Star-critical connected Ramsey numbers for 2-colorings of complete graphs

Abstract

This paper builds upon Sumner's work by further investigating the concept of connected Ramsey numbers, specifically focusing on star-critical connected Ramsey numbers. We obtain star-critical connected Ramsey numbers for several cases of trees versus complete graphs, stars versus stars, and paths versus paths. The connected Ramsey number for a star versus $K_3$ is also evaluated. Exact values are also obtained for the connected Ramsey numbers of $K_{1,n}$ versus $K_3$. This research explores the interplay between connectivity and graph coloring within the context of Ramsey theory.