On Perfect Sequence Covering Arrays

Aidan R. Gentle, Ian M. Wanless

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Abstract

A PSCA(v, t, λ) is a multiset of permutations of the v-element alphabet { 0 , ⋯ , v- 1 } , such that every sequence of t distinct elements of the alphabet appears in the specified order in exactly λ of the permutations. For v⩾ t⩾ 2 , we define g(v, t) to be the smallest positive integer λ, such that a PSCA(v, t, λ) exists. We show that g(6 , 3) = g(7 , 3) = g(7 , 4) = 2 and g(8 , 3) = 3. Using suitable permutation representations of groups, we make improvements to the upper bounds on g(v, t) for many values of v⩽ 32 and 3 ⩽ t⩽ 6. We also prove a number of restrictions on the distribution of symbols among the columns of a PSCA.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)539-564
Number of pages26
JournalAnnals of Combinatorics
Volume27
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2023

Keywords

  • exact covering
  • multiply transitive group
  • permutation representation
  • Sequence covering array

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