1eNSPACE( log n) i s the c1ass 0 f 1anguages that are accepted in log n space by nondeterministic ones. The reachability problem for undirected graphs has also been considered ([5]), but it has remained an open question whether undirected graph reachability is logspace-complete for NSPACE(logn). Here we derive results suggesting that the undirected reachability problem is structurally different from, and easier than, the directed version. These results are an affirmative answer to a question of S. Cook.